Question of the Month: Which technology will power automobiles in 20 years?

It mostly depends on a willingness to revise automobile standards, and perhaps building the appropriate support infrastructure to enable  small personal transporters to flourish.

Automobiles will be illegal the second humanity realizes their cost.
environmental impact, maintenance, human life, infrastructure..
our utilization of vehicles is a glowing example of humanities utter
absurdity. realize telepresence.

like telephone poles and keyboards, how the hell are cars still a thing?

Power them? they shouldn't even exist.

Once you've tried real life you'll never go back to the virtual kind !

MK

Ever ride a horse? when it becomes profitable for a technology to be obsoleted, guess what happens.

I would not forget to take into account other sources such as geothermal and nuclear fusion, or many other technologies like (bio)fuel cells in the next 20 years. 

Seems obvious that as soon as we stray from the endothermic engines -which had many years of evolution- we find some distress.

In order to power electric engines in the EVs, one might ask for a lighter battery that never needs to be recharged.  This could lead us to consider even something like the radioactive decay of radioisotopes. Have you ever heard of batteries that last up to 28000 years and provide 3 kW/kg ?

Some of you heard about it(1;3) and this idea has been adopted in pacemakers (i.g. betavoltaic batteries), or in satellites (RTGs).
That said, one can have reservations about it, fine... (2)
link 1 PopularMechanics.com 2021
link 2 LiveScience.com 2024
Link 3 E14 Catwell's article

In 20 years. I see... What can be the business behind of doing something that is almost maintenance-free, never stops and never breaks?  If certain technologies were elevated to the status of common heritage—similar to air, sunlight, or even treated like the oceans or Antarctica—we might eventually be able to advance, and abandon even the use of brakes and tires one day.

edit&refined for you> rev 0.2

What's wrong with horse riding?

I'm say Hybrid because I think its pretty cool to have Electric cars

Just wait until you have to replace the battery and pay a disposal fee.

I think will reconsider your joice.

I think a change of attitude is required for the benefit of the planet,

Either driving around town or on the open road most cars have only 1 person in them,

at home except school hours the buses only have 3 or 4 people on them, when i last visited Brisbane Australia i was impressed with the tram service and how many people use. i am in the service industry so i am usually in van by my self.

Gen Z (if i have the right term) want the latest and greatest and they want it now   " that will kill the planet" 

everyone has the idealistic that going electric is the answer. but is the infrastructure there to support it , Not Quite 

I use a diesel people mover Van everyday (that has done over 400,000km)3litre turbo great for towing, that I prefer

I also have 2.4litre Hybrid people mover Van that i have changed the battery pack, I don't the same confidence or joy driving.

My main reason Not to have an electric vehicle is that when I go traveling  i don't want to park up to charge every 2 or 3 hours For 2 or 3 hours wait

If work got a electric vehicle it would be great for around town use        

Walking is all very well, but how do you carry four large, full, supermarket carrier bags and a replacement central heating pump home during heavy rain?