Autonomous vehicles (AVs) are expected to transform the landscape of the automotive industry, the transportation system, and our social life. The role of government and its evolution regarding this emerging technology have received little attention in the literature than other subjects such as the advancement of AV technologies and the growth of the relevant private sector. This study explores the similarities and differences in the evolution of government policy on AVs in Korea, Japan, and France. Each country’s official initiatives, policy actions, legislation, and flagship R&D programs for AVs are analyzed and compared each other in both qualitative and quantitative ways. The latter is done by employing a bibliometric analysis. The three countries’ policies for AV development and deployment are divided into four categories: (1) research and development (R&D) and tests, (2) legal and regulatory framework, (3) infrastructure for AV deployment, and (4) social acceptance. All three countries commonly set AVs as a national strategic sector between 2013 and 2014 in order to promote the future competitiveness of their automotive industries and create new jobs. Large-scale R&D investment schemes for AVs accompanied or followed the national AV strategies. However, each country takes different approaches. France takes a demand-pull approach, focusing on making AVs socially acceptable. Korea, by contrast, takes a tech-push approach, focusing on making AVs technologically available. Japan takes a mixed approach, focusing on both technology and applications given its strong automotive industry and aging and decreasing population. The present study contributes to a better understanding of how the governments influence socio-economic transformation of the three countries in the emerging era of AVs.