Automakers most trusted to develop self-driving tech: survey

Amid rising competition between automotive and IT companies to take the lead in securing autonomous driving technology, consumers expressed more trust in self-driving technology developed by conventional automakers, a survey showed Sunday.

Out of the 5,045 people surveyed across five countries -- the US, the UK, Italy, Germany and France -- 30 percent answered they trust autonomous driving technology put together by auto firms, according to the survey complied by Inrix, a US-based connected car services and transportation analytics firm.

“Consumers showed a tendency to trust conventional automakers based on familiarity. This is because self-driving technology is not yet complete, and has room for improvement,” according to Inrix.

Next up on the list of trusted self-driving technology developer were IT firms, such as Apple and Google, backed by 20 percent of respondents, while 9 percent answered they would not trust autonomous cars at all, the survey showed.

The market for self-driving cars is expected to reach $42 billion by 2025, according to US-based global consulting firm Boston Consulting Group. It is also anticipated to stand for one-fourth of vehicle sales worldwide by 2035, said BCG.

Conventional automakers, for now, are seen to have an advantage over rival industries in producing affordable self-driving cars.

“The era of autonomous driving is just around the corner. However, lowering the cost of technologies related to self-driving, in particular lidar sensors, is a key hurdle in popularizing self-driving vehicles,” said an official of a local auto parts company.