I guess it is all about what you value.

Information for it's sake alone is meaningless to me. I'm not a robot or an astrophysicist.

I see humans on Mars as more important than the information gathered.

But, you don't think if we spend hundreds of billions on machines we wouldn't also treat them as valuable? You would greatly lower the risks taken because there would be no person on the ground making judgments about risks. We are risk adverse even with an about a billion dollars worth of machines now on Mars. Nor do I think throwing money at a problem like AI and machine mobility is the best way to solve problems. It might be wise to look at spending these billions and the future effects of the research as this is just as important as the value of any data gathered. Do you want a world of smart human like mobile machines? I do not think this is the route to utopia!