> Noone thought self-driving cars would actually work.

Many people thought self driving WOULD work and that we'd be further along than we are now. We have vastly overestimated how far we'd be, and vastly underestimated how much time and effort it would actually take.

Self driving cars as they exist today are still mere toys compared to where the industry thought they were going to be. Look at Cruise, Waymo, Zoox, Uber's ex-self driving car division and others.

We are not anywhere near the self-driving autonomous cars we had hoped for.