What the fatal Tesla Autopilot crash means for driverless cars

The fact that a driver was killed in a crash inside his Tesla on Wednesday while the semi-autonomous Autopilot system was engaged is tragic. However, the collision will have ripple effects across Tesla and the rest of the automotive industry.

That's because it brings into question people's trust in self-driving systems. While it's fair for people to feel wary of Tesla Autopilot and other semi-autonomous driving systems, it's important people don't conflate it with truly autonomous cars, or use the incident to write off self-driving vehicles altogether.