I think it is an exciting time for functional programming and formal methods: they seem to have found something of a home in the recent cryptocurrency boom, where people are recognizing that high-assurance really matters lest you lose millions of dollars.
Why people don't seem to worry as much about self-driving cars boggles the mind. One hopes the loss of human life would be as concerning as the loss of money. I think the issue is partly technological. As Leroy says, formal methods for certifying machine learning-produced models are pretty undeveloped whereas cryptocurrency protocols are 'traditional', 'algorithmic' programs and so more amenable to analysis with existing verification tools. I also think it is partly cultural in that machine learning practitioners seem often to be less aware of formal methods and the possibility of verifying software.
Why people don't seem to worry as much about self-driving cars boggles the mind. One hopes the loss of human life would be as concerning as the loss of money. I think the issue is partly technological. As Leroy says, formal methods for certifying machine learning-produced models are pretty undeveloped whereas cryptocurrency protocols are 'traditional', 'algorithmic' programs and so more amenable to analysis with existing verification tools. I also think it is partly cultural in that machine learning practitioners seem often to be less aware of formal methods and the possibility of verifying software.