OK self driving cars aren't perfect
I don't think anyone expects auto-pilot / driving-assist / fully autonomous cars to be perfect; we will still have accidents for lots of reasons. However, the consensus is that we'll have a lot less accidents, and as we gradually perfect the systems the accident rate will continue to drop. Someone clever said 'science progresses one death at a time' and I expect it will be the same with this technology.
If the self drive system needs you to pay attention its not good enough, I imagine I'd stop paying attention very quickly once I'd got over the initial excitement. This is a backward step perhaps introduced as a placatory measure, but it can be no more permanent than having men with red flags walking in front of the car.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
