Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak Says There Won’t Be Self-Driving Cars Anytime Soon

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak: Tesla makes so many mistakes from CNBC.

If you only read the headlines, you might think autonomous cars are just around the corner. But Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak, tells us we still have a while. His personal experience has led him to believe this

In a TV interview with CNBC, the former Apple engineer said the self-driving car industry is far from ready for consumer use. Wozniak says he had once hoped that Apple would build the first self-driving car.

“I do not believe in auto-driving cars,” he said. “I don’t really believe it’s quite possible yet.”

Wozniak was initially excited about the prospect and purchased a Tesla to be “a part of the crowd” ushering in the era of autonomous driving. But he is critical of how the company has progressed to that goal in the intervening years.

Instead, he now sees “assistive driving” to help cars spot red lights, stop signs, and avoid accidents as the way to go.

Tesla’s autopilot technology does a really good job of driving the car and can carry out maneuvers like changing lanes in traffic on its own but it still requires the driver to keep their hands on the wheel.

When asked if there was a time he wished Apple had bought Tesla, he admitted there was a time when he thought such an idea was desirable because Tesla was “making a real statement” for electric cars. But while he gives major credit to Tesla for kickstarting the electric vehicle revolution, he has since grown disappointed with the company that has come to be synonymous with self-driving consumer vehicles.