Autonomous Vehicles, the Badness of Death, and Discrimination

Abstract

Abstract The aim of this chapter is to address concerns regarding possible discriminatory behavior of autonomous vehicles (AVs) in collision situations. In the first part, the author analyzes paradigmatic cases of direct discrimination and arrives at a semiformal definition of it. The second part is devoted to a thorough investigation into the nature and badness of death and culminates with a defense and characterization of the deprivation account of the badness of death. In the final part, the author sets out to apply the analysis, conclusions, and conceptual distinctions from the previous two parts to the problem of whether distributing harms based on age necessarily involves some form of discrimination. The conclusion is negative: if an AV distinguished between two possible trajectories, each of which would lead to the death of a human person, on the basis of age, its choice and behavior would not be an instance of direct discrimination.