Ford CEO Mark Fields has one worry about autonomous vehicles: that growing pressure for companies to bring self-driving cars to the market in five years could cause a car being released “before it’s ready and then there’s an event.”
Speaking to Business Insider in an interview published on Monday, Fields says automakers and tech companies should shy from rolling out self-driving cars too soon. “The term autonomous vehicles is just thrown about so liberally in this industry. I mean, there are five levels of autonomy,” Fields told Business Insider. “My only fear in the industry is somebody tries to come out with one of those before it’s ready and then there’s an event.”
Fields says Ford (F) has taken different strategy. While automakers push out Level 3 autonomous systems—which are cars that still need a human to take control in some situations—Ford is aiming to launch its first self-driving car with Level 4 autonomy. That means the vehicle won’t have an accelerator, brake pedal, or steering wheel, and will work in a set geographical area with no human involvement.