  The tremendous excitement around the deployment of autonomous vehicles (AVs)
comes from their purported promise. In addition to decreasing accidents, AVs
are projected to usher in a new era of equity in human autonomy by providing
affordable, accessible, and widespread mobility for disabled, elderly, and
low-income populations. However, to realize this promise, it is necessary to
ensure that AVs are safe for deployment, and to contend with the risks AV
technology poses, which threaten to eclipse its benefits. In this Article, we
focus on an aspect of AV engineering currently unexamined in the legal
literature, but with critical implications for safety, accountability,
liability, and power. Specifically, we explain how understanding the
fundamental engineering trade-off between accuracy and speed in AVs is critical
for policymakers to regulate the uncertainty and risk inherent in AV systems.
We discuss how understanding the trade-off will help create tools that will
enable policymakers to assess how the trade-off is being implemented. Such
tools will facilitate opportunities for developing concrete, ex ante AV safety
standards and conclusive mechanisms for ex post determination of accountability
after accidents occur. This will shift the balance of power from manufacturers
to the public by facilitating effective regulation, reducing barriers to tort
recovery, and ensuring that public values like safety and accountability are
appropriately balanced.
