Given the collective wealth of human civilisation, why does poverty persist? Part of the reason is unproductive investment. Part of the solution is technology. Examples, respectively, are individual car ownership & the self driving car.
Individually & as a society, we have an enormous investment in individual car ownership. Most of the time, this investment sits idle. Mainly in the garage, or the parking lot at work.
For enthusiasts, car ownership, & associated activities, is an end in itself.
To a greater or lesser extent, for others, the vehicle itself is of little importance. What is important is 24/7 access to door-to-door transportation.
Once cars are self-driving, why do you need a car in your garage, in the parking lot at work, or anywhere else in particular? All you need is one outside the door — whether it be at home, work, or wherever you happen to be. If you're not leaving right now, that car can be somewhere else, driving someone else.
Because such a system makes better use of the national fleet, the total investment in cars, parking, garaging & other services will be much smaller. Resources thus released can be turned to other purposes.
Discussion of self driving cars begins at the 22 minute mark:
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