Silicon Investor - Driverless autos, trucks, taxis etc.

[Sam] Axios Mobility's new Big Three: Tesla, Waymo and Uber Joann Muller 2 hours ago...

Sam — 4/15/2026 7:30:42 AM

Axios

Mobility's new Big Three: Tesla, Waymo and Uber
Joann Muller
2 hours ago

As the race toward autonomy unfolds, a new U.S. "Big Three" in mobility is emerging: Instead of GM, Ford and Chrysler, it's Waymo, Tesla and Uber.

Why it matters: Automotive and tech giants, along with many well-funded startups, are vying for a slice of the self-driving future.

The big picture: Autonomous driving technology is no longer science fiction. It's here.

Robotaxis are operating in about a dozen cities — with tests underway in many more — and driverless semi trucks are hauling loads across Arizona and Texas.
But safely deploying AV technology is only the start — the next phase of the AV race is about who can operate networks at scale.

This will require building the infrastructure and large-scale operations needed to support a viable robotaxi service.

That means depots for charging, cleaning and vehicle maintenance, plus route optimization technology to deploy vehicles efficiently to meet fluctuating demand.

Between the lines: Waymo, Tesla and Uber already have distinct advantages in these areas that will make it hard for others to catch up.

Each has bet their stakes on an autonomous future, although with different paths to get there.
And while none of them possess all the pieces needed for a successful AV business, each has a solid foundation and the resources to do so better and faster than others.

Waymo

Waymo is the clear robotaxi leader, with operations in 11 cities and 500,000 paid trips per week. It's already racked up 200 million fully driverless miles in the real world.

It has $16 billion in fresh capital, much of it from parent Alphabet, to keep spreading across America, as well as to London and Tokyo.
"Waymo is probably less than a year from becoming a verb," says Grayson Brulte, founder of The Road to Autonomy.

Yes, but: The company's a tech supplier, not an operator — its product is the Waymo driver, the hardware and software suite added to vehicles so they can drive themselves.

Nor does it build cars. Instead, it buys them from other manufacturers.
And while it has experience running depots in San Francisco, it mostly relies on fleet management partners for cleaning and maintenance.

Uber

Uber — definitely a verb — has a superpower that standalone AV companies don't: a sophisticated tech platform that's been efficiently matching riders and vehicles for 15 years.

Rather than a threat to its ride-share business, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi sees robotaxis as an opportunity to capitalize on that experience.
On the infrastructure side, it's spending $100 million to develop new AV charging hubs in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Dallas.

Its challenge, though, is that it needs carmakers and tech companies to supply the robotaxis, and other operators to clean and charge them.

Uber is partnering with every AV developer under the sun — even investing in a few of them — to ensure there's a healthy mix of players besides Waymo.

Most of those AV tech companies are still a couple years behind Waymo though.

Tesla

Tesla's advantage is the data collected by nearly 3.2 million Tesla vehicles driving around the U.S. every day, including 1.1 million subscribers to its FSD (Supervised) hands-free driver assistance package.

That enables the company to continually improve its autonomous technology.
The company's vast Supercharger network and low manufacturing costs will also be big advantages as it scales a robotaxi service.

But for all the hype about FSD (which stands for full self-driving), the technology still requires human supervision — and Tesla has not yet deployed a meaningful fleet of robotaxis.

It launched a modest ride-hail service (with in-car safety monitors) last summer in Austin, Texas, and only recently unleashed a handful of fully driverless cars.
Nor has Tesla sought regulatory approval for its much ballyhooed Cybercab, a two-seater with no steering wheel or pedals.

What we're watching: Tesla FSD differs from self-driving tech used by Waymo and others because it doesn't use lidar or radar sensors to complement the car's built-in cameras.

While some Tesla critics are skeptical that its technology will ever work, most investors are bullish that Elon Musk's company is on the cusp of full autonomy.
If Tesla manages to get over the current hump on FSD, it could be game over.

Zoom out: Traditional automakers that have dominated the mobility landscape for decades are focused on closer targets: selling more cars and trucks to today's buyers while gradually adding automated-driving features.

The bottom line: The U.S. race to autonomy has only just begun, but its new Big Three are well out in front.

axios.com

[Sam] h/t roto-- What’s Next for China’s EV Stocks as Weak Demand Triggers Sell-Offs?...

Sam — 2/25/2026 1:13:54 PM

h/t roto--

What’s Next for China’s EV Stocks as Weak Demand Triggers Sell-Offs?
Cooling domestic demand and soaring raw material costs are weighing down Chinese electric vehicle companies.

By Dmytro Spilka
February 25, 2026

Credit: Photo 298996286 | Byd Thailand © Chatchai Somwat | Dreamstime.comAdvertisement Subscribe for ads-free reading

The long-term profit outlook for many Chinese electric vehicle (EV) stocks is coming into question as cooling domestic demand and soaring raw material costs weigh heavily on expectations.
Year-end sales for EVs in 2025 failed to overcome a long-term slump in consumer demand within China. One of the worst affected at the time was Li Auto, which saw a 31.92 percent year-on-year decline in vehicle deliveries in November 2025, with 33,181 vehicles delivered in total.
With more than 20 municipal governments suspending or adjusting vehicle trade-in subsidies as the nation’s fourth batch of 69 billion yuan ($9.8 billion) in national subsidies nears depletion, there’s little prospect of a turnaround in fortunes.
Accordingly, the beginning of 2026 has brought little fresh optimism in terms of domestic deliveries. Early February saw XPeng shares drop around 8 percent as the EV firm made just 20,011 vehicle deliveries in January – down 30 percent.
Matters appear to be even more desperate for BYD, which has shed more than $60 billion in market value since May last year. BYD’s 109,569 domestic deliveries in January represented a worrying 50 percent decline. BYD is one of China’s market leaders in the electric vehicle industry; its struggles show that no EV manufacturer is safe.
So why has sentiment surrounding China’s EV stocks turned so sour? And is there any hope for a market turnaround in the months ahead?
According to Morgan Stanley estimates, most Chinese automakers expect first-quarter volumes to tumble 30 to 40 percent from the December quarter, pointing to a rise in caution among domestic consumers.
One of the biggest challenges that EV firms in China face is exceptionally high competition. Manufacturers are actively attempting to out-market rivals by creating more attractive promotions. These pricing pressures are severely limiting profitability throughout the industry.
As EV sale prices drop, production costs are ticking up. The price of lithium, a key raw material for EV batteries, has more than doubled over the past three months alone. Other key component parts like copper, aluminum, and memory chips have also become more expensive, which has pushed incremental costs toward around $1,000 per vehicle for some premium models.
These cost squeezes could leave some mass-market manufacturers with thinner margins, like Li Auto and Nio, especially exposed.
Help may soon be on the way for EV manufacturers suffering from a severe drawback in deliveries in recent months. As components like lithium and copper become increasingly costly, China’s National Development and Reform Commission may come to the rescue.
Much like in 2025, the commission has proposed a trade-in subsidy program of 62.5 billion yuan ($8.9 billion) for 2026. The program would be funded through ultra-long-term special treasury bonds, mitigating the ongoing issues with fiscal deflation and China’s weakened housing market. These grants could help to offset the rising costs associated with manufacturing new electric vehicles, helping to stimulate dwindling sales figures.
“All investor eyes will be on the earnings of China’s EV leaders, regardless of the announcement of fresh grants for 2026,” explained Iván Marchena, senior economist at global brokerage brand Just2Trade. “The worry is that sweeping earnings downgrades will wipe out sentiment towards the sector, with doubts already emerging over the long-term ability of firms to generate profits domestically.”
Although China’s EV makers are struggling domestically, there may be renewed hope for stronger performance overseas. Away from the hyper-competitive local markets, more manufacturers could find increased sales in Europe, supplying consumers with low-cost alternatives to petrol-based vehicles.
March 2025 saw Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology launch its T03 budget model in the United Kingdom, retailing for just 15,995 pounds ($21,791).
European governments are wary of low-cost Chinese competition for domestic EV manufacturers, with the European Commission placing tariffs of between 17 percent and 35 percent on EVs from China in October 2024. Yet Chinese EV prices still remain competitive even if these additional costs are passed on to the consumer.
The trade outlook for Chinese-made vehicles has become increasingly complex in recent years, but it appears likely that the best chance of success for the nation’s constellation of EV stars is to focus on selling overseas. Should firms build a successful market presence in Europe and beyond, there could be life yet for China’s most innovative manufacturers.
Investor sentiment toward Chinese EV stocks remains low due to rising costs and extreme domestic competition. However, it’s certainly worth tracking the geopolitical outlook for manufacturers.
The launch of trade-in grants for 2026, as well as strategic expansions into new markets, could help to secure the long-term sustainability of China’s innovative EV firms. It may be worth keeping an eye on revised earnings forecasts for stocks for signs of a turnaround in fortunes, as well as changes in the tariff landscape for EVs in Europe.
Authors

Guest Author
Dmytro Spilka

Dmytro Spilka is an experienced finance, crypto, and investing writer based in London. He is the founder of Solvid, Pridicto, and Coinprompter. His work has been published in U.S.News, Nasdaq, InvestorPlace, Kiplinger, Entrepreneur, InvestmentWeek, Finextra, Financial Express and The Diplomat.

archive.ph.

[kidl] How a Car Insurance Expert Rates the Safety Record of Robotaxis - Bloomberg

kidl — 2/24/2026 9:34:54 AM

[Sam] Multi-Billion-Dollar VRU Detection Market Unlocking New Growth Opportunities C...

Sam — 2/6/2026 8:53:03 AM

Multi-Billion-Dollar VRU Detection Market Unlocking New Growth Opportunities

CANADA NEWSWIRE 8:50 AM ET 2/6/2026

VWAV	8.78	0 (0%)
ARBE	1.04	0 (0%)
TXN	223.98	0 (0%)
NXPI	222.13	0 (0%)
ADI	322.12	0 (0%)
QUOTES AS OF 04:00:00 PM ET 02/05/2026

Symbol Last Price Change

Advanced radar-based safety technology gains traction across automotive and smart-city markets

NEW YORK , Feb. 6, 2026 /CNW/ -- Market News UpdatesNews Commentary - The Vulnerable Road User (VRU) RF sensing platform market is gaining momentum as road safety becomes a top priority for governments, automakers, and smart-city developers. These platforms use radio-frequency technologies like radar and mmWave sensing to detect pedestrians, cyclists, and other at-risk road users—often performing better than cameras in poor weather or low-light conditions. As vehicles become more automated and cities invest in smarter infrastructure, RF-based VRU sensing is increasingly viewed as a must-have safety layer rather than a nice-to-have feature. Active Companies to keep a close eye on include: VisionWave Holdings Inc.(VWAV),Arbe Robotics Ltd.(ARBE), Texas Instruments(TXN), NXP Semiconductors N.V.(NXPI) and Analog Devices, Inc.(ADI).

From a market standpoint, the numbers point to a strong growth runway. The global VRU detection market was valued at approximately $2.1 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 14%, reaching over $6 billion by 2033. RF-enabled sensing platforms are expected to capture an expanding share of this market as regulators push for improved pedestrian and cyclist safety and OEMs adopt more advanced ADAS and sensor-fusion solutions. This growth is being driven by stricter safety standards, rising urban density, and increased spending on intelligent transportation systems.

Looking ahead to 2026 and beyond, RF-based VRU sensing platforms are positioned to benefit from both automotive and infrastructure spending cycles. Automakers are integrating more radar-heavy safety stacks, while cities are deploying RF sensors at intersections, crosswalks, and high-risk zones. For investors, this market offers exposure to long-term safety mandates, recurring platform upgrades, and cross-sector adoption—creating a compelling opportunity within the broader smart mobility and automotive safety ecosystem.

VisionWave (VWAV) Announces Successful Live Demonstration of SaverOne's RF-Based VRU Platform - VisionWave Holdings Inc. (VWAV) ("VisionWave(VWAV)" or the "Company") today announced a successful live demonstration of SaverOne's proprietary Vulnerable Road User (VRU) radio-frequency (RF) sensing platform, conducted in Italy before a leading global commercial vehicle manufacturer.

The demonstration provided a real-world illustration of the platform's ability to detect and alert drivers to human presence and movement in complex, dynamic, and visually challenged environments.

A Demonstration That Speaks for Itself:

youtu.be

youtu.be

youtu.be

Conducted on a controlled, the demonstration placed the SaverOne VRU platform into a moving vehicle scenario designed to replicate real driving conditions showing its ability to detect pedestrians in different non line of sight scenarios including at night:

System Engagement: As the vehicle began moving, the VRU system activated seamlessly, continuously scanning the environment in real time.
Early Human Detection: Moments later, the system identified a nearby pedestrian, and will display visual indicator on the central screen of the vehicle accompanied by an audible alert, signaling awareness before any visible danger appeared.
Escalation to Imminent Risk: As the vehicle progressed, the alert will be escalated to a red warning indicator, flagging a potential collision risk as a pedestrian is crossing into the vehicle's projected path.
Challenging Conditions: The test unfolded the ability to detect 2 pedestrians hidden by 2 different cars and also at a total darkness conditions, — a setting intentionally chosen to stress the system under real-world complexity.

The sequence illustrated how RF-based sensing can provide earlier, actionable awareness, offering drivers critical reaction time in scenarios where conventional camera, radar, or LiDAR systems may be constrained by line-of-sight limitations or adverse conditions.

Seeing Beyond What Cameras Can See - As previously disclosed, VisionWave(VWAV) and SaverOne have entered into a strategic exchange agreement under which VisionWave(VWAV) may, upon achievement of specified milestones, regulatory approvals, and other closing conditions, acquire up to approximately 51% of SaverOne on a fully diluted basis.

Unlike traditional ADAS solutions that depend on direct visual input, SaverOne's VRU platform is designed to detect and localize vulnerable road users even when they are obscured, concealed, or outside direct line-of-sight — including in adverse weather, urban clutter, or visually degraded environments.

By analyzing RF interactions associated with mobile devices carried by pedestrians and other road users, the system enables earlier detection and trajectory assessment, potentially providing earlier detection and trajectory assessment in certain conditions.

From Road Safety to Broader Operational Awareness - While initially developed to enhance automotive safety and urban mobility, VisionWave(VWAV) is evaluating whether the underlying RF detection architecture may have relevance far beyond the road.

The Company is evaluating applications across transportation, infrastructure, and security environments where visibility is limited or unreliable. In parallel, VisionWave(VWAV) is exploring potential applications in defense and security contexts, including deployment on unmanned aerial systems (UAS), unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), and fixed installations, where RF-based sensing may assist in detecting and tracking human movement behind terrain, structures, or other obstacles (subject to further development, testing, and validation). Continued… Read this full release and additional news for VWAV by visiting: finance.yahoo.com

Other recent developments in the tech industries of note include:

Arbe Robotics Ltd. (ARBE) , a global leader in perception radar solutions, announced recently that it is combining Arbe's leading radar technology, with NVIDIA accelerated computing, creating an advanced platform for AI-based perception for hands-off and eyes-off driving. For the first time, at CES 2026 Arbe will showcase its automotive-grade radar system and demonstrate its readiness for integration with complete perception stacks.

The automotive-grade radar delivers unprecedented detection density, a raw point cloud of over 20,000 detections per frame, generated by a channel array of 2,304 channels, providing a rich foundation that enables systems to run advanced perception and AI algorithms. The combination of Arbe's affordable, high-performance radar solution and NVIDIA's powerful computing is democratizing autonomous technology, making advanced perception accessible, reliable and cost-effective.

Texas Instruments (TXN) , a global semiconductor company that designs, manufactures and sells analog and embedded processing chips, and Silicon Labs (SLAB), a leader in secure, intelligent wireless technology, announced they have signed a definitive agreement under which Texas Instruments(TXN) will acquire Silicon Labs for $231.00 per share in an all-cash transaction, representing a total enterprise value of approximately $7.5 billion.

The acquisition will create a global leader in embedded wireless connectivity solutions by combining Silicon Labs' strong portfolio and expertise in mixed signal solutions with Texas Instruments'(TXN) leading analog and embedded processing portfolio and internally owned technology and manufacturing capabilities. The combined company will accelerate growth by better serving existing and new customers through enhanced innovation and market access.

Origin? AI, the inventors of AI Sensing?, recently announced a strategic collaboration with NXP Semiconductors N.V.(NXPI), the trusted supplier for innovative solutions in industrial and IoT markets, to embed Origin's award-winning WiFi Sensing software directly into NXP's i.MX 9 applications processors and wireless tri-radio chipsets. This endeavor fast-tracks the deployment of intelligent motion sensing into smart home devices, opening the door for powerful new services across home automation, security and energy management.

NXP is committed to enabling customers with innovative system solutions to make the connected world better, safer and more secure, making the i.MX 9 applications processors and tri-radio processors a natural foundation for Origin's software to scale quickly and efficiently. By optimizing Origin AI's sensing stack directly at the chipset level, this relationship empowers customers to launch new products without redesigning hardware, significantly shortening time to market and simplifying development.

Sense, a leader in grid edge intelligence, recently announced it has received a strategic investment from Analog Devices, Inc.(ADI), a global semiconductor leader that bridges the physical and digital worlds to enable breakthroughs at the Intelligent Edge. This new investment enables further development of grid edge intelligence and management solutions for grid operators.

Redefining the future of intelligent systems by evolving from a component supplier into a trusted provider of complete solutions and actionable insights for grid solutions, ADI is the ideal partner for developing the grid edge processing necessary for the energy transition. Together, the companies will work with smart meter developers and others in the energy industry to accelerate the adoption of high-performance data and computation capabilities to enable a smarter grid.

DISCLAIMER: MarketNewsUpdates.com (MNU) is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. MNU is NOT affiliated in any manner with any company mentioned herein. MNU and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. MNU'S market updates, news alerts and corporate profiles are NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities. The material in this release is intended to be strictly informational and is NEVER to be construed or interpreted as research material. All readers are strongly urged to perform research and due diligence on their own and consult a licensed financial professional before considering any level of investing in stocks. All material included herein is republished content and details which were previously disseminated by the companies mentioned in this release. MNU is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. Investors are cautioned that they may lose all or a portion of their investment when investing in stocks. This press release was distributed on behalf of VisionWave Holdings, Inc.(VWAV) For current services performed MNU was compensated forty nine hundred dollars for news coverage of the current press releases issued by VisionWave Holdings, Inc.(VWAV) by the Company. MNU HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may", "future", "plan" or "planned", "will" or "should", "expected," "anticipates", "draft", "eventually" or "projected". You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company's annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and MNU undertakes no obligation to update such statements.

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[Sam] x.com brief excerpt: Nvidia just open-sourced Alpha Mayo. The world's first ...

Sam — 1/8/2026 9:42:28 PM

x.com

brief excerpt:

Nvidia just open-sourced Alpha Mayo.

The world's first reasoning autonomous vehicle AI.

Mercedes-Benz CLA launches with it in Q1.

Europe Q2.

Asia by year-end.

Not a concept car.

Not a limited release.

Full production vehicles.

And the AI will even explain its reasoning out loud.

"I'm slowing down because the truck ahead is braking and there's a cyclist merging."

It thinks.

Then tells you what it's thinking.

Then executes.

Jensen drove it through San Francisco for an hour yesterday.

No hands.

No interventions.

Through heavy Sunday traffic.

The whole thing is open source now.

Every line of training code.

Every data source.

The entire stack.

[Eric] AUTONOMOUSFARMINGKubota, Kilter to partner on next-generation autonomous farm ...

Eric — 12/7/2025 3:27:03 PM

Kubota, Kilter to partner on next-generation autonomous farm robot

Jo Borrás | Dec 6 2025 - 1:31 pm PT

5 Comments

The Japanese agriculture equipment experts Kubota are partnering with Norwegian tech startup Kilter to co-develop, pilot, and promote the new Kilter AX-1 ultra high-precision weeding robot across Europe.

The collaboration will initially target Kubota’s vegetable growing customers in Germany and the Netherlands, specifically farmers growing spinach, salad lettuces, herbs, celeriac, and strawberries who hope to benefit of higher yields and crop quality while cutting the use of chemical pesticides to an absolute minimum.

To accomplish those goals, the Kilter AX-1 uses a patented tech package it calls “Single Drop Technology.” Single Drop Technology combines AI weed recognition and ~6 mm placement accuracy to deliver micro-doses directly to weeds, protecting the crop and minimizing the impact to the surrounding soil.

Getting that 6 mm droplet application wasn’t easy. “You can’t buy a field-ready droplet applicator off the shelf,” Anders Brevik, CEO of Kilter, told AgTechNavigator. “We had to design one that survives years of dust, vibration, temperature swings, and long operating days, while keeping droplet size, timing, and placement consistent. That takes deep agronomy knowledge, a lot of engineering, and thousands of hours of field testing.”

Kilter says growers can reduce herbicide use by up to 95% by adopting the new AX-1, shifting selectivity from chemistry to smart application.

Kubota Europe’s Smart Farming Solutions Division, launched back in 2024, is working with the company’s European dealer network to train up sales staff and integrate the Kilter robot into Kubota’s broader farm solutions portfolio. There’s no word, yet, on pricing or if/when we’ll get the Kilter in North America.

Electrek’s Take

AX-1 robot; by Kilter, via AgTechNavigator.

Kubota has been bringing literal tons of electrified and autonomous ag solutions to shows like CES for the past few years, and they’ve made significant waves there. With partnerships that take the sustainability push beyond decarbonization and into the realms of de-chemicalizing (that’s a word) and pro-pollenatoring (another word), they’re making real steps towards a more sustainable future for agriculture.

SOURCES | IMAGES: Kilter, AgTechNavigator.

electrek.co

[Sam] Korean fury over Tesla battery error builds as gov't mulls subsidy review ...

Sam — 10/8/2025 6:06:24 AM

Korean fury over Tesla battery error builds as gov't mulls subsidy review
Published: 07 Oct. 2025, 10:14
SARAH CHEA

The Korean government is weighing a subsidy cut for Tesla over unresolved battery errors that have rendered some three-year-old models unchargeable, escalating scrutiny of the EV giant’s commitment to consumer protection.

This comes as Tesla owners in Korea grow increasingly furious — first over the battery errors, and again over what they describe as the EV firm's “irresponsible” response.

Owners have begun rallying online, demanding recalls or free battery replacements, and have even filed a petition with the National Assembly, garnering over 14,000 signatures, which has prompted Korea’s transport and environment ministries to monitor the issue.

Related Article

“We cannot continue offering subsidies to vehicles that disadvantage consumers; We will even consider pulling subsidies depending on Tesla’s countermeasures,” an official who heads the EV subsidy program at the Environment Ministry told the Korea JoongAng Daily.

“We’ve asked Tesla Korea to provide a detailed explanation, but have failed to receive a response so far.”

Tesla sold 29,750 units in Korea last year, making it the third-largest imported car brand, behind BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Notably, in the first half of this year, the Model Y was named the country’s top-selling EV, with 15,432 units sold, even beating the EV6 and Ioniq 5 from homegrown brands Kia and Hyundai Motor.

What’s the matter?

Tesla owners in Korea — mostly those driving Model 3 and Model Y Long Range variants produced in 2020 and 2021 — are increasingly vocal about a recurring issue: the BMS_a079 error, which limits the battery’s maximum charge level to some 50 percent.

This error, accompanied by the message “Unable to charge — maximum charge level reached,” occurs when Tesla’s Battery Management System (BMS) detects a fault within the high-voltage battery. To prevent battery overload and reduce the risk of fire, the system restricts the maximum charge to 50 percent.

continues at koreajoongangdaily.joins.com

[Sam] Lyft stock soars 20% on Waymo Nashville robotaxi deal Published Wed, Sep 17 2025...

Sam — 9/17/2025 9:40:35 AM

Lyft stock soars 20% on Waymo Nashville robotaxi deal
Published Wed, Sep 17 20259:00 AM EDT Updated 22 Min Ago

Key Points

Alphabet’s Waymo said it plans to launch its robotaxi service next year in Nashville, partnering with Lyft for the first time in a commercial deal.
Riders in Nashville will be able to hail a Waymo vehicle either through the Waymo One or Lyft app.
Waymo is far ahead of the competition in the U.S., having logged over 10 million paid trips.

Waymo has partnered with Uber to get its robotaxis into Atlanta and Austin, Texas. Now it’s teaming up with Lyft for the first time in a commercial deal to enter Nashville next year.

Lyft stock rocketed 20% higher on the news.

Riders in Nashville will be able to hail a Waymo robotaxi through the Waymo One app, and Lyft will add Waymo robotaxis to its platform over time, the companies said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

Lyft “will provide end-to-end fleet management services including vehicle readiness and maintenance, infrastructure, and depot operations in Nashville,” for the Waymo fleet, the companies said.

Waymo, which is owned by Alphabet

, has taken a big lead in the U.S. robotaxi market, launching in Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles, as well as Austin and Atlanta. It surpassed 10 million paid trips in May, and has plans to start commercial operations next year in Miami, Washington, D.C., Dallas, Denver, and now Nashville.

cnbc.com

[Sam] QuantumScape and PowerCo Debut Solid-State Batteries in Ducati Motorcycle at IAA...

Sam — 9/8/2025 9:01:48 AM

QuantumScape and PowerCo Debut Solid-State Batteries in Ducati Motorcycle at IAA Mobility
Business Wire
Mon, September 8, 2025 at 7:00 AM EDT 5 min read

Revolutionary Battery Technology Sees First Live Vehicle Demonstration

SAN JOSE, Calif. & MUNICH, September 08, 2025--( BUSINESS WIRE)-- QuantumScape Corporation (NYSE: QS), a global leader in next-generation solid-state lithium-metal battery technology, and PowerCo SE, the battery company of the Volkswagen Group, today premiered the world's first live demonstration of QS solid-state lithium-metal batteries powering an electric vehicle. The breakthrough technology was showcased in a Ducati motorcycle equipped with QSE-5 battery cells, produced using the QS Cobra production process, during the Volkswagen Group's press conference at IAA Mobility in Munich.

This demonstration represents a significant advancement in battery technology, showcasing the first anode-free solid-state batteries to move from laboratory discovery to real-world vehicle. QS’s revolutionary technology is ultimately aimed at meeting the EV industry's long-standing need for batteries that excel in five critical battery performance metrics – energy density, charging speed, safety, lifespan and cost-effectiveness.

The world premiere took place at IAA Mobility, where a modified Ducati V21L race motorcycle powered by QS solid-state technology rode across the main stage during an address from Thomas Schmall, CEO of Volkswagen Group Components. The demonstration bike contains a first-of-its-kind battery system designed by specialists at VW Group-owned Audi specifically for QS solid-state battery cells, and highlights the potential capabilities of the technology on the racetrack. This will be a rigorous proving ground for QS technology, which has shown unique capabilities, including 844 Wh/L energy density, just over 12-minute fast charging from 10% to 80% state of charge, and 10C continuous discharge.

continues at finance.yahoo.com

[Sam] This is technically OT but it is autonomous movement--robotics in the future. [...

Sam — 9/5/2025 11:48:11 AM

This is technically OT but it is autonomous movement--robotics in the future.

[X]

🧵 Farming robots are no longer experimental. They're deployed, profitable, and reshaping agriculture.

In orchards, vineyards, vegetable fields, and beyond, they're tackling labor shortages, precision spraying, and chemical reduction at scale.

This is how robotics is quietly… pic.twitter.com/T7XHogvmDR
— Lukas Ziegler (@lukas_m_ziegler) September 2, 2025

[/X]

[Sam] Uber Posts On X "The future is coming your way, Dallas! Together with our part...

Sam — 9/4/2025 10:46:09 AM

Uber Posts On X "The future is coming your way, Dallas! Together with our partners at @Avrideai, we're ramping up testing of autonomous vehicles across Dallas and unveiling the co-branded Uber x Avride vehicle that will soon be driving riders into the future."

Read more: t.co

BENZINGA 10:43 AM ET 9/4/2025
x.com

[i-node] Ford CEO Jim Farley says Waymo’s approach to self-driving makes more sense than ...

i-node — 8/22/2025 2:44:00 AM

Ford CEO Jim Farley says Waymo’s approach to self-driving makes more sense than Tesla’s

Yeah, Farley really knows his stuff on how to build self-driving cars! Hilarious.

[Sam] On July 8, Stellantis and Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC) announced their Chin...

Sam — 8/20/2025 1:05:44 PM

On July 8, Stellantis and Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC) announced their Chinese joint venture GAC Fiat Chrysler Automobiles had officially declared bankruptcy – a first for a Sino-foreign joint venture in China’s car market.

Stellantis is a giant multinational that owns brands including Peugeot, Fiat, Chrysler and Maserati. But in China it was long synonymous with Jeep – an iconic brand whose history in the country dates back to 1949, when Mao Zedong was pictured saluting Chinese troops from a US Army Willys Jeep.

The company’s failure in China comes at a time of fractious US-China relations, but in reality its decline has lessons for every global car maker. For analysts, Jeep’s story shows how even the most successful brands are vulnerable amid the breakneck changes taking place in China’s auto market.

“It won’t be the last” joint venture to go bankrupt, said Zhou Lijun, director and chief researcher of auto industry analysis firm Yiche Research.

“The root of the crisis facing traditional joint-venture automakers is their failure to keep up with the structural transformation of China’s market towards electrification, smart technology, and localisation.”
[....]

The rapid shift away from global car brands has been driven by China’s electric vehicle revolution, which caught many foreign firms off guard. In early 2021, new-energy vehicles accounted for just 7 per cent of total vehicle sales in China, but by July 2024 that had risen to over 50 per cent, CPCA data showed.

A decade ago, Western car brands were a byword for quality, sophistication and reliability in China. But that is no longer the case. To today’s younger consumers, foreign cars often look out-of-date, as many of them offer lower specifications and fewer add-ons than domestic brands.

“They want better design, advanced features, and seamless digital integration, but the problem with joint-venture brands is that most of them are simply bringing over existing European or American models, which no longer resonate with Chinese consumers,” Zhou said.

Yu still sees the traditional “BBA” – BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi – as symbols of safety and old-money sophistication, but said her teenage daughter called them “not cool”. Her son simply asked, “What’s BBA?”

In a sign of the times, many used Audis and BMWs are now so cheap on China’s secondary market that Gen-Z consumers on limited incomes are buying them as their first cars. To this new generation, the German luxury vehicles have become bargain, last-resort purchases.

Meanwhile, the main buyers of new cars are middle-class 35-to-45-year-olds, who prefer new-energy vehicles with spacious interiors, modern design, hi-tech features and low running costs, according to Zhou. That is exactly the segment where domestic brands are thriving.

“The market share of joint-venture automakers might dip below 20 per cent or even lower in the next few years,” Zhou said. “To survive, their only hope is to invest heavily in building real local research and development capabilities in China. But for most foreign brands, that’s an almost impossible task.”

archive.ph

GAC-Fiat Chrysler’s China JV Is Declared Bankrupt July9
yicaiglobal.com

[Sam] China's Baidu to bring its driverless cars to Uber globally Story by Arjun Kharp...

Sam — 8/20/2025 1:01:45 PM

China's Baidu to bring its driverless cars to Uber globally
Story by Arjun Kharpal
• 1mo

Baidu will deploy its Apollo Go autonomous vehicles on Uber outside the U.S. and mainland China.
By partnering with Uber, Baidu has found a company with a widely-used app and that operates in 15,000 cities globally.
Uber has looked to partner with driverless car companies from Waymo to Wayve in the U.K.

Baidu has struck a partnership with Uber to deploy its autonomous cars on the ride-hailing giant's platform outside the U.S. and mainland China.

The first deployments are expected to happen in Asia and the Middle East later this year. The two companies said the multi-year partnership will see "thousands" of Baidu's Apollo Go autonomous vehicles on Uber globally.

continues at msn.com

[Sam] More details on the Tesla verdict. Updated Aug 1, 2025 - Business Tesla ordere...

Sam — 8/6/2025 3:19:25 PM

More details on the Tesla verdict.

Updated Aug 1, 2025 - Business
Tesla ordered to pay millions over deadly Autopilot crash
Joann Muller

A Florida jury ordered Tesla to pay millions in damages for a 2019 crash in Key Largo, Florida, that killed a woman and gravely injured her boyfriend.

Why it matters: It's the first time that Tesla has been held partially liable for the misuse of its Autopilot assisted-driving technology.

Between the lines: Tesla was ordered to pay a portion of $129 million in compensatory damages, as well as $200 million in punitive damages, to the family of 22-year-old Naibel Benavides.

She and her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, were standing on the side of the road when a Tesla driven by George McGee plowed into them.
After less than a day of deliberation, the eight-person jury ruled that Tesla's Autopilot technology was partially to blame by enabling McGee to momentarily take his eyes off the road and then failing to warn him the road was ending.

What they're saying: "Tesla designed Autopilot only for controlled access highways yet deliberately chose not to restrict drivers from using it elsewhere," Brett Schreiber of Singleton Schreiber, lead attorney for the plaintiffs, said in a statement after the verdict.

During the trial, he also argued that Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk overhyped Autopilot's capabilities, encouraging motorists to put too much trust in the system, in situations it couldn't handle.
"Tesla knew for years that its product was defective," he added. "Despite that people were using autopilot irresponsibly. This was a case of systematic failure.".

The other side: "Today's verdict is wrong and only works to set back automotive safety and jeopardize Tesla's and the entire industry's efforts to develop and implement life-saving technology," the company said in a statement, adding that it planned to appeal.

During the trial, Tesla attorney Joel Smith laid the blame entirely on McGee for not paying attention to the road.

"He said he was fishing for his phone," Smith said. "It's a fact. That happens in any car. That isolates the cause. The cause is he dropped his cellphone."

The big picture: The verdict is a blow to Tesla, which is betting its future on self-driving technology. It comes just weeks after the company launched a limited robotaxi service in Austin, Texas.

In two previous trials in California, juries found Tesla not liable for defects in its technology.
It has settled at least four similar cases involving Autopilot.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, meanwhile, has been investigating several aspects of Tesla's automated-driving technology, including four crashes in which the camera-based system was blinded by dust or bright sunshine.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with a statement from Tesla.

[Sam] Tesla Autopilot verdict sends a chill across the industry Joann Muller 3 hours ...

Sam — 8/6/2025 3:17:44 PM

Tesla Autopilot verdict sends a chill across the industry
Joann Muller
3 hours ago - Business

A stunning court verdict against Tesla last week exposed significant legal risks for every carmaker deploying vehicles that increasingly drive themselves.

Why it matters: For the first time, a jury found that it wasn't just the driver's negligence that caused a fatal crash in Florida. Tesla must also shoulder some of the blame, jurors said, because it didn't put enough guardrails on its Autopilot technology to prevent the driver from using the system improperly.

With partially automated features like adaptive cruise control and hands-free driving becoming common in more cars — not just Teslas — the opportunities for confusion and risk are multiplying.

Catch up quick: A Miami jury decided Aug. 1 that Elon Musk's car company was partly responsible for the crash that killed a woman and injured her boyfriend on a dark road in 2019.

The driver admitted he was distracted by his cellphone before the crash, but he had put faith in Tesla's assisted-driving system.
"I trusted the technology too much," George McGee testified. "I believed that if the car saw something in front of it, it would provide a warning and apply the brakes."
That didn't happen, and his vehicle slammed into the couple's parked car at more than 60 miles per hour.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs argued that Tesla misled customers about Autopilot's capabilities and didn't restrict drivers from using the system on roads it wasn't designed to handle.

The verdict follows years of federal investigations and recalls related to Tesla's autonomous vehicle technology.

And it's a blow to Musk, who is betting the future on self-driving technology as demand for Tesla's aging lineup of EVs has cooled.
Just this week in Texas, shareholders sued Tesla and Musk for securities fraud, accusing them of concealing potential safety risks associated with the company's self-driving vehicles.

To be fair, Tesla's assisted-driving technology today is vastly improved from 2019's Autopilot, and it continues to make updates, as Musk noted Wednesday on his social media platform X.

What they're saying: The decision "is wrong," Tesla said in a statement, "and only works to set back automotive safety and jeopardize Tesla's and the entire industry's efforts to develop and implement lifesaving technology." Tesla plans to appeal.

Reality check: Regardless of the manufacturer, there's little evidence that partial automation systems prevent collisions or save lives, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found.

In fact, automation can create new risks by making it easier for the driver's attention to wander.

Between the lines: Some crash avoidance features, like automatic emergency braking, blind-spot warning and lane departure prevention, have proven safety benefits (although AEB is less effective at high speeds and at night).

But automated technologies like adaptive cruise control or hands-free highway systems are conveniences — not safety features — that are meant to reduce the driving burden.
Yet drivers who use partial automation on a regular basis often treat their vehicles as fully self-driving despite widespread warnings and numerous high-profile crash reports, IIHS research showed.
"People have this assumption that more automotive sophistication means greater safety. But that's not a guarantee whatsoever," IIHS researcher Alexandra Mueller tells Axios.
"Companies have to explicitly design those systems to be safe, otherwise you have convenience without safety, and as we've seen, that often comes at a great cost."

Zoom in: IIHS recently established minimum safety standards for partial automation systems and issued its first set of ratings on some of the leading technologies available.

The ratings evaluate everything from driver monitoring to emergency procedures.
Almost all automakers scored "marginal" or "poor" ratings. Lexus was the only brand to earn an "acceptable" rating. None earned a "good" rating, the highest available.

What to watch: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said this week it is launching a study of driver monitoring systems, which safety advocates welcomed as a step in the right direction.

"Right now, there are no regulations at all around this technology — no requirements for driver monitoring or to prevent driver disengagement," says Michael Brooks, executive director for the Center for Auto Safety.

axios.com

[Sam] Chinese EV Firms Are So Done With BYD share.google

Sam — 8/5/2025 9:26:32 AM

[Sam] Shanghai issues first L4 robotaxi permits in push for autonomous commercializati...

Sam — 7/29/2025 1:29:56 PM

Shanghai issues first L4 robotaxi permits in push for autonomous commercialization
Staff reporter, Taipei; Sherri Wang, DIGITIMES AsiaTuesday 29 July 2025

Shanghai has issued its first demonstration licenses for Level 4 autonomous vehicles, allowing eight companies to operate fare-based robotaxi services within designated urban zones. The permits, announced during the 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), mark a key milestone in the commercial rollout of self-driving technology in one of China's largest and most advanced cities.

Tech firms, automakers, and taxi operators secure L4 licensesThe license holders span a broad spectrum of the mobility sector, including autonomous driving startups, traditional taxi fleets, and subsidiaries of major automotive groups. The approved companies are Pony.ai, Baidu Zhixing, SAIC Motor AI Lab, UTOPILOT, WeRide, Dazhong Transportation, Shanghai Qiangsheng Taxi, and Jinjiang Taxi.

The firms are authorized to deploy L4 autonomous vehicles in areas such as the Lin-gang Special Area and parts of the Pudong New District. Commercial ride-hailing operations are expected to begin before year-end, with users able to hail driverless vehicles via mobile apps, gaining firsthand experience of AI-powered urban transport.

Regulatory green light signals maturity of L4 technologyThe issuance of L4 operational permits in Shanghai holds broader implications for both industry development and policy evolution. L4 autonomy signifies that vehicles are capable of operating independently in controlled settings, highlighting the progress and safety levels of the underlying technologies.

This demonstration initiative demonstrates regulatory trust in the companies involved and represents an important move toward overcoming technical and policy challenges on the path to full commercialization.

Baidu, Pony.ai, SAIC expand footprint across cityBaidu's Apollo Go platform has already achieved large-scale deployment across multiple Chinese cities, accumulating more than 170 million kilometers in Level 4 autonomous driving test mileage—setting a global benchmark and reinforcing the company's leadership in the sector.

Pony.ai has partnered with Jinjiang Taxi to promote robotaxi services in Shanghai's Jinqiao and Huamu districts. SAIC Motor's AI Lab and UTOPILOT are focused on complementary urban mobility and smart logistics applications, gradually expanding the reach of autonomous technology across diverse operational scenarios.

Traditional taxi operators such as Dazhong Transportation and Shanghai Qiangsheng are also undergoing strategic overhauls, forming partnerships with technology firms to transition toward next-generation mobility platforms. As infrastructure and regulatory frameworks mature, consumers will soon be able to summon fully autonomous vehicles with a tap on their smartphones, ushering in a new era of urban transportation.

With regulatory backing strengthening and key technologies reaching maturity, Shanghai is fast-tracking the commercialization of autonomous transport. The city's expanding ecosystem is poised to transform urban mobility, offering a scalable blueprint for intelligent transportation infrastructure and data-driven city management.

Article edited by Jack Wu
digitimes.com

Related stories

Uber, Baidu relaunch robotaxi race: what it means for autonomous mobility's next chapter

US, China sharply diverged in regulatory paths for high-level autonomous driving

Will Tesla driverless taxi shake up autonomous driving?

Global autonomous vehicle race heats up: Hyundai plays catch-up amid US and China dominance

China accelerates autonomous driving via multiple pilot cities, with Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan leading the charge

[Savant] Tesla’s Model Y Becomes First ‘Driverless Delivery’ to Home Imagine orderin...

Savant — 7/11/2025 6:01:13 PM

Tesla’s Model Y Becomes First ‘Driverless Delivery’ to Home

Imagine ordering a car online — and having it drive itself to your driveway. On June 28, 2025, Tesla brought that future to life when a Model Y made a fully autonomous journey from Gigafactory Texas to a customer’s home — no driver, no remote operator.

The Drive: From Factory to Front Door Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk, confirmed the accomplishment on X (formerly Twitter), stating it happened a day ahead of schedule, and emphasized that the journey was executed entirely autonomously The video evidence showcases the Model Y handling highways, city streets, traffic signals, and parking lots — all at speeds up to 72 mph — all without human oversight.

technology and handwear used to make this possible

Tesla Vision (camera-only): The Model Y used eight cameras to perceive its surroundings — no lidar, radar, or ultrasonic sensors were involved, fully relying on Tesla’s vision-based Full Self-Driving (FSD) software.
FSD Software Version: The delivery vehicle ran the same “Robotaxi” autonomy software before switching to the standard commercially available FSD code upon reaching the customer.
Hardware 4 FSD Computer: Likely equipped with Tesla’s HW4 processor (Samsung 7 nm SoC, 16 GB RAM, 256 GB storage), offering 3–8× the compute power of the previous HW3 system.
AI v13.2.9 Stack: The internal screenshot from the recipient revealed the car was running firmware version v13.2.9 — a build of FSD v13, the first iteration designed to support unsupervised driving.
Highway & Urban Navigation: The car merged on/off highways at speeds up to 72 mph, handled traffic lights, unprotected left turns, roundabouts, and even right-on-red — all staff-free and unsupervised.
Complex Maneuvers: FSD v13 brings improved abilities: U-turns, parking, honking for emergencies, audio detection (like sirens), and more refined traffic control responses — all visible during the cross-town trip.
No Multi-Sensor Failover: By removing radar and ultrasound, Tesla leans fully on cameras plus AI, which critics say might lack robustness in poor weather or occlusion scenarios — even though Tesla downplays radar necessity.
No Remote Supervision: Elon Musk emphasized that no humans were inside or remotely guiding the car — making this one of the first unsupervised highway deliveries with a customer vehicle.

What’s Next?

Scalability: Tesla will need to prove that this autonomous delivery model can handle repeated runs safely across diverse geographies.
Regulatory Navigation: Approval from agencies like NHTSA will be a critical gateway to broader deployment.
Competitive Pressure: As rivals like Waymo and Aurora expand their autonomous fleets, Tesla’s strategy of direct-to-door deliveries could become a differentiator.

Whether vehicles drive us to work or deliver themselves to our homes, Tesla is steering us into a new era — blurring the lines between innovation and inevitability.

Tesla’s Model Y Becomes First ‘Driverless Delivery’ to Home | by sharath chandra | Jul, 2025 | Medium

[Sam] "Autonomous" is the goal. There are no autonomous cars today. Here is a blurb ab...

Sam — 7/9/2025 3:36:48 PM

"Autonomous" is the goal. There are no autonomous cars today. Here is a blurb about it, focusing on what Tesla offers today. Some companies have Level 3 cars while Tesla remains at Level 2 for now:

No, Tesla does not currently offer vehicles with Level 3 or Level 4 autonomy. While Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) is marketed as a "Full Self-Driving" feature, it is still officially classified as a Level 2 system under the SAE standards. Level 2 systems require constant driver supervision and the ability to take over driving at any moment. Tesla's FSD, despite its capabilities, is designed to operate under the supervision of a driver who must be attentive and ready to intervene.

Here's a breakdown:

Level 2 (Partial Automation):

Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) are classified as Level 2. These systems can perform some driving tasks, but the driver must remain engaged and ready to take over control at any time.

Level 3 vehicles can handle driving tasks in specific conditions, but require the driver to be ready to take over when prompted. Tesla's FSD is not yet at this level as it still requires constant driver attention.

Level 4 vehicles can operate autonomously in most situations without human intervention, but may have limitations on where they can operate (e.g., geofenced areas). Tesla is not yet offering Level 4 vehicles.

Level 5 vehicles can handle all driving situations without any human input. Tesla's robotaxi is envisioned to eventually reach Level 5, but this is not currently available.

Why is Tesla's FSD still Level 2?

Constant Driver Monitoring:
Tesla's FSD requires the driver to keep their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road, even when the system is engaged.

In short, while Tesla's FSD offers advanced driving assistance features, it is not a Level 3 or Level 4 autonomous driving system according to the SAE standards.

Level 3 (Conditional Automation):
.

Level 4 (High Automation):
.

Level 5 (Full Automation):
.

Operational Design Domain:
Tesla's FSD is designed for a broad range of environments, but it is not certified to operate without active driver supervision.

Hardware Limitations:
Some argue that Tesla's hardware, particularly the lack of LIDAR, may be a limiting factor in achieving Level 3 and beyond.

[i-node] You're speaking of "driver assistance". Tesla isn't about "driver assistance"...

i-node — 7/7/2025 2:10:21 PM

You're speaking of "driver assistance".

Tesla isn't about "driver assistance". It is about "autonomous".

You're comparing Coke with Dr Pepper instead of Coke with Pepsi.

[Sam] Ford CEO Jim Farley says Waymo’s approach to self-driving makes more sense than ...

Sam — 6/28/2025 4:59:16 PM

Ford CEO Jim Farley says Waymo’s approach to self-driving makes more sense than Tesla’s
Jessica Mathews
Fri, June 27, 2025 at 8:34 PM EDT
3 min read

autos.yahoo.com

[Sam] Xiaomi unveils YU7 electric SUV to challenge Tesla Model Y in China Staff report...

Sam — 6/25/2025 10:38:58 AM

Xiaomi unveils YU7 electric SUV to challenge Tesla Model Y in China
Staff reporter, Taipei; Levi Li, DIGITIMES Asia Wednesday 25 June 2025

digitimes.com

[Sam] Xiaomi has started mass producing self-developed Xring O1 chip REUTERS 10:47 ...

Sam — 5/20/2025 4:49:18 PM

Xiaomi has started mass producing self-developed Xring O1 chip

REUTERS 10:47 PM ET 5/19/2025

XIACF	7.05	+0.25 (+3.676471%)
QUOTES AS OF 03:58:48 PM ET 05/20/2025

Symbol Last Price Change

SHANGHAI (Reuters) -Xiaomi's(XIACF) founder Lei Jun said on Tuesday that the company has started mass production of its self-developed Xring O1 advanced mobile chip.

The first two products to be powered by the chip will be the Xiaomi(XIACF) 15S Pro smartphone and the Xiaomi Pad 7 Ultra, he said on his personal Weibo account.

Xiaomi (XIACF) plans to hold a launch event for the products on Thursday.

On Monday, Lei said Xiaomi(XIACF) had invested 13.5 billion yuan ($1.87 billion) to develop the Xring O1, and that it planned to invest at least 50 billion yuan more in chip design over at least 10 years.

[Eric] [graphic] Agricultural Drones Are Low-Hanging CleanTech Fruit For Sustainable F...

Eric — 4/18/2025 3:29:03 PM

Agricultural Drones Are Low-Hanging CleanTech Fruit For Sustainable Food Production

2 days ago

Derek Markham 9 Comments

Sign up for CleanTechnica's Weekly Substack for Zach and Scott's in-depth analyses and high level summaries, sign up for our daily newsletter, and/or follow us on Google News!

If you’re looking for a clean technology that’s already proven, scalable, and ready to make an impact, look up — literally. Agricultural drones are quietly transforming farming around the world, and they’re doing it in a way that’s fast, efficient, and sustainable. For an industry that’s often slow to change, this is a big deal.

Why Drones? Why Now?

The short version: drones are cheaper, cleaner, and smarter than traditional agricultural methods.

Over 300,000 ag drones are in use globally, according to DJI’s 2023/2024 industry report. They’ve already treated more than 500 million hectares of farmland (PDF). That’s not hype, it’s actual impact. These drones have helped save over 210 million metric tons of water and 47,000 metric tons of pesticides. They’ve also helped cut carbon emissions by over 25 million metric tons. That’s the same as planting 1.2 billion trees.

So why isn’t every farmer already using them?

The Old Way Is Broken

Traditional farming tools — big tractors, crop dusters, and lots of human labor — are expensive, inefficient, and hard on the planet. Tractors compact soil, reducing yields over time. Planes overspray, wasting chemicals and polluting nearby waterways. Manual labor is costly and increasingly hard to find.

Drones avoid all of that. They don’t crush soil. They don’t waste spray. And they don’t burn diesel. They’re lightweight, electric, and precise. It’s clean technology in a sector that badly needs it.

Precision Matters

When it comes to food production, precision is everything. A small improvement in pesticide application or water usage can lead to big gains in yield, and big savings.

Take a potato farmer in Washington State. Instead of spraying his whole 60-hectare field, he used drones to spot-spray only the affected areas. The result? An 80% drop in insect damage. Less pesticide, fewer pests, better crops.

In South Africa, sugarcane farmers using drones increased their sugar yield by up to 1.78 tons per hectare, just by applying treatments more accurately. And in Mexico, agave farmers cut their water use by 88% with drone spraying. It saved them over $60 per hectare. That’s real money.

Cleaner Tech, Lower Emissions

Here’s where the cleantech story gets even stronger: most ag drones run on electricity. That means fewer emissions compared to diesel-powered tractors or crop dusters, and this shift to electric aerial spraying is already making a measurable dent in agriculture’s carbon footprint.

And there’s more. Because drones are so precise, they use fewer chemicals. That reduces runoff into rivers and lakes, helping to prevent algal blooms and water contamination. It also means fewer chemicals in the soil, which is good news for long-term fertility.

Smarter Farming With AI & Data

Modern ag drones do more than just spray. They gather data, use AI to analyze it, and give farmers insights they didn’t have before. Want to know which part of your field needs more nitrogen? The drone can tell you. Want to catch a pest outbreak before it spreads? The drone sees it coming.

That kind of real-time, high-resolution feedback is changing how farmers make decisions. It means fewer blanket treatments and more targeted action — healthier crops, lower costs, and less environmental damage.

Economic Wins, Not Just Environmental Ones

Let’s talk money.

Using drones instead of traditional methods saves farmers on fuel, labor, and chemicals. But it’s not just about cost-cutting. It’s about opening new opportunities. The drone industry itself is expected to create over 100,000 new U.S. jobs by 2025, according to the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI). Many of those roles will be in agriculture — drone pilots, data analysts, and maintenance technicians.

And here’s a bonus: drones are making agriculture more appealing to younger people. In many regions, farming has an aging workforce problem. But with drones and smart tech entering the picture, younger generations are taking a second look at ag careers.

Real-World Results, Real Fast

Still think this is niche tech? Think again.

In Thailand, durian farmers using drones reduced pesticide use by 20–30% without sacrificing yields. In Indonesia, rice farmers found that drone spraying cut herbicide use nearly in half, while improving crop quality. And in Brazil, drone use in soy and corn fields has exploded — more than 110,000 registered flights, treating over 1.5 million hectares.

The technology isn’t just available. It’s working, at scale, right now.

300,000 Agriculture Drones Worldwide

DJI Agriculture

23.6K subscribers

DJI Agriculture drones are transforming farming practices on a global scale. With their innovative technology, these drones are ushering in a new era of agricultural efficiency and sustainability.

youtube.com

What’s Next?

The trajectory is clear: agricultural drones are moving from early adoption to mainstream use. As the hardware gets cheaper, the software gets smarter, and regulations catch up, expect even faster growth.

And for the cleantech community, this is an obvious win. Here’s a technology that lowers emissions, reduces waste, protects soil and water, and boosts food security — all without waiting on some hypothetical breakthrough.

Final Thoughts

Agriculture is one of the biggest sources of carbon emissions, and one of the hardest to decarbonize. But with drones, we’ve found a clean tech solution that’s ready to scale today. It’s already cutting emissions, reducing chemical use, and helping farmers do more with less.

No silver bullet exists for climate change or food security. But agricultural drones come pretty close to being a low-hanging fruit — ripe, reachable, and worth picking now.

cleantechnica.com

[kidl] Why Mercedes-Benz's driver assistance system ranks higher than Tesla's

kidl — 2/5/2025 11:05:24 AM

[Sam] Dang regulations--who needs 'em anyway? They just stifle business! Exclusive: ...

Sam — 12/13/2024 1:24:46 PM

Dang regulations--who needs 'em anyway? They just stifle business!

Exclusive: Trump transition wants to scrap crash reporting requirement opposed by Tesla

By Jarrett Renshaw, Rachael Levy and Chris Kirkham
December 13, 20249:36 AM ESTUpdated 4 hours ago

Summary
Companies

Trump transition team recommends repealing requirement that companies report automated vehicle crash data
Elon Musk's Tesla opposes the requirement, arguing it has unfairly targeted his company
Unclear if Donald Trump administration will adopt the recommendation to quash reporting requirement

Dec 13 (Reuters) - The Trump transition team wants the incoming administration to drop a car-crash reporting requirement opposed by Elon Musk’s Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab, according to a document seen by Reuters, a move that could cripple the government’s ability to investigate and regulate the safety of vehicles with automated-driving systems.

Musk, the world's richest person, spent more than a quarter of a billion dollars helping Trump get elected president in November. Removing the crash-disclosure provision would particularly benefit Tesla, which has reported most of the crashes – more than 1,500 – to federal safety regulators under the program. Tesla has been targeted in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) investigations, including three stemming from the data.

The recommendation to kill the crash-reporting rule came from a transition team tasked with producing a 100-day strategy for automotive policy. The group called the measure a mandate for "excessive" data collection, the document seen by Reuters shows.

The Trump transition team, Musk and Tesla did not respond to requests for comment.

Reuters could not determine what role, if any, Musk may have played in crafting the transition-team recommendations or the likelihood that the administration would enact them. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a trade group representing most major automakers except Tesla, has also criticized the requirement as burdensome.

A Reuters analysis of the NHTSA crash data shows Tesla accounted for 40 out of 45 fatal crashes reported to NHTSA through Oct. 15.

Among the Tesla crashes NHTSA investigated under the provision were a 2023 fatal accident in Virginia where a driver using the car's "Autopilot" feature slammed into a tractor-trailer and a California wreck the same year where an Autopiloted Tesla hit a firetruck, killing the driver and injuring four firefighters.

NHTSA said in a statement that such data is crucial to evaluating the safety of emerging automated-driving technologies. Two former NHTSA employees said the crash-reporting requirements were pivotal to agency investigations into Tesla’s driver-assistance features that led to 2023 recalls. Without the data, they said, NHTSA cannot easily detect crash patterns that highlight safety problems.

NHTSA said it has received and analyzed data on more than 2,700 crashes since the agency established the rule in 2021. The data has influenced 10 investigations into six companies, NHTSA said, as well as nine safety recalls involving four different companies.

In one example, NHTSA fined Cruise, the self-driving startup owned by General Motors (GM.N)
, opens new tab, $1.5 million in September for failing to report a 2023 incident in which a vehicle hit and dragged a pedestrian who had been struck by another car. GM this week said Cruise will stop development of self-driving technology.

CRASH REPORTING

NHTSA's so-called standing general order requires automakers to report crashes if advanced driver-assistance or autonomous-driving technologies were engaged within 30 seconds of impact, among other factors.

In addition to ditching the reporting rule, the recommendations call for the administration to "liberalize" autonomous-vehicle regulation and to enact "basic regulations to enable development" of the industry.

In an October Tesla earnings call, Musk called for “a federal approval process for autonomous vehicles,” rather than a patchwork of state laws he called “incredibly painful” to navigate. He said he would use his position as a government-efficiency czar, a post Trump had promised him, to push for such regulatory changes.

After the election, Trump named Musk to co-lead a newly created Department of Government Efficiency to advise from “outside government” on slashing federal staff, spending and regulations.

MORE DATA, MORE CRASHES

Tesla is among the most prominent automakers developing advanced driver-assistance features, which can assist with lane changes, driving speed and steering.

Tesla’s Autopilot and “Full Self-Driving” systems, which are not fully autonomous, have come under intense scrutiny in lawsuits and a DOJ criminal probe examining whether Tesla exaggerated its vehicles' self-driving capabilities, misleading investors and harming consumers.

Tesla despises the crash-notification requirement, believing that NHTSA presents the data in ways that mislead consumers about the automaker's safety, two sources familiar with Tesla executives’ thinking told Reuters.

In recent years, Tesla executives discussed with Musk the need to push for scrapping the crash-reporting requirement, according to one of the sources. But because Biden officials expressed enthusiasm for the program, Tesla executives ultimately concluded that they would need a change in administration to get rid of the requirements, according to the source.

Tesla finds the rules unfair because it believes it reports better data than other automakers, which makes it look like Tesla is responsible for an outsized number of crashes involving advanced driver-assistance systems, one of the sources said.

NHTSA cautions that the data should not be used to compare one automaker's safety to another because different companies collect information on crashes in different ways.

Bryant Walker Smith, a University of South Carolina law professor who focuses on autonomous driving, said Tesla collects real-time crash data that other companies don’t and likely reports a "far greater proportion of their incidents” than other automakers.

Tesla also likely has a greater frequency of crashes involving driver-assistance technologies because it has more vehicles on the road equipped with them and drivers engage the systems more often, Smith said. That means the vehicles may more often get into “situations that they aren’t capable of handling,” he said.

Stay up to date with the latest news, trends and innovations that are driving the global automotive industry with the Reuters Auto File newsletter. Sign up here.

Reporting By Jarrett Renshaw, Rachael Levy and Chris Kirkham; editing by Anna Driver and Brian Thevenot

reuters.com

[kidl] No hands! [graphic] Getty Images The long road to the robotaxi r...

kidl — 12/11/2024 9:32:39 AM

No hands!

Getty Images

The long road to the robotaxi revolution has come to an end... for General Motors ( GM). The company, which has been developing driverless taxis under its Cruise brand, has pulled the plug on the project due to the amount of time and resources needed to scale the business, as well as "an increasingly competitive robotaxi market." It's a big step back for the automaker, which has plowed more than $10B into Cruise since 2016, and also comes along with plans by GM to scale back investment in electric vehicles.

Backdrop: Cruise has been in hot water since last year. Its license to offer rides in California got suspended after one of its robotaxis dragged a pedestrian for 20 feet and it just admitted to submitting a false report to influence a federal investigation. Uber ( UBER) also gave up on its ambitions following a fatal self-driving crash in 2020, with its operations being absorbed by Aurora ( AUR), while Lyft ( LYFT) left the driverless road in 2021 and Ford ( F) shuttered Argo AI in 2022. Notable reports have also suggested that Apple's ( AAPL) Project Titan, which was aiming for an autonomous electric vehicle, got disbanded this past February.

While halting its robotaxi efforts (which requires zero human intervention), GM will focus on driver assistance technology for personal vehicles by combining its know-how from Cruise with its technical teams. The restructuring is expected to save the company $1B annually once the plan is completed, expected to occur in the first half of 2025. GM CEO Mary Barra previously said the Cruise business could generate $50B in annual revenue by 2030, but it appears that reality has now hit a dead end.

Still in the game: The clear front-runner in the robotaxi revolution is Waymo by deep-pocketed Alphabet ( GOOGL), which just expanded robotaxi services in Los Angeles and Miami. Next up is Tesla ( TSLA), which has staked its future on the driverless Cybercab ( most recently promised for 2026). What has made things so complicated is the myriad of inputs that are needed to achieve near-100% accuracy, and the sheer costs of engineering and manufacturing to support the new technology. Other drivers in the race include Zoox by Amazon ( AMZN), as well as global players like Apollo Go by Baidu ( BIDU) in China.

[kidl] Baidu’s supercheap robotaxis should scare the hell out of the US - The Verge

kidl — 11/22/2024 3:01:16 PM

[Sam] Alphabet's Waymo robotaxi unit doubles its paid rides in three months REUTERS...

Sam — 8/20/2024 11:03:35 AM

Alphabet's Waymo robotaxi unit doubles its paid rides in three months

REUTERS 11:00 AM ET 8/20/2024

Symbol Last Price Change

GM	46.17	+0.41 (+0.896%)
AMZN	178.12	-0.1 (-0.0561%)
QUOTES AS OF 11:00:34 AM ET 08/20/2024

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Alphabet's Waymo said on Tuesday it had doubled its paid rides to 100,000 per week in just over three months as the autonomous ride-hailing firm expanded its areas of service and allowed more people to ride its robotaxis.

Waymo's expansion comes just a month after Alphabet said it was planning a multi-year $5 billion investment in the company even as autonomous vehicle technology continues to face widespread skepticism, tight regulatory scrutiny and federal investigations.

Waymo, which has about 700 vehicles in its fleet, is the only U.S. firm operating uncrewed robotaxis that collect fares. The company opened its service to everyone in San Francisco in June without joining a waitlist while expanding its operations in metro Phoenix. This month, Waymo extended services to the San Francisco Peninsula and to certain parts of Los Angeles.

"People still think of autonomous vehicles as the faraway future, but for more and more people they're now an everyday reality," Chief Product Officer Saswat Panigrahi said in a statement, adding that Waymo's expanded "deliberately" and by "optimizing costs".

That is critical as competition for Waymo is expected to intensify. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is expected to unveil the electric vehicle market leader's delayed plans for its robotaxi product in October.

Others in the race include General Motors'(GM) Cruise, which is finding its way back to U.S. roads with safety drivers after a major accident last year; Amazon's(AMZN) Zoox, which is expanding testing for its vehicles built without steering wheels and pedals; and China-based WeRide, which is seeking a $5 billion valuation from its New York IPO and got approval from California to conduct tests with passengers. (Reporting by Abhirup Roy in San Francisco; Editing by Kim Coghill)

[Sam] Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving linked to hundreds of crashes, dozens o...

Sam — 4/26/2024 10:37:16 AM

Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving linked to hundreds of crashes, dozens of deaths /
NHTSA found that Tesla’s driver-assist features are insufficient at keeping drivers engaged in the task of driving, which can often have fatal results.
By Andrew J. Hawkins, transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeared in The New York Daily News and City & State.
Apr 26, 2024, 10:15 AM EDT

In March 2023, a North Carolina student was stepping off a school bus when he was struck by a Tesla Model Y traveling at “highway speeds,” according to a federal investigation that published today. The Tesla driver was using Autopilot, the automaker’s advanced driver-assist feature that Elon Musk insists will eventually lead to fully autonomous cars.

The 17-year-old student who was struck was transported to a hospital by helicopter with life-threatening injuries. But what the investigation found after examining hundreds of similar crashes was a pattern of driver inattention, combined with the shortcomings of Tesla’s technology, resulting in hundreds of injuries and dozens of deaths.

Drivers using Autopilot or the system’s more advanced sibling, Full Self-Driving, “were not sufficiently engaged in the driving task,” and Tesla’s technology “did not adequately ensure that drivers maintained their attention on the driving task,” NHTSA concluded.

continues at theverge.com

[Sam] The EV Battery of Your Dreams Is Coming Quiet developments signal that over the...

Sam — 4/14/2024 11:07:18 PM

The EV Battery of Your Dreams Is Coming
Quiet developments signal that over the next five years we will see technological leaps

BMW Vision Neue Klasse will have a new battery with more energy. BMW

By Christopher Mims
April 12, 2024 9:00 pm ET

wsj.com
paywall bypassed

[Sam] Mercedes-Benz Vaults To Level 3 Autonomy As Sales Slow seekingalpha.com

Sam — 10/11/2023 2:29:38 PM

[Sam] 1 big thing: AVs may need to drive more like us October 06, 2023 Joann MullerJe...

Sam — 10/6/2023 7:20:46 AM

1 big thing: AVs may need to drive more like us
October 06, 2023

A hit-and-run incident that left a pedestrian gravely injured in San Francisco earlier this week is raising questions about whether autonomous vehicles (AVs) can handle the unexpected as well as, or better than, human drivers, Joann writes.

The incident involved both a human-driven car (which made the initial impact with the pedestrian) and a Cruise AV (which then also struck the victim).

Why it matters: Driverless cars need to do three things: See their environment, predict what's about to happen, and decide what to do.

Prediction is the most challenging because AVs lack the instincts of a human driver.

The big picture: The promise that driverless cars will be safer than human drivers is almost the entire selling point of the technology — but as they roll out in a growing number of cities, a string of incidents in early markets like San Francisco and Austin has put the public on edge.

This most recent incident is likely going to exacerbate that lack of trust, regardless of who is to blame.
And it begs the question, would a human driver have behaved differently?

Details: Video footage viewed by Axios shows the pedestrian in the crosswalk being struck by a human-driven car, then bouncing off that car's windshield into the path of the robotaxi.

In a statement, Cruise said its robotaxi "braked aggressively to minimize the impact" but was unable to stop before rolling over the woman and coming to a halt.

The intrigue: Police are still investigating what happened, but their star witness could wind up being the robotaxi itself.

Like other AVs, Cruise's car is outfitted with multiple cameras and sensors, which recorded the incident.
Cruise turned over the video footage to police and is cooperating with the investigation, a company spokesperson said.

Zoom in: In addition to camera footage, Cruise showed Axios a replay of what the AV's software recorded.

The cars, represented by colored rectangles, were stopped at a red light. The human-driven car was in the left lane, the empty robotaxi in the right.
When the light turned green, both cars drove straight ahead, through the intersection.
The robotaxi was already tracking the pedestrian up ahead, represented by a triangle on the computer screen.
The pedestrian stepped into the roadway from the right, crossing the path of the approaching robotaxi.
She had cleared the right lane where the robotaxi was traveling, and was almost halfway across the intersection when she was struck by the human-driven car in the left lane. After the initial impact, she was flung back into the right lane, where she was run over by the robotaxi.

What they're saying: Experts say the robotaxi likely did as it was trained, slamming its brakes the instant it detected an obstacle — in this case, the pedestrian after she was struck by the other car.

Yes, but: What about the moments leading up to the accident?

Even though its lane was clear, should the Cruise vehicle have been more cautious, knowing a pedestrian was crossing against the light on a busy street at night?

"When you see something really bad happening on the roadway, a reasonable driver would slow down as a precaution," said AV expert Philip Koopman, an associate professor at Carnegie Mellon University.

"A reasonable driver doesn't say, 'That's not my problem. I'm just gonna keep going.'"

The catch: Self-driving cars can only make decisions based on what they're programmed to do.

AVs aren't coded "to anticipate a human projectile coming from the other way," said Jennifer Dukarski, a Michigan lawyer specializing in AVs.

What to watch: Dukarski wonders whether a new approach to autonomous driving from Tesla CEO Elon Musk could make AVs safer.

Instead of being based on lines of code with specific instructions for various foreseen scenarios, the latest version of Tesla's "Full Self-Driving" technology is teaching itself how to drive by processing billions of frames of video of how humans actually drive.

The bottom line: There's almost an infinite list of things that can happen on the road — which is why teaching AVs to prepare for the unexpected is so difficult.

axios.com

[Sam] America’s Most Tech-Forward City Has Doubts About Self-Driving Cars Alphabet’s ...

Sam — 8/14/2023 10:26:39 AM

America’s Most Tech-Forward City Has Doubts About Self-Driving Cars
Alphabet’s Waymo and General Motors’ Cruise are struggling to win over San Francisco residents and officials, a major hurdle in their nationwide expansion.
By Meghan Bobrowsky
and Miles Kruppa
| Photographs by Poppy Lynch for The Wall Street Journal
Aug. 4, 2023 9:00 pm ET

wsj.com

[paywall bypassed with the above link]

[Eric] Inceptio L3 autonomous trucks log more than 40M accident-free kilometers 07 Jul...

Eric — 7/9/2023 11:40:32 AM

Inceptio L3 autonomous trucks log more than 40M accident-free kilometers

07 July 2023

Inceptio Technology, a China-based developer of autonomous driving technologies for heavy-duty trucks ( earlier post), announced that the Inceptio Autonomous Driving System has powered more than 40 million kilometers of accident-free trucking on China’s highways. This latest milestone underlines the safety and reliability of Inceptio’s full-stack autonomous driving solution, as well as its accelerating commercial uptake.

Inceptio’s L3 autonomous trucks have been in commercial operation since late 2021. Working closely with two of China’s top OEMs—Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle and Sinotruk—Inceptio has shipped hundreds of mass-produced heavy-duty trucks designed from the ground up for full integration with the Inceptio Autonomous Driving System.

Major customers including Budweiser, Nestlé, JD Logistics, and Deppon Express have deployed Inceptio trucks across a nationwide line-haul logistics network in China.

The company’s focus on mass production ensures that L3 autonomous trucks are sufficiently reliable for OEMs to produce and highly affordable for fleet operators to procure and operate, while its advanced technical features significantly increase driver safety and enable end-customers to receive goods at lower shipping costs.

The company says that its focus on pre-loading its systems during the production process ensures significantly greater safety, reliability, durability, and regulatory compliance compared to an aftermarket approach.

With ‘safety first’ as its top design principle, Inceptio has collaborated with more than 50 industry partners to solve the most difficult challenges unique to the automation of heavy-duty trucks, including much greater size, weight, reaction distances, response times, and variations in vehicle parameters. Inceptio’s innovation achievements include:

Ultra long-range 3D sensing technology holds the industry record with an error rate of less than 5% at a distance of 1,000 meters.
The core algorithm sets a performance benchmark for the industry with an average lateral control error within 5.5 cm.
Algorithms optimize fuel economy at every level, resulting in 3-7% fuel savings over the most fuel-efficient human drivers.
Fully self-developed autonomous driving software.
Fully self-developed Autonomous Driving Control Unit with 262 KDMIPS + 256 TOPS of computing power.
The industry’s first fully redundant drive-by-wire chassis, including redundant steering, braking, and power supply systems.
Automotive-grade autonomous driving hardware kit offering triple-redundant sensor configuration and fully redundant computing unit.
An advanced human-machine interaction system with auditory, visual, and tactile feedback for human operators.

Posted on 07 July 2023 in Autonomous driving, China, Heavy-duty, Market Background

greencarcongress.com

[Eric] Pyka receives $7-million California tax credit to expand zero-emission autonomou...

Eric — 6/14/2023 2:21:23 PM

Pyka receives $7-million California tax credit to expand zero-emission autonomous aircraft manufacturing

Posted June 14, 2023 by Nikola Potrebic & filed under Newswire, The Tech.

Electric aircraft startup Pyka has been awarded a $7-million California Competes Tax Credit from the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz)—an income tax credit for businesses that locate or grow in California.

Pyka’s technology includes autonomous flight control software, flight computers, high-energy-density batteries, advanced electric propulsion systems and carbon-composite airframes.

The company recently launched an autonomous cargo airplane (the Pelican Cargo), which features a range of up to 200 miles, a payload of up to 400 pounds in 66 cubic feet of cargo volume, and a nose-loading system with a sliding cargo tray. The Pelican Cargo is powered by four electric motors with a combined 100 kW of output, and a 50 kWh swappable Li-ion battery pack. The aircraft uses four fixed-pitch propellers, two in the front and two behind the wing.

Source: Green Car Congress

chargedevs.com

[Sam] 7 fatalities, 736 crashes: The shocking toll of Tesla’s Autopilot Tesla’s driver...

Sam — 6/10/2023 2:50:06 PM

7 fatalities, 736 crashes: The shocking toll of Tesla’s Autopilot
Tesla’s driver-assistance system, known as Autopilot, has been involved in far more crashes than previously reported
By Faiz Siddiqui and
Jeremy B. Merrill
June 10, 2023 at 7:00 a.m. EDT

SAN FRANCISCO — The school bus was displaying its stop sign and flashing red warning lights, a police report said, when Tillman Mitchell, 17, stepped off one afternoon in March. Then a Tesla Model Y approached on North Carolina Highway 561.

The car — allegedly in Autopilot mode — never slowed down.

It struck Mitchell at 45 mph. The teenager was thrown into the windshield, flew into the air and landed face down in the road, according to his great-aunt, Dorothy Lynch. Mitchell’s father heard the crash and rushed from his porch to find his son lying in the middle of the road.

“If it had been a smaller child,” Lynch said, “the child would be dead.”

The crash in North Carolina’s Halifax County, where a futuristic technology came barreling down a rural highway with devastating consequences, was one of 736 U.S. crashes since 2019 involving Teslas in Autopilot mode — far more than previously reported, according to a Washington Post analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data. The number of such crashes has surged over the past four years, the data shows, reflecting the hazards associated with increasingly widespread use of Tesla’s futuristic driver-assistance technology as well as the growing presence of the cars on the nation’s roadways.

The number of deaths and serious injuries associated with Autopilot also has grown significantly, the data shows. When authorities first released a partial accounting of accidents involving Autopilot in June 2022, they counted only three deaths definitively linked to the technology. The most recent data includes at least 17 fatal incidents, 11 of them since last May, and five serious injuries.

Mitchell survived the March crash but suffered a fractured neck and a broken leg and had to be placed on a ventilator. He still suffers from memory problems and has trouble walking. His great-aunt said the incident should serve as a warning about the dangers of the technology.

“I pray that this is a learning process,” Lynch said. “People are too trusting when it comes to a piece of machinery.”

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said that cars operating in Tesla’s Autopilot mode are safer than those piloted solely by human drivers, citing crash rates when the modes of driving are compared. He has pushed the carmaker to develop and deploy features programmed to maneuver the roads — navigating stopped school buses, fire engines, stop signs and pedestrians — arguing that the technology will usher in a safer, virtually accident-free future. While it’s impossible to say how many crashes may have been averted, the data shows clear flaws in the technology being tested in real time on America’s highways.

Tesla’s 17 fatal crashes reveal distinct patterns, The Post found: Four involved a motorcycle. Another involved an emergency vehicle. Meanwhile, some of Musk’s decisions — such as widely expanding the availability of the features and stripping the vehicles of radar sensors — appear to have contributed to the reported uptick in incidents, according to experts who spoke with The Post.

Tesla and Elon Musk did not respond to a request for comment.

NHTSA said a report of a crash involving driver-assistance does not itself imply that the technology was the cause. “NHTSA has an active investigation into Tesla Autopilot, including Full-Self Driving,” spokeswoman Veronica Morales said, noting the agency doesn’t comment on open investigations. “NHTSA reminds the public that all advanced driver assistance systems require the human driver to be in control and fully engaged in the driving task at all times. Accordingly, all state laws hold the human driver responsible for the operation of their vehicles.”

Musk has repeatedly defended his decision to push driver-assistance technologies to Tesla owners, arguing that the benefit outweighs the harm.

“At the point of which you believe that adding autonomy reduces injury and death, I think you have a moral obligation to deploy it even though you’re going to get sued and blamed by a lot of people,” Musk said last year. “Because the people whose lives you saved don’t know that their lives were saved. And the people who do occasionally die or get injured, they definitely know — or their state does.”

Former NHTSA senior safety adviser Missy Cummings, a professor at George Mason University’s College of Engineering and Computing, said the surge in Tesla crashes is troubling.

“Tesla is having more severe — and fatal — crashes than people in a normal data set,” she said in response to the figures analyzed by The Post. One likely cause, she said, is the expanded rollout over the past year and a half of Full Self-Driving, which brings driver-assistance to city and residential streets. “The fact that … anybody and everybody can have it. … Is it reasonable to expect that might be leading to increased accident rates? Sure, absolutely.”

Cummings said the number of fatalities compared to overall crashes was also a concern.

It is unclear whether the data captures every crash involving Tesla’s driver-assistance systems. NHTSA’s data includes some incidents where it is “unknown” whether Autopilot or Full Self-Driving was in use. Those include three fatalities, including one last year.

NHTSA, the nation’s top auto safety regulator, began collecting the data after a federal order in 2021 required automakers to disclose crashes involving driver-assistance technology. The total number of crashes involving the technology is minuscule compared with all road incidents; NHTSA estimates that more than 40,000 people died in wrecks of all kinds last year.

Since the reporting requirements were introduced, the vast majority of the 807 automation-related crashes have involved Tesla, the data show. Tesla — which has experimented more aggressively with automation than other automakers — also is linked to almost all of the deaths.

Subaru ranks second with 23 reported crashes since 2019. The enormous gulf probably reflects wider deployment and use of automation across Tesla’s fleet of vehicles, as well as the wider range of circumstances in which Tesla drivers are encouraged to use Autopilot.

Autopilot, which Tesla introduced in 2014, is a suite of features that enable the car to maneuver itself from highway on-ramp to off-ramp, maintaining speed and distance behind other vehicles and following lane lines. Tesla offers it as a standard feature on its vehicles, of which more than 800,000 are equipped with Autopilot on U.S. roads, though advanced iterations come at a cost.

Full Self-Driving, an experimental feature that customers must purchase, allows Teslas to maneuver from point A to B by following turn-by-turn directions along a route, halting for stop signs and traffic lights, making turns and lane changes, and responding to hazards along the way. With either system, Tesla says drivers must monitor the road and intervene when necessary.

The uptick in crashes coincides with Tesla’s aggressive rollout of Full Self-Driving, which has expanded from around 12,000 users to nearly 400,000 in a little more than a year. Nearly two-thirds of all driver-assistance crashes that Tesla has reported to NHTSA occurred in the past year.

Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University professor who has conducted research on autonomous vehicle safety for 25 years, said the prevalence of Teslas in the data raises crucial questions.

“A significantly higher number certainly is a cause for concern,” he said. “We need to understand if it’s due to actually worse crashes or if there’s some other factor such as a dramatically larger number of miles being driven with Autopilot on.”

In February, Tesla issued a recall of more than 360,000 vehicles equipped with Full Self-Driving over concerns that the software prompted its vehicles to disobey traffic lights, stop signs and speed limits.

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The flouting of traffic laws, documents posted by the safety agency said, “could increase the risk of a collision if the driver does not intervene.” Tesla said it remedied the issues with an over-the-air software update, remotely addressing the risk.

While Tesla constantly tweaked its driver-assistance software, it also took the unprecedented step of eliminating its radar sensors from new cars and disabling them from vehicles already on the road — depriving them of a critical sensor as Musk pushed a simpler hardware set amid the global computer chip shortage. Musk said last year, “Only very high resolution radar is relevant.”

It has recently taken steps to reintroduce radar sensors, according to government filings first reported by Electrek.

In a March presentation, Tesla claimed Full Self-Driving crashes at a rate at least five times lower than vehicles in normal driving, in a comparison of miles driven per collision. That claim, and Musk’s characterization of Autopilot as “unequivocally safer,” is impossible to test without access to the detailed data that Tesla possesses.

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Autopilot, largely a highway system, operates in a less complex environment than the range of situations experienced by a typical road user.

It is unclear which of the systems was in use in the fatal crashes: Tesla has asked NHTSA not to disclose that information. In the section of the NHTSA data specifying the software version, Tesla’s incidents read — in all capital letters — “redacted, may contain confidential business information.”

Both Autopilot and Full Self-Driving have come under scrutiny in recent years. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told the Associated Press last month that Autopilot is not an appropriate name “when the fine print says you need to have your hands on the wheel and eyes on the road at all times.”

Tesla ‘Self-Driving’ struggles 6 years after first promises
3:14

Six years after Tesla promoted a self-driving car's flawless drive, a car using recent 'Full Self-Driving' beta software couldn't drive the route without error. (Video: Jonathan Baran/The Washington Post)

NHTSA has opened multiple probes into Tesla’s crashes and other problems with its driver-assistance software. One has focused on “phantom braking,” a phenomenon in which vehicles abruptly slow down for imagined hazards.

In one case last year, detailed by The Intercept, a Tesla Model S allegedly using driver-assistance suddenly braked in traffic on the San Francisco Bay Bridge, resulting in an eight-vehicle pileup that left nine people injured, including a 2-year-old.

In other complaints filed with NHTSA, owners say the cars slammed on the brakes when encountering semi-trucks in oncoming lanes.

Many crashes involve similar settings and conditions. NHTSA has received more than a dozen reports of Teslas slamming into parked emergency vehicles while in Autopilot, for example. Last year, NHTSA upgraded its investigation of those incidents to an “engineering analysis.”

Also last year, NHTSA opened two consecutive special investigations into fatal crashes involving Tesla vehicles and motorcyclists. One occurred in Utah, when a motorcyclist on a Harley-Davidson was traveling in a high-occupancy lane on Interstate 15 outside Salt Lake City, shortly after 1 a.m., according to authorities. A Tesla in Autopilot struck the bike from behind.

“The driver of the Tesla did not see the motorcyclist and collided with the back of the motorcycle, which threw the rider from the bike,” the Utah Department of Public Safety said. The motorcyclist died at the scene, Utah authorities said.

“It’s very dangerous for motorcycles to be around Teslas,” Cummings said.

Of hundreds of Tesla driver-assistance crashes, NHTSA has focused on about 40 Tesla incidents for further analysis, hoping to gain deeper insight into how the technology operates. Among them was the North Carolina crash involving Mitchell, the student disembarking from the school bus.

Afterward, Mitchell awoke in the hospital with no recollection of what happened. He still doesn’t grasp the seriousness of it, his aunt said. His memory problems are hampering him as he tries to catch up in school. Local outlet WRAL reported that the impact of the crash shattered the Tesla’s windshield.

The Tesla driver, Howard G. Yee, was charged with multiple offenses in the crash, including reckless driving, passing a stopped school bus and striking a person, a class I felony, according to North Carolina State Highway Patrol Sgt. Marcus Bethea.

Authorities said Yee had fixed weights to the steering wheel to trick Autopilot into registering the presence of a driver’s hands: Autopilot disables the functions if steering pressure is not applied after an extended amount of time. Yee did not respond to a request for comment.

NHTSA is still investigating the crash and an agency spokeswoman declined to offer further details, citing the ongoing investigation. Tesla asked the agency to exclude the company’s summary of the incident from public view, saying it “may contain confidential business information.”

Lynch said her family has kept Yee in their thoughts, and regards his actions as a mistake prompted by excessive trust in the technology, what experts call “automation complacency.”

“We don’t want his life to be ruined over this stupid accident,” she said.

But when asked about Musk, Lynch had sharper words.

“I think they need to ban automated driving,” she said. “I think it should be banned.”

washingtonpost.com

[Eric] Massive Spray Drones Are Transforming Agriculture With Win After Win Message 34...

Eric — 3/22/2023 9:40:46 AM

Massive Spray Drones Are Transforming Agriculture With Win After Win

Message 34232222

SF has been using them for awhile....

Cruise wants to test self-driving cars all over California
by: AP
Posted: Mar 20, 2023 / 06:13 PM PDT
Updated: Mar 21, 2023 / 08:33 AM PDT

kron4.com

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors’ Cruise autonomous vehicle unit on Monday asked California for permission to test the cars across the entire state.

The GM subsidiary already is running an autonomous ride-hailing service in its hometown of San Francisco after testing for more than two years. It doesn’t have specific plans yet to expand testing in California, but applying with the Department of Motor Vehicles is a step toward entering cities such as Los Angeles.

“While this application doesn’t represent any immediate change to our testing or operations, we hope to continue working with the California DMV to safely and responsibly test our services in other cities in the future,” Cruise spokesman Drew Pusateri said in a statement.

If granted, the test permit won’t allow Cruise to carry non-employee passengers outside of San Francisco. Testing could be done up to 55 miles per hour (88 kilometers per hour) statewide, Cruise said.

[Sam] Kroger set to use self-driving trucks for deliveries By Staff Report March 18, 2...

Sam — 3/19/2023 5:53:25 PM

Kroger set to use self-driving trucks for deliveries
By Staff Report
March 18, 2023

Self-driving trucks will soon start making deliveries at some Kroger stores in the Dallas area, the company announced.

Kroger has partnered with Gatik to use its midsize trucks to carry goods between a Kroger fulfillment center and the nation’s largest grocer’s stores, the companies said Wednesday.

The Gatik trucks, with a safety driver initially, will make repeated delivery runs multiple times a day, seven days a week for Kroger. The routes include semi-urban and highway driving at up to 70 miles per hour. The routes average 60 miles per round trip.

Kroger joins Walmart, Loblaw and Georgia-Pacific in using Gatik’s self-driving trucks for short-haul routes.

Gatik said Kroger has signed a multiyear agreement to use its autonomous box trucks to transport ambient, refrigerated and frozen foods and general merchandise.

“Kroger’s commitment to redefining service levels for its customers through innovative technology meant that our collaboration came together very quickly,” said Gautam Narang, co-founder and CEO at Gatik in a statement. “We’re deeply familiar with operating our autonomous fleet within the Dallas ecosystem, and we’re very excited to bring that experience to support Kroger in its mission to reshape the future of goods delivery.”

The deliveries are expected to start in the third quarter of the year.

Kroger opened America’s first automated warehouse in Monroe March 2021.

The $55 million, 335,000-square-foot customer fulfillment center features digital and robotic capabilities that allow Kroger to assemble an order of approximately 50 items in six minutes with robotics in an automated warehouse instead of approximately 30 to 45 minutes with a Kroger employee picking them up from various areas of the store.

Located along Ohio 63at 6266 Hamilton Lebanon Road in Monroe, the new facility — also known as a “shed” — is the first of 20 planned colossal automated warehouse/distribution facilities to be created as part of a partnership between Kroger and U.K.-based Ocado, one of the world’s largest dedicated online grocery retailers.

It employs more than 400 people.

daytondailynews.com

[Sam] Beijing greenlights operation of unmanned self-driving vehicles Xinhua | ...

Sam — 3/19/2023 5:51:48 PM

Beijing greenlights operation of unmanned self-driving vehicles

Xinhua | Updated: 2023-03-19 07:45

BEIJING -- Beijing greenlighted the commercial operation of autonomous driving service without in-car safety supervisors for the first time on Friday.

The first batch of two fully-driverless ride-hailing platforms, which were operated respectively by Chinese tech giant Baidu and autonomous vehicle startup Pony.ai, received approval after a three-month pilot program on public roads.

The pilot program involved the unmanned autonomous vehicles' ability to deal with complex scenarios such as intersections, narrow roadways, as well as extreme weather conditions like rain, snow and sandstorms.

Previously, safety supervisors were required to stay in the driver's seats, passenger seats or second-row seats when the vehicles underwent road tests and commercial operation.

The permit allows Baidu and Pony.ai to provide fully driverless rides without a safety supervisor aboard in a 60-square-kilometer area of the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area.

Residents can summon a driverless car without a safety supervisor inside to travel to various destinations, such as subway stations, key commercial areas, public parks and residential communities, through mobile applications.

chinadaily.com.cn

[Sam] Charlie Munger says BYD is so far ahead of Tesla in China ‘it’s almost ridiculou...

Sam — 2/16/2023 9:36:22 PM

Charlie Munger says BYD is so far ahead of Tesla in China ‘it’s almost ridiculous’
Published Wed, Feb 15 20234:22 PM ESTUpdated Wed, Feb 15 20235:58 PM EST
Yun Li

Charlie Munger said Wednesday that Tesla pales in comparison to BYD
in China, calling the Chinese electric vehicle maker his favorite stock ever.

“I have never helped do anything at Berkshire [Hathaway] that was as good as BYD and I only did it once,” the 99-year-old investor said at the Daily Journal’s virtual annual meeting Wednesday. Berkshire initial investment is now “worth about $8 billion or maybe [$9 billion]. That’s a pretty good rate of return,” said Munger, Warren Buffett’s longtime investment partner.

BYD has been a lucrative bet for Berkshire, which first bought about 220 million shares in September 2008. The stock has jumped more than 600% in the past 10 years amid the massive growth in electric vehicles. Berkshire has actually been trimming its BYD stake in the past year as the stock has become increasingly pricey.

“At the current price of BYD stock, little BYD is worth more than the entire Mercedes corporation. It’s not a cheap stock, but on the other hand, it’s a very remarkable company,” Munger said.

Munger, Berkshire’s vice chairman and a Daily Journal board member, credited Li Lu, founder of Seattle-based asset manager Himalaya Capital, for introducing him to BYD. Munger also said BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu is unusual, calling him a genius and a workaholic.

Asked if he would prefer Tesla or BYD as an investment, Munger said the answer is easy.

“Tesla last year reduced its prices in China twice. BYD increased its prices. We are direct competitors. BYD is so much ahead of Tesla in China ... it’s almost ridiculous,” Munger said.

BYD recently said it expects record adjusted annual profit for 2022 of 16.3 billion yuan ($2.4 billion), about 1,200% above 2021.

“BYD last year made more than $2 billion after taxes in the auto business in China. It’s incredible what’s happened,” Munger said. “If you count all the manufacturing space they have in China to make cars, it would amount to a big percentage of the Manhattan island, and nobody had ever heard of them a few years ago.”

The longtime investor called Tesla CEO Elon Musk talented — and “peculiar.” He previously said what Musk achieved in the car business was a “minor miracle.”

“I don’t buy him, and I don’t short him,” Munger said Wednesday.

cnbc.com

[Sam] Mobileye: Strong Tailwinds Amid Stronger Competition Feb. 13, 2023 5:12 PM ET Mo...

Sam — 2/13/2023 9:30:13 PM

Mobileye: Strong Tailwinds Amid Stronger Competition
Feb. 13, 2023 5:12 PM ET Mobileye Global Inc. (MBLY) INTC 2 Comments
Robert Castellano

Summary

Mobileye's major disadvantage is that its closed-system approach has created an opportunity for ADAS competitors with an open-system strategy.
Mobileye dominates the ADAS SoC market with a 69% market share.
Ironically, Intel Capital's 2017 investment in China's Horizon Robotics may have helped the company compete against Mobileye.
This idea was discussed in more depth with members of my private investing community, Semiconductor Deep Dive.
Learn More »

seekingalpha.com

[Sam] Two companies race to deploy robotaxis in San Francisco. The city wants them to ...

Sam — 1/28/2023 8:13:12 AM

Two companies race to deploy robotaxis in San Francisco. The city wants them to hit the brakes.
The city’s transportation officials sent letters this week to California regulators asking them to halt or scale back the expansion plans of Cruise and Waymo.
Jan. 27, 2023, 5:38 PM EST
By David Ingram

SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco is trying to slow the expansion of robotaxis after repeated incidents in which cars without drivers stopped and idled in the middle of the street for no obvious reason, delaying bus riders and disrupting the work of firefighters.

The city’s transportation officials sent letters this week to California regulators asking them to halt or scale back the expansion plans of two companies, Cruise and Waymo, which are competing head-to-head to be the first to offer 24-hour robotaxi service in the country’s best-known tech hub.

The outcome will determine how quickly San Francisco and possibly other cities forge ahead with driverless technology that could remake the world’s cities and potentially save some of the 40,000 people killed each year in American traffic crashes.

The episode adds another chapter to the complicated history of self-driving cars, an idea that has been teased by technologists as a possibility in the future while facing a variety of setbacks in the past few years. Waymo offers fully autonomous rides in Phoenix, while Tesla lets some of its owners test “driver assistance” features that are the subject of a federal investigation. A self-driving Uber test vehicle struck and killed a woman in 2018.

Some believe self-driving cars will never happen on a wide scale, but they’ve been gaining momentum in San Francisco.

Cruise, which is majority-owned by General Motors, won permission last year to use 30 vehicles as robotaxis in parts of San Francisco between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. The vehicles do not have backup human drivers during that time. The company has since received permission to test driverless cars any time of day, but it needs a signoff from the California Public Utilities Commission to expand the hours of its commercial service.

Neither vehicles from Cruise or Waymo have killed anyone on the streets of San Francisco, but the companies need to overcome their sometimes comical errors, including one episode last year in which a Cruise car with nobody in it slowly tried to flee from a police officer.

In one recent instance documented on social media and noted by city officials, five disabled Cruise vehicles in San Francisco’s Mission District blocked a street so completely that a city bus with 45 riders couldn’t get through and was delayed for at least 13 minutes. Cruise’s autonomous cars have also interfered with active firefighting, and firefighters once shattered a car’s window to prevent it from driving over their firehoses, the city said.

video and more text at nbcnews.com

[Sam] Mobileye expects strong 2023 as customers lap up autonomous driving tech REUTE...

Sam — 1/26/2023 8:32:32 AM

Mobileye expects strong 2023 as customers lap up autonomous driving tech
REUTERS 6:55 AM ET 1/26/2023

Symbol Last Price Change

MBLY	33.95	0 (0%)
F	12.79	0 (0%)
GM	36.32	0 (0%)
INTC	29.7	0 (0%)
QUOTES AS OF 04:00:00 PM ET 01/25/2023

Jan 26 (Reuters) - Mobileye Global Inc(MBLY) forecast fiscal 2023 revenue higher than analysts' projections and delivered better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings, as vehicle makers lapped up its driver-assistance technology.

Shares of the company, which counts Volkswagen Group, Ford Motor Co(F) and General Motors Co(GM) among its customers, rose 6.5% to $36.17 in premarket trading.

The automotive industry is increasingly adopting sophisticated camera systems and sensors that assist in safe driving.

Earlier this month, founder and Chief Executive Officer Amnon Shashua said Mobileye forecast a revenue pipeline of over $17 billion through 2030 for its core advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) products.

The company raised $861 million in its second initial public offering last year October, when Intel Corp(INTC) spun it off after taking it private in 2017.

Mobileye, majority owned by Intel(INTC), forecast full-year 2023 revenue between $2.19 billion and $2.28 billion. The mid-point of the range came in higher than analysts' average estimate of $2.21 billion, according to Refinitiv data.

Revenue jumped 59% to $565 million in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, beating analysts' average estimate of $535.82 million, according to Refinitiv.

The company posted adjusted earnings per share of 27 cents, also higher than the consensus of 17 cents. (Reporting by Yuvraj Malik in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

[Sam] What will be the Top 5 Self Driving Vehicle Trends for the Year? ...

Sam — 1/25/2023 8:19:21 AM

What will be the Top 5 Self Driving Vehicle Trends for the Year?
By Geospatial World
-
01/24/2023

youtu.be

[Sam] Aurora approaches autonomous truck finish line Lexicon of technical language of...

Sam — 1/7/2023 10:39:53 AM

Aurora approaches autonomous truck finish line
Lexicon of technical language often means exactly what it says
Alan Adler · Friday, January 06, 2023

freightwaves.com

[Sam] Advances in Autonomous Trucking Stand Out at CES Seth Clevenger | Managing Edito...

Sam — 1/7/2023 10:37:03 AM

Advances in Autonomous Trucking Stand Out at CES
Seth Clevenger | Managing Editor, Features
January 6, 2023 9:58 AM, EST

ttnews.com

[Sam] Hyundai Demos Self-Driving Ioniq 5 Taxi at CES in Vegas The self-...

Sam — 1/7/2023 10:36:25 AM

Hyundai Demos Self-Driving Ioniq 5 Taxi at CES in Vegas

The self-driving car may not be dead after all.
Jeff Zurschmeide , Executive Editor
Yesterday

thedetroitbureau.com