One of the more thoughtful observation's I've seen in this "space," one which offers an unsettling counterpoint to the claim in the original post that "AI Can't Drive Itself."

To your point, AI can drive itself; it's just that the fashion in which control occurs is distributed. Which is to say, the process (e.g. a feature being implemented, in some way, or at all) is not spontaneously occurring: it's emergent from the mesh of AI automation.

Niceties aside, it's pretty clear that humans are not in the loop in a meaningful way, much of the time. What emerges may hence not well be not aligned with business or technical needs. What it is aligned to may be impossible for we humans to discern.

Who controls the way a forest grows?

Ask a tree, get an answer, but don't forget, that's not the answer.