When Smart Cars make Bad Choices

Its 2030 and a SUV driven by an Autonomous Driving System (ADS) is heading west on a highway. The SUV contains two parents in the front seats and two small children in the back seat. The SUV is going the speed limit of 100 km/hour. The SUV drives through a tight corner and as the SUV makes the final turn a large bull moose weighing over six hundred kilograms shambles onto the road. The autonomous driving system driving the SUV was trained to select the best alternative out of as set of possible outcomes and so the SUV abruptly swerves into the left lane currently occupied by a small sedan going the same speed as the SUV. The SUV ADS had determined that saving the lives of two adults and two children was the greater good even though there was a significant risk that the small sedan would be forced into oncoming traffic travelling East putting the two adult occupants at mortal risk.