Pretty much every self-driving car on the road, not to mention many a robot and drone, uses lidar to sense its surroundings. But useful as lidar is, it also involves physical compromises that limit its capabilities. Lumotive is a new company with funding from Bill Gates and Intellectual Ventures that uses metamaterials to exceed those limits, perhaps setting a new standard for the industry.
View More Gates-backed Lumotive upends lidar conventions using metamaterialsCategory: Transportation
GM investing $300 million to build a new electric Chevy in the U.S.
GM announced Friday it will invest $300 million into a Michigan factory to produce a new Chevrolet electric vehicle, reversing a decision to build the EV outside of the United States. The announcement comes on the heels of recent job cuts and plant closures by GM, moves that have complicated bargaining with union workers over […]
View More GM investing $300 million to build a new electric Chevy in the U.S.United Airlines just made booking easier for trans and non-binary customers
Something as simple as booking a flight can be painful if you identify as trans.
On Tuesday, United Airlines announced that they would be changing their booking options to be more trans-inclusive. Instead of forcing their customers to choose be…
Tesla revives its referral program, but it’s a shadow of its former self
Back in February, Tesla cut its customer referral program due to how much it was costing the company.
Elon Musk announced on Thursday that the program is back, but the incentives are admittedly much, much slimmer than they used to be.
SEE ALSO: Ex-Te…
Tesla sues former employees, Zoox for alleged trade secret theft
Tesla has filed a pair of lawsuits against a handful of former employees who went to work at self-driving vehicle startup Zoox and Chinese EV automaker Xiaopeng. The separate lawsuits filed late Wednesday allege former Tesla employees stole trade secrets and used them at their new places of employment. Tesla declined to comment on either […]
View More Tesla sues former employees, Zoox for alleged trade secret theftAurora’s Sterling Anderson, Uber ATG’s Raquel Urtasun to discuss self-driving cars and AI at TC Sessions
We’re just weeks away from our TC Sessions: Robotics + AI event at UC Berkeley on April 18. Some of the best and brightest minds are joining us for the day-long event, including Marc Raibert, Colin Angle, Melonee Wise and Anthony Levandowski . Last week, we added to the list of marquee guests and announced a panel with roboticist Ken Goldberg, […]
View More Aurora’s Sterling Anderson, Uber ATG’s Raquel Urtasun to discuss self-driving cars and AI at TC SessionsPick up your used car at Carvana’s newest car-sized vending machine
For online car buyers, there’s another option to get your car.
Sure, you could pick it up from a used lot or have it delivered. But online car site Carvana has another car vending machine, this time in the Pittsburgh area. Opening Thursday, the eight-story tall glass building holds 27 cars.
After buying online through the Carvana site, buyers get an oversized commemorative “coin” to bring down the car — just like a bag of chips in a vending machine after inserting coins, only a bit bigger. Also in Pennsylvania, two other cities, Erie and Reading, now have next-day vehicle delivery — to your door. But you don’t get the vending machine experience. Read more…
More about Car Buying, Used Cars, Online Sales, Tech, and Transportation
View More Pick up your used car at Carvana’s newest car-sized vending machineFord will invest $850 million to add more production capacity for EVs
Ford plans to invest more than $850 million to add more production capacity at a second U.S. factory for its next-generation battery-electric vehicle program. The investment, which will be made through 2023, will focus on expanding Ford’s Flat Rock Assembly Plant in southeast Michigan. The plant investment also includes funding to build the next-generation Mustang […]
View More Ford will invest $850 million to add more production capacity for EVsFord goes all in on autonomous vehicles with new factory
Ford hasn’t shied away from the prospect of robo-cars.
Back in 2017, Ford brought on autonomous vehicle startup Argo AI to develop a self-driving program with plans to provide a self-driving taxi service in several cities by 2021. It’s been tes…
Postmates’ newest feature is like Uber pool for food delivery
Postmates is launching a new feature called Postmates Party that lets customers within the same neighborhood pool their orders. In return, these customers get the food delivered for free, eliminating a major pinch point for potential Postmates users. The feature illustrates how Postmates, one of the earlier entrants to the billion-dollar food delivery wars, is […]
View More Postmates’ newest feature is like Uber pool for food deliveryTC Sessions: Mobility, a one-day session event on the future of transportation
The way people and packages move from Point A to Point B is in the midst of a remarkable transformation driven by technological innovations in AI, robotics, electric battery development, digital platforms and manufacturing. A mobility revolution is in the making. And TechCrunch is here — and we’re not just along for the ride. We’re […]
View More TC Sessions: Mobility, a one-day session event on the future of transportationUber Freight is expanding into Europe
Uber Freight, the newly spun out Uber business unit that helps truck drivers connect with shipping companies, is kicking off its global expansion plans. The company said Wednesday it is launching the app in Europe, starting with the Netherlands. Local carriers and drivers will be able to book and move their first loads with Uber […]
View More Uber Freight is expanding into Europe