Convergence Conference: Autonomous vehicles in society: Building a research agenda

Autonomous vehicles are coming. History shows that revolutionary change in transportation systems can have far reaching social, economic, legal and ethical implications. This is not just a technical innovation. Autonomous vehicles exemplify a broader phenomenon: "Intelligent, interactive, and highly networked machines--with which people increasingly share their autonomy and agency--are a growing part of the landscape, particularly in regards to work.” (NSF, DCL 17-065) The World Economic Forum (2016) describes these developments as a “Fourth Industrial Revolution”, signaling the scope and scale of the expected impacts.

The aim of this convergence conference is to produce an agenda for convergent, interdisciplinary research. To do so, we will bring together participants from diverse perspectives (e.g., business, government, law, geography, psychology, computer science, urban planning and more) in order to identify common research themes related to this rapidly emerging technology. We envision a shared repository for data, to support interdisciplinary research and to streamline interactions between business, policymakers and academia.

Invited speakers include:

• Shan Bao, UM Transportation Research Institute
• Melissa Cefkin, Nissan
• Ed Straub, American Center for Mobility
• Mark de la Vergne, Chief Mobility Officer, City of Detroit
• Kirk Steudle, Michigan DOT
• Diane Bailey, UT Austin, School of Information
• Jack Stilgoe, University College London
• Erik Stayton, MIT Science Technology and Society
• John King, W.W. Bishop Professor, University of Michigan, School of Information

The program will be designed to maximize the convergence of people and ideas, with brief presentations and extensive breakout/discussion. Possible research themes include: (1) Skills and occupations; (2) Individual experience and public perception; (3) Urban and regional impacts; (4) Routines, processes and work; (5) Organizational and competitive ecology; and (6) Public policy implications.

The conference took place at the James B. Henry Center for Executive Development at Michigan State University (3535 Forest Rd., Lansing, MI, 48910, USA). The workshop will begin at 8 am ET on Friday, May 18, adjourning after lunch on Saturday, May 19. The agenda is attached.

This convergence conference is the first in a series sponsored by the NSF Research Collaboration Network on Work in the Age of Intelligent Machines (NSF IIS- 1745463). It is co-sponsored by the MSU Center for Business and Social Analytics, in cooperation with the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research and the Department of Urban Planning and Design.

For more information, please contact the co-organizers, Kevin Crowston, Ingrid Erickson, Jeff Nickerson or Brian Pentland at avs18@waim.network.