Discussion: What is in store for us?

October 12, 2017 - Avenue21

In June 2017, Avenue21 invited numerous experts to Vienna to discuss urban issues of vehicle automation. Also, a public panel discussion was organised.

As part of Vienna´s Biennale 2017 we hosted, in cooperation with AustriaTech and MAK Future Lab, a public panel discussion at the Museum for applied arts (MAK).

If we are talking about driverless vehicles, we are implying far more than merely self-driving. With the concept of autonomy, we are endowing devices with agency, because we are according them (a certain amount of) freedom. As these devices, i.e. robots, have already left the factory floor and locomote on streets and squares, it also means that they are laying claim to a place in the valued space which has always been understood to be the stage of public life. How can we imagine cities of the future with these actors? How could these new actors affect public life, city planning, transportation modes, urban development goals or governance?

The question of `What is in store for us?´guided the invited experts through these topics in the context of driverless vehicles in the urban environment. Despite the hot temperatures, the audience stayed until the end and participated in the discussion afterwards.

Participants

Amelie Klein, Curator Hello, Robot.
Mathias Mitteregger, Project Lead, AVENUE21, TU Wien
Graham Parkhurst, Professor of Sustainable Mobility, UWE Bristol
Martin Russ, Managing Director, AustriaTech, bmvit
Katja Schechtner, Innovation Agent/Research Fellow, OECD/MIT Media Lab
Arjan van Timmeren, Scientific Director, AMS Institute, Amsterdam; Professor of Environmental Technology and Design, TU Delft

Moderation
Wojciech Czaja, architectural journalist, university lecturer at the University of Applied Arts Vienna