Those cars were absolutely more dangerous than the ones on the road now.

True self-driving cars would be the epitome of safety, because humans are the most common reason for failure in most systems.

Edit: people seem to think I'm endorsing the use of a telescreen.. I mean infotainment system, in cars. That's not what's happening. Safety technology in cars and spyware in cars are two separate discussions. It's a fact that vehicles today are safer than they were 20 years ago due in part to advancements in safety technology.

And a fully autonomous vehicle would need all of the sensors and processing to be local, so there's really no need for the Internet to be involved at all.

I'd 100% trust a purpose built system that can do millions of sensor reading and calculations a second with a full 360° view more than I would a human who can get tired, intoxicated, distracted, or bored. The technology just isn't there yet.