Not to mention everyone else who is not driving a 9000 lb Hummer - e.g. see how fear of being squished by a giant SUV dominates the discussion here:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35827974

To be fair, human drivers don't do terribly well on that front.

The comment is saying these cars will improve pedestrian/cyclist safety.

I can also attest to it. I've interacted as a pedestrian and cyclist to many cruise and waymo cars and they've been very, very cautious and careful.

Drivers do fine if the infrastructure is designed for humans rather then for cars.

The reason so many people die in US cities is because of policy, not because people can't drive inherently.

Driver quality in the US is much lower than in cycling hotspots like the Netherlands or Denmark. Infrastructure helps, but better drivers are critical.

I think it feels that way because people just drive much faster. If you forced people to slow down, I don't think the avg quality of driver is worse.

I don't have much international experience, but the level of distraction of US drivers is shocking. Easily 50% of drivers I see are looking at their phones (even while going through an intersection!).