There’s a reason why, even against a landscape of widespread technological disruption, autonomous vehicles may be the most disruptive innovation, ever – from an economic perspective at least.

As the trillion dollar automotive sales market transforms to a world of ubiquitous mobility services, autonomy will be the foundational technology driving this transition. The 400 billion hours a year currently spent driving will start to get released by autonomous technologies, and the economic impact will be staggering. And this will not only affect the automotive and mobility industry but have widespread implications on used-car values, capital markets, real-estate and and range of other sectors.

Viewpoints on how this space evolves could not be more disparate, with companies like Tesla touting full autonomy within 6 months, and other companies claiming it will take a decade for the technology to mature.

In the next five years, a large percentage of vehicles produced will have autonomous driving capabilities. Behind this is an ecosystem of software and hardware.

• Sensor technologies (for perceiving/sensing)
• Processor technology (for decision making)
• AI for learning how to drive
• Communication standards

And on top of this a new breed of mobility services will emerge, that may use autonomy in entirely new business models.

As the self-driving car ecosystem expands over the next several years, in-vehicle IoT strategy will emerge and be of critical importance to all players across the value chain.

The myriad benefits of autonomous vehicles in terms of saving human lives goes without saying, with 90% of accidents caused by human error. That, along with cost and fuel savings, reduction in parking and traffic issues, reduced pollution, and the transition from internal combustion engines to electricity all drive the long-term potential of the market.

We’re not too far off from having productive and enjoyable commutes — come learn what this might mean for the the technology industry and how it will affect the world at large.