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Driverless Trucks

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Warren Buffett Views Autonomous Trucks as a Dead-End Road The concept of driverless trucks has recently jostled the transportation industry, as many employees debate potential economic turmoil in the foreseeable future. However, truck drivers everywhere may be relieved to discover that world-renowned business tycoon, Warren Buffett, is betting big on their livelihoods, and sees no need to worry about an impending AI driver revolution. One has to hope that he is right, as Buffett recently acquired a 38.6% stake in North America’s largest truck stop chain, Pilot Flying J, at an undisclosed dollar value through his legendary holding company, Berkshire Hathaway. Furthermore, Buffett and his associates really drove home their confidence in the …show more content…
Everything on the roads including traffic lights, signals, signs and vehicle-to-vehicle interactions will need to be engineered to interact harmoniously, and as more driverless vehicles are added to the mix, the entire system will become exponentially more complex. In essence, even when the AI technology is developed, we can still expect many years of delays before human drivers are phased out. Speaking of AI technology, actually developing it to the point of market readiness is likely a much lengthier process then people are crediting it for, as far as Buffett is concerned. This is unsurprising when one considers that each small step forward in driverless technology will require advances in sensing and AI that are many times more significant than those prior. It is likely that the small step needed to reach market readiness could take as long to bridge as all of the previous research …show more content…
If Buffett’s seemingly mystical powers as a financial seer hold true, then his gamble assures that truckers will remain employed and thriving well into the foreseeable future. So long as AI remains in the distant horizon, employees of the transportation industry will remain unshaken by a damning wave of driverless transport vehicles, and generous increases in revenue among the industry will likely continue. In turn, this gamble will prove to be one of Berkshire Hathaway’s most fruitful endeavours, and will serve to further solidify Warren Buffett’s already near-flawless record as an investing guru. However, if Buffett’s predictions turn out to be off the mark, and AI makes an unexpected arrival within the next few years, disaster could ensue for many of Berkshire’s investments, and their recent acquisition of Pilot flying J in particular. Without human drivers, the transport industry will no longer be in need of rest stops, food services, or any other human amenities, making truck stops like Pilot Flying J’s obsolete. Furthermore, the significant cost reductions that ensue from the advent of AI transport will undermine Berkshire’s investments in Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. Railroad and GEICO. This is not to mention the significant political, legal, and infrastructural destabilization that will

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