zoox – ride, don't drive
I love watching sci-fi unfold in front of me. Seriously, we live in exciting times. What’s happening in the world of tech right now is incredibly close to a lot of the things that were science fiction when I grew up in the nineties. Amazon’s zoox is a new driverless vehicle designed from the ground up. This is no car that’s been retrofitted with autonomous drive, this is a new class of transport and I love the statement: Designed for riders, not drivers.
The idea of driving being enjoyable feels incredibly outdated to me. Yes, my hedonistic self says driving can be fun. On an open road with a surfboard in the back. But let’s face it, the bulk of the driving is sitting in heavy traffic during rush hour on urban roads. And I can think of a better use of my time than holding a steering wheel while waiting for a traffic light. I’d rather watch a movie, read an article or check my emails. And I’m all for autonomous driving. Humans are terrible drivers. Too much ego. It will be interesting to see how this all rolls out in the next decade or two when human drivers and autonomous vehicles will have to co-exist. But for the time being, let’s watch a bit of sci-fi unfold right in front of us.
