New research from Intel shows that consumers are looking forward to a self-driving car future even while harboring fears and uncertainty now.
The US chipmaker said that when asked what they expect to do in an autonomous vehicle in the next 50 years, the poll respondents cited a full gamut of activities, including consuming entertainment (58 percent), socializing (57 percent), working (57 percent), hosting meetings (33 percent), grooming (26 percent) and doing exercise (14 percent).
The Intel Next 50 study was conducted by PSB from May 9 to 20 using an online survey of consumers and technology elites in the US to "understand current attitudes toward technology and its role in day-to-day activities."
Poll results reveal that millennials are consistently more excited than their older counterparts when it comes to emerging technologies such as autonomous vehicles.
Sixty-one percent of poll-respondents belonging to the 18-34 age group said they are excited about autonomous vehicles, compared with the 38 percent who are excited from the age 35 and above group.
The younger generation is also excited about smart home technology (71 percent) drones (55 percent) computers (87 percent) and smartphones (87 percent).
Next to millennials, parents with children also responded positively about emerging technology with 55 percent of respondents from this segment saying they are excited about autonomous vehicles.
The survey noted that "parents are also more trustful of artificial intelligence devices, looking forward to when these technologies can predict their needs."
But the study also found that consumers are conflicted about the promise of connected vehicles.
The survey noted that nearly half of consumers surveyed (43 percent) said they don’t feel safe around autonomous vehicles (AV) – with women more fearful than men.
"At the same time, more than half of consumers look forward to the day when they won’t have to drive and expect to be using their car time for entertainment or work within 50 years," Intel said.
"Cars will no longer simply be about mobility, they will hold the potential to become experiential transportation pods," it added.
