Autonomous vehicle safety operators debunk misconceptions that they ‘sit there and do nothing’

Learning left-hand drive and giving feedback on the vehicle’s performance are just a few of the responsibilities of a safety driver.

Autonomous vehicle safety operators Sherman Seng (left) and Sarah Ahmad. (Photos: CNA/Mak Jia Kee)

Justin Ong Guang-Xi 15 Sep 2026 12:00PM Bookmark Bookmark Share WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Set CNA as your preferred source on Google Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. Read a summary of this article on FAST. Get bite-sized news via a new cards interface. Give it a try. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST SINGAPORE: Step into an autonomous vehicle (AV) and it might be confusing to still see a driver behind the wheel.

Since the vehicle is self-driven, passengers sometimes ask what Ms Sarah Ahmad does as a safety driver.