“It’s all smart kitchens and talking bikes these days.”
Recent client work on the future of cars and auto repair had us thinking about Big Data (I know, I know) and driving, especially as the various streams of data generated by cars and drivers begins to be aggregated. What data is being generated and collected now? Car event data recorders (the so-called “black boxes”) already collect voluminous information about a car’s performance, while Google’s Waze is collecting individual route data and real-time traffic information via smartphones. And increasingly driver performance is being monitored and analyzed by in-car systems as a safety feature for adults or for the peace of mind of parents of teen drivers.
Alone, these data streams are interesting enough, but collectively they paint a finely detailed picture of daily driving habits and performance. Where things get really interesting is how this driving/driver record could be used. Some immediate cases are fairly benign, such as Rio de Janeiro’s use of driver data to manage traffic flow during the World Cup tournament. More controversial could be commercial third parties with a vested interest in information about drivers and driving, namely: insurance companies.
Progressive Insurance is offering customers a 10%-15% discount on premiums if the customer installs a USB-connected device in the car to track driver behavior and car performance. This device tracks speed, how fast a driver takes corners, how hard a driver brakes, etc. Analysts point to a future in which customers who don’t install the device could be charged higher rates or denied coverage altogether. And what does the insurance company want with the data? One possible reason is to establish a record of both individual driving habits and a composite baseline for what it means to be a safe driver. Why? In some cases it could be added to the claim review process. In the past, risky driving behavior may have contributed to crashes or damages, but this was hard for insurance companies to quantify or prove. This would no longer be the case with new in car monitoring. All this points to a future where driver behavior or error plays a larger role in the determining of claims processing.
Using car/driver data to minimize payout claims after the fact is one thing, but what about avoiding collisions or other damage in the first place? As cars get smarter and more automated, the information collected could be used to keep teens off highways, drivers away from pothole-ridden roads, “bad” neighborhoods, etc. Insurance companies (or car sharing/leasing companies) could program cars to not allow the driver to choose certain paths. This could be done by only offering specific routes via mapping/GPS devices, or using car positioning data to warn the driver she was nearing a forbidden zone. The latter could also serve as a reminder that proceeding voids any insurance protections.
There are already some early examples of this proscriptive mapping, such as Microsoft’s mapping app that incorporates area crime data into mapping routes, directing users away from those areas. (The company took heat for what was called an “Avoid the Ghetto” map.) Similarly, Yahoo Labs is collecting route information for a “happiness” mapping algorithm which allows drivers to choose a route based on beauty and not shortest time or distance.
As more players gain access to this data, more drivers might be subject to more informational nudging. For example exclusive deals between car makers and gas companies might direct drivers only to certain stations. As more of this data is collected, will our vehicles could eventually emulate Hal 9000 and simply refuse to do what we ask? “I’m sorry Dave, you can’t get there from here.”
Image: Vards Uzvards, Flickr
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Looking at the long-term of [something something something].
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