Entanglements and unintended consequences of automated vehicles: An instance-based discussion for generative uncertainty

Verstegen, R., Gao, R., Dong, H., Bazilinskyy, P., Martens, M. H.

Companion Publication of the 2026 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference. Singapore, Singapore (2026)

ABSTRACT Automated vehicles (AVs) are moving from speculation to real-world implementation, revealing the true effects of this technology beyond theoretical expectations. While AVs are delivering on some of their promised benefits, their deployment has also introduced unintended consequences. We illustrate this dynamic through six real-world examples from current AV implementations, demonstrating how the application of this technology has become entangled in complex dynamics. We argue for the implementation of human-computer interaction and design-based techniques to proactively explore the consequences of AVs, to complement the use of reductionistic scientific approaches. We propose embracing generative uncertainty, which means treating uncertainty as a source of inspiration and exploration, to serve as an open-ended approach for engaging with potential consequences. To address unintended consequences of AVs, we discuss extensibility and increasing AV comprehension as current opportunities and highlight future envisioning and tools for managing uncertainties as two complementary approaches for leveraging generative uncertainty.