The car you summon from your smartphone doesn't have a driver. In fact, it doesn't even have a steering wheel, or pedals, or a gas tank. It won't exceed 25 miles per hour, but it does have electric motors in all four wheels for slippery roads and tight corners.

Such a future of shared, fully electric, driverless cars on demand is closer to reality than it might appear. Not only is technology speeding in that direction, but, according to Morgan Stanley’s recent Blue Paper report, "Global Investment Implications of Auto 2.0," the global auto market is ripe for major disruption.

"Your car is arguably one of the most underutilized, polluting, time-consuming and dangerous machines on Earth," says Adam Jonas, head of global auto research for Morgan Stanley. “Consider that cars on average are in operation for only about an hour each day, but they account for 45% of global oil demand and, on average, 3,500 daily deaths worldwide." Add the hundreds of billions of hours people spend annually driving and riding in cars instead of engaging in other, potentially more productive (or stimulating) activity, and automotive transportation as practical utility and time-consuming necessity seems ripe for a redesigned consumer experience and relationship. But making an alternative a reality will require rethinking some assumptions.