Initially, consumers looking for additional safety, freedom to read and sleep on the way to work, and nondrivers will be the primary users of autonomous cars. Then the nation’s two largest demographic groups — aging baby boomers who do not want to give up their freedom to get around and young adult millennials who are comfortable with the new technology — will be at the forefront of growing demand. Let’s take a look into the not-very-distant future.

The daily routine of a typical family of four revolves around the automobile. When cars drive themselves, one parent can leave early for the office in the car, reading and/or working along the way. When the rest of the household is finished with breakfast, the same car will return home to pick up other family members, then stop by school and the second parent’s workplace. With some time to kill, the car could take itself to a repair shop or car wash, and then transport an elderly or blind neighbor somewhere. Before the w