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Ethics questions as self-driving vehicles evolve

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New social norms, ethics and legal frameworks often take time to catch up with technological progress.
When we all started carrying mobile phones, it took a number of years for social etiquette to become fully-formed. It took longer still for laws to come into force to control how we use our phones whilst driving.
We are just now starting to see the thinking around self-driving cars evolve. For example, there is a need to define and encode solutions to the trolley problem – how will autonomous vehicles act when put into a situation where they need to choose between two bad outcomes that may involve harming humans? Who will be legally liable for the harm caused?
Society will work this out over time, but it could take years to define and build-up legal precedents and legislation to encapsulate the thinking. Legal frameworks may also end up varying from region to region, requiring cars to alter their algorithms as they cross borders.
The problem of social norms and socially acceptable behaviour is not new but becomes more complex and its outcome becomes more serious as we automate more devices that can cause significant harm if incorrectly controlled.

Estimated reading time: 2 min

 

Due to the potential for losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) considers this investment to be high risk.

What are the key risks?

  1. You could lose all the money you invest
    1. If the business you invest in fails, you are likely to lose 100% of the money you invested. Most start-up businesses fail.
  2. You are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong
    1. Protection from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), in relation to claims against failed regulated firms, does not cover poor investment performance. Try the FSCS investment protection checker here.
    2. Protection from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) does not cover poor investment performance. If you have a complaint against an FCA-regulated firm, FOS may be able to consider it. Learn more about FOS protection here.
  3. You won’t get your money back quickly
    1. Even if the business you invest in is successful, it may take several years to get your money back. You are unlikely to be able to sell your investment early.
    2. The most likely way to get your money back is if the business is bought by another business or lists its shares on an exchange such as the London Stock Exchange. These events are not common.
    3. If you are investing in a start-up business, you should not expect to get your money back through dividends. Start-up businesses rarely pay these.
  4. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
    1. Putting all your money into a single business or type of investment for example, is risky. Spreading your money across different investments makes you less dependent on any one to do well.
    2. A good rule of thumb is not to invest more than 10% of your money in high-risk investments. https://www.fca.org.uk/investsmart/5-questions-ask-you-invest
  5. The value of your investment can be reduced
    1. The percentage of the business that you own will decrease if the business issues more shares. This could mean that the value of your investment reduces, depending on how much the business grows. Most start-up businesses issue multiple rounds of shares.
    2. These new shares could have additional rights that your shares don’t have, such as the right to receive a fixed dividend, which could further reduce your chances of getting a return on your investment.

 

If you are interested in learning more about how to protect yourself, visit the FCA’s website here.