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A self-driving car, also known as an autonomous car, driverless car, robotic car, or robo-car, is a car that is capable of operating with reduced or no human input.

They are sometimes called robotaxis, though this term refers specifically to self-driving cars operated for a ridesharing company. As of 2026, the term "self-driving" lacks an agreed standard definition and is also subject to commercial advertising and branding considerations. Following a history of experimentation and development of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) after World War II, two main technologies are now primarily used: LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and visual sensors (cameras) which capture images and video like human eyes. These are combined with systems such as Global Positioning System (GPS), neural networks, artificial intelligence, and established ADAS engineering to deliver levels of driving autonomy. The primary obstacle to self-driving is the advanced software and mapping required to make them work safely across the wide variety of conditions that drivers experience. Public perception and acceptance of autonomous cars has been mixed. Public acceptance is also influenced by "self-AV bias", where drivers judge identical autonomous vehicle driving much more harshly than human.

For example, an autonomous car might recognize that traffic is heavy and disable its automated lane change feature. Tesla's approach is to allow their "full self-driving" (FSD) system to be used in all ODDs as a Level 2 (hands/on, eyes/on) ADAS. Despite offering a system dubbed Full Self-Driving, Tesla stated that its system did not autonomously handle all driving tasks. In the United Kingdom, a fully self-driving car is defined as a car so registered, rather than one that supports a specific feature set. The Association of British Insurers claimed that the usage of the word autonomous in marketing was dangerous because car ads make motorists think "autonomous" and "autopilot" imply that the driver can rely on the car to control itself, even though they do not.

Self-driving: "A vehicle 'satisfies the self-driving test' if it is designed or adapted with the intention that a feature of the vehicle will allow it to travel autonomously, and it is capable of doing so, by means of that feature, safely and legally."

A car might therefore have Level 3 capability for lane management (the driving requirement) up to 100 km/h (the ODD), but Level 2 at speeds faster than that. A fully self-driving car would therefore stay at Level 5 for all dynamic driving requirements in all circumstances (speeds, roads, terrains, visibilities, obstacle types, jurisdictions, etc.), while a car with no ADAS controlling the driving requirements would rely on the human driver for that, and stay at Level 0 regardless of the domain.

Tesla calls its Level 2 ADAS "Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta".

In California, self-driving car manufacturers are required to submit annual reports describing how often their vehicles autonomously disengaged from autonomous mode.

The second driver had parked his car behind the first car presumably to help the first driver.

In a 2014 US telephone survey, over three-quarters of licensed drivers said they would consider buying a self-driving car, rising to 86% if car insurance were cheaper.

In 2022, a survey found that 27% of the world's population would feel safe in a self-driving car. A July 2024 biannual YouGov survey of British adults found that 4% would feel "very safe" in a self-driving car while 37% would feel "very unsafe".

While various models of car may be described by their manufacturers as being at a certain level, the SAE technical specification means that a car can move between levels depending on the driving task and the circumstances it is operating in at a given time.

As of April 2024, two car manufacturers have sold or leased Level 3 cars: Honda in Japan, and Mercedes in Germany, Nevada and California.

Quick Facts

• The primary obstacle to self-driving is the advanced software and mapping required to make them work safely across the wide variety of conditions that drivers experience.
• These are combined with systems such as Global Positioning System (GPS), neural networks, artificial intelligence, and established ADAS engineering to deliver levels of driving autonomy.
• Tesla's approach is to allow their "full self-driving" (FSD) system to be used in all ODDs as a Level 2 (hands/on, eyes/on) ADAS.
• In the United Kingdom, a fully self-driving car is defined as a car so registered, rather than one that supports a specific feature set.
• In 2022, a survey found that 27% of the world's population would feel safe in a self-driving car.

Source material: Wikipedia - "Self-driving car". Adapted and summarized for DiscoverScroll. Original contributors are credited through the linked Wikipedia article. Read original on Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes were made from the original.