this post was submitted on 01 May 2024
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But on the flip side, you also have to consider how much cheaper, well, literally everything, will be when it doesn't cost $30 an hour to move a product from one place to another?
Everything will cost so much less that Universal Basic Income wouldn't need to be anywhere near as high as it is right now to be "living wage".
Like it or not - self driving trucks are coming. We need to find a way to adjust to that. The timeline for when is probably not "when will the tech be ready" but rather "when will society be ready". I'm pretty sure if you deployed self driving trucks today, pitchforks would come out and those trucks would be blocked by civil disobedience.
Slow it down too much though, and you'll put your whole economy at a global disadvantage. A first would country could easily become a third world one by refusing to allow autonomous trucks. Autonomous trucks already exist and not just on pristine highways — for example they're used on mine sites with no roads at all — https://thewest.com.au/business/mining/bhp-autonomous-trucks-collide-at-jimblebar-iron-ore-mine-in-pilbara-ng-b881139676z
Nothing will be cheaper. It'll go to profits.
Assuming companies would pass the saving to their customers, which is usually not the case these days.
Remember when prices went down when self checkout became a thing everywhere?
I dont.
Oh you sweet summer child. There is zero chance that the cost savings will be passed on to consumers. In fact, I'll bet prices go up after an initial plateau.
At first, profits will rise due to the lack of $30/hr costs - and shareholders will celebrate the innovation.
Then when the migration to self-driving semis is complete and that profit levels out, shareholders will be pissed that the profits don't continue to rise - so prices will rise again.
No, it is not true. Trucks are big. In total, transportation is dead cheap.
When has the price of anything ever come down?
I've been around for quite some time now, and I've seen things get pretty damn advanced, but not once have I EVER seen the prices of something go down.
But of course! Trickle down economy at work! /s
It doesn't cost much to have a driver as compared to the value amd volume of product. The expense is the fuel.
Those mining trucks don't have to deal with Altimas.