IMO, the motive for this technology is making money. That's usually the bottom line.
Yes, as I said earlier, it's about maximizing profit. It's done by sacrificing working Americans, which, in effect, sacrifices families who are the building blocks of civilization.
Being competitive with companies like Tesla will mean that new technology will have to be embraced.
Not necessarily. It's the freight companies' ultimate decision to embrace the job-displacing technology. If one company chooses this AI capital to move freight, that doesn't necessarily require a competitor to do it. The service to move freight will not be made any cheaper by this AI. The only difference is more profit made for the freight companies who won't have to pay labor costs for skilled truck drivers. A freight company that doesn't embrace this tech can still compete in the industry by charging the same price for its service, but they won't pocket as much money as the freight company who uses AI. In the short term, however, the freight company choosing AI will incur much more costs because of the capital equipment expenditures of autonomous trucks.
Do not be naive in thinking that a freight company, or any company, will pass the savings to the consumer when they don't have to pay labor costs anymore.
It's no different than a company outsourcing its American manufacturing jobs to China. The consumer doesn't see a cheaper price in the good that was formerly made in the USA. The only difference is more profit for shareholders, Wall St., & the top execs in the company who give themselves huge raises and bonuses.