3 Questions: John Leonard on the future of autonomous vehicles

3 Questions: John Leonard on the future of autonomous vehicles:
As part of the MIT Task Force on the Work of the Future’s new series of research briefs, professor of mechanical engineering John Leonard teamed with professor of aeronautics and astronautics and the Dibner Professor of the History of Engineering and Manufacturing David Mindell and with doctoral candidate Erik Stayton to explore the future of autonomous vehicles (AV) — an area that could arguably be called the touchstone for the discussion of jobs of the future in recent years. Leonard is the Samuel C. Collins Professor of Mechanical and Ocean Engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, a member of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), and member of the MIT Task Force on the Work of the Future. His research addresses navigation and mapping for autonomous mobile robots operating in challenging environments. 
Their research brief, “Autonomous Vehicles, Mobility, and Employment Policy: The Roads Ahead,” looks at how the AV transition will affect jobs and explores how sustained investments in workforce training for advanced mobility can help drivers and other mobility workers transition into new careers that support mobility systems and technologies. It also highlights the policies that will greatly ease the integration of automated systems into urban mobility systems, including investing in local and national infrastructure, and forming public-private partnerships. Leonard spoke recently on some of the findings in the brief.