And we did not crash.

That’s because two cameras mounted near the rear and side view mirrors had detected the movement of the driver’s head (meaning his eyes) away from the front of the car and, using software developed at the University of California, San Diego, had told the car’s onboard computer to switch into autopilot.

As our driver pumped his knee up and down, wildly pressing on the accelerator, the car came to a perfectly smooth stop and waited for our man to take back control of the car.

The larger point is that futuristic visions distract us from the ways in which cars are already making decisions for us. Each new generation of vehicles is taking on more and more tasks, proving the vehicles can handle specific situations. By the time Google’s cars arrive in your driveway, you’ll be acclimated to the idea of an artificial intelligence grabbing the wheel because you’ll have handed over control tens of thousands of times.