Contract Negotiation 101
 

A) Float a completely unrealistic but scary concept at workers.

B) Obtain concessions in return for not doing that which you were never going to do anyway.

That's my suspicion as well...the ATA, RAA, some subset, or even an individual airline probably asked embrear to publicly float the idea of a single-pilot airliner.

It can be built, but it cannot be certified and flown, so why spend hundreds of millions to build a paperweight...you wouldn't.

A similar thing popped up in Europe a few years ago...an "generic" coalition did a press-release about pilotless airliners...even had a photoshop image of an airbus without cockpit windows.

No need to worry until the president of Boeing and the head of the FAA stand at a podium holding hands to announce they are going to jointly make it happen.

I don't see it as a pilot with a computer backup,
I see it as a UAV with a pilot backup.