Testing Emergent Technologies in the Arctic

How Attention to Place Contributes to Visions of Autonomous Vehicles

Abstract

There are great expectations around the future of autonomous vehicles (AVs). Such visions often picture vehicles that work everywhere without human interference. In this article we use empirical data from a pilot project taking place in the Norwegian Arctic to explore the place-specificity of such technologies. The case study is used to demonstrate how new configurations of emergent technologies are shaped by the places where the trial unfolds; and how insights produced through working on and with this site contribute to changing visions of AV technologies into questioning issues of transferability and scalability. In this way, the paper contributes to discussions of how pilot projects and testing of emergent technologies in the real world relates to the re-configuring of visions and expectations. The paper highlights how emerging technologies might transform societies, infrastructures, and vehicles towards more computerized configurations in ways that are not anticipated, discussed in public and therefore seldom governed.