Uber CEO: In the Future, You Won't Own Your Car
It has been nearly 10 years since the World Economic Forum published the now-infamous article imagining a future in which “you’ll own nothing” and supposedly “be happy.”
Although the WEF later removed the article after widespread public backlash, the idea has never really gone away. In fact, in some sectors, we seem to be moving closer to that future every year.
In a series of recent interviews, Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber, described how autonomous vehicles could transform transportation in America.
For instance, corporations and financial firms could own fleets of self-driving vehicles while ordinary Americans simply request access through an app.
The Era of Autonomous Vehicles Is Here
It feels like we have been promised driverless cars for decades. Futurists and innovators have long painted a picture of a world where people no longer pilot their own vehicles. Instead, cars equipped with cameras, sensors, and advanced technology would effortlessly whisk commuters through city and neighborhood streets.
In the past few years, this potential technological marvel has become a practical reality. In October 2020, Google’s autonomous vehicle company, Waymo, officially opened its driverless car service to the public.
Since then, several other companies have moved in the same direction. Tesla has released self-driving features for select vehicles, while Amazon’s Zoox vehicles have begun shuttling people along the Las Vegas Strip.
Most recently, Tesla’s new autonomous Cybercabs have begun rolling off the assembly line. These vehicles, expected to become available soon, lack a steering wheel or control pedals.
Potentially the most consequential move comes from Uber, the ridesharing giant that has announced partnerships with several autonomous firms, including Lucid, Nuro, Waymo, and others, to eventually bring self-driving services to its massive user base.
This is where the story gets interesting.
‘It’s Just Not Going to Make Sense for You to Own Your Own Car’
At the recent Abundance360 Summit in Los Angeles, Khosrowshahi was interviewed about the future of driverless vehicles. During the interview, he explained how he believes the transformation of the transportation sector will unfold.
“There isn’t going to be this kind of binary outcome, which is either all autonomous or no autonomous,” he said. “It’s going to develop in a hybrid way. And you’re going to have fleets in cities that consist of some autonomous vehicles and then many human-driven vehicles as well.”
Khosrowshahi underscored Uber’s commitment to autonomous vehicles, explaining that the company has 20 partners in the autonomous space and intends to have driverless cars in 15 cities by the end of the year.
“And by 2029,” he said, “we think that we will facilitate more autonomous and robotaxi rides than anyone else in the world.”
In response to a question about the costs associated with car ownership, Khosrowshahi revealed the ultimate endpoint of this technology, saying, “I think ultimately … it’s just not going to make sense for you to own your own car.”
In his version of the future, corporations own vehicles, not you. This is not speculation, either. Khosrowshahi detailed exactly what he means.
He explained how Uber will own many of these self-driving cars in the short term. However, he details a future where “financial players, you know, the Blackstones of the world” own “large fleets of cars” that “give a 9% yield.”
That’s right. Khosrowshahi specifically mentioned, by name, the corporation that has become known for buying up thousands of single-family homes throughout the country and turning them into rental properties.
The Job Disruption Problem
The concept of self-driving cars has also raised serious concerns about job disruption. Today, millions of people make a living driving cars, trucks, buses, and delivery vehicles. Many of these jobs could be threatened by autonomous vehicle technology.
The true scale of this threat has been studied and debated by researchers and policymakers alike, but estimates vary widely. Some suggest the implications could be seismic, while others suggest a more modest transformation is likely.
Khosrowshahi has thoughts on this matter.
Several months ago, at the All-In Summit, he was asked directly about the potential for job disruption from autonomous vehicles. He responded, “It’s a big issue for AI in general and job displacement.”
For Uber, he argued, at least for the next five years, robot cars coming onto the platform would not displace people, because the platform is growing so quickly that Uber can “very easily take that demand.”
Khosrowshahi then admitted, “I think 10-15 years from now this is going to be a real issue and … I don’t have a neat answer for it.”
That is a remarkable admission. The people building this future understand that mass disruption may be coming. They just do not have a clear answer for what happens when or if it arrives.
When Someone Else Owns the Car, They Make the Rules
For many readers, the problem with this rearrangement of ownership may not be immediately apparent. Sure, potential job disruption could be an issue, but what is the problem with turning transportation into a service?
For many, it might even sound appealing. No more car maintenance. No more insurance. No more parking headaches. Just order a ride through an app and go.
The concern arises when you consider the implications of giving massive corporations control over huge swaths of the transportation system.
As of now, transportation is largely decentralized. Decisions about travel are mostly left to individual commuters. They decide where they want to go, when they want to go there, and how they choose to travel, with very little oversight.
In a future where corporations like Google, Uber, and Blackstone own vast fleets of vehicles, those corporations may feel empowered to make some of those decisions for you. After all, they own the vehicle, not you.
Consider how social media companies have acted in recent years, stirring concerns about “Big Tech Censorship.” These corporations pressed their thumbs on the scale of public discourse by banning certain personalities, suppressing content, and demonetizing viewpoints.
Is it inconceivable that some of these same corporations, or others like them, could exercise similar practices in the transportation sector?
Could people be denied access to transportation services based on their political beliefs or statements they have made on social media (which has happened already)?
Could access be limited to curtail climate change? Could ESG or other corporate social credit systems encourage companies to restrict travel based on a user’s carbon footprint?
Could the political winds of the day lead platforms to restrict rides to a firearms store, a church, or a specific political rally?
The original “you’ll own nothing” article was meant to illustrate an economy where goods and assets were increasingly provided as services rather than sold directly to consumers.
The reason that article drew such backlash is the same reason we should be vigilant about the future described by Uber’s CEO.
When someone else owns the thing in question, they make the rules, not you.
The views expressed in this opinion article are those of their author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by the owners of this website. If you are interested in contributing an Op-Ed to The Western Journal, you can learn about our submission guidelines and process here.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
