Autonomous Vehicles: Safety Concerns Outweigh Claims

I want to mention the article titled "Fatal crash to increase demand at lidar sensor maker" in the newsletter. It talks about the collision involving a Xiaomi SU7 electric vehicle in mainland China. The main issue highlighted is that the so-called "autonomous" EVs are not truly autonomous since they require a human driver to be alert at all times. Features like forward collision warning and blind spot warning, though valuable, have limitations. Xiaomi's basic SU7 model uses cameras, which may be less effective in adverse weather conditions. The crash might lead to the adoption of lidar sensors, which use laser beams, though concerns about their impact on human eyes were not addressed. Xiaomi admitted that the self-driving system alerted the driver two seconds before the crash, which is a very short time. This reiterates the importance of human vigilance. In another article, it was mentioned that hospitals are adopting measures to reduce mistakes, including using vital sign monitors for high-risk patients. While this can reduce the workload of nurses, human contact remains crucial for patient recovery. The cultural big data system proposed to develop Hong Kong as a hub for cultural exchanges involves collecting data on cultural spaces and education. This data is essential for understanding the city's cultural landscape and fostering innovation in the arts and creative industries.