LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao took part in the Consumer Electronics Show on Wednesday as a keynote speaker, to talk about what the federal government is doing to stay ahead of the tech curve in the area of transportation, especially autonomous vehicles.
Chao says there are 38 agencies and departments within the federal government and each could have a different idea on how to deal with autonomous vehicle technology.
That’s why she was rolling out a set of guidelines called AV 4.0 to ensure American leadership in AV Technology.
“We want to address legitimate public concerns about safety and security, cybersecurity,” said Chao, “because automated vehicles can be weaponized, so we need to make sure they are safe from cybersecurity point of view.”
David Dominic, who works on autonomous vehicle technology with Hyundai-Mobis, says involvement by the federal government can bring needed standardization and regulations so everyone is on the same page. He says his team also recognizes the threat that cyberhacking poses.
“There is a tremendous amount of energy and work going into cybersecurity.,” Dominic said. “It is recognized as one of the top things to be addressed while we are developing these autonomous vehicles.”
Secretary Chao says the U.S. Transportation Department is also going to be working hard in the skies.
“We will actually require remote ID of all drones that are over half a pound that are required to be registered with the FAA, so law enforcement and the military, as well as the FAA, actually know what vehicles are occupying airspace,” said Chao.
As drone technology expands along with its growing popularity, people like Eric Jameson say those kinds of government regulations are important, especially as drone use becomes more commercialized.
