Autonomous trucking technology company Kodiak Robotics won a $49.9 million contract from the the U.S. Department of Defense to help the Army automate future ground vehicles to conduct high-risk missions like reconnaissance and surveillance. The two year contract, which was awarded by the DoD’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) on behalf of the Army’s Robotic Combat… Continue reading Kodiak Robotics wins $50M to help US Army build AVs for recon, surveillance
Author: Tech Crunch Online News
Onomotion raises €21 million to expand e-cargo bike urban logistics business
Berlin-based Onomotion has come up with a scalable way to do micromobility-powered urban logistics — cargo e-bikes with built-in cover from the elements and attachable containers. Today, Onomotion has a couple hundred vehicles on the road in Germany with logistics partners like UPS, DPD and Hermes. Over the next few years, the company wants to… Continue reading Onomotion raises €21 million to expand e-cargo bike urban logistics business
TuSimple and Navistar end deal to co-develop autonomous trucks
Autonomous trucking technology company TuSimple and truck manufacturer Navistar have scrapped their deal to co-develop self-driving trucks, the companies said Monday. The move to end the partnership comes less than a month after Cheng Lu returned to his role as CEO of TuSimple after previously being ousted. The return of Lu came days after the… Continue reading TuSimple and Navistar end deal to co-develop autonomous trucks
Uber Eats to pay millions for listing Chicago restaurants without consent
Uber has agreed to a $10 million settlement with the City of Chicago for listing local restaurants in the Uber Eats and Postmates food delivery apps without the restaurants’ consent, as well as for charging excess commission fees. Over $5 million will go toward paying damages back to Chicago restaurants that were affected, and $1.5 million… Continue reading Uber Eats to pay millions for listing Chicago restaurants without consent
Tier-owned Spin exits 10 US markets amid low demand, unfavorable city regulations
Micromobility operator Spin is leaving 10 U.S. markets due to a combination of low demand, over-regulation, under-regulation and poor cost structures, according to a company-wide email sent Friday by Philip Reinckens, Spin’s CEO, that was shared with TechCrunch. Reinckens said the market exits would help Spin cut costs and focus on growing markets that provide… Continue reading Tier-owned Spin exits 10 US markets amid low demand, unfavorable city regulations
Autonomous driving’s blunders are good news for the climate
Not quite a decade ago, two technologies were racing toward an unseen finish line. They weren’t competing with each other — the adoption of one didn’t lock out the other. But to avoid catastrophic climate consequences, the order of the finish mattered. Autonomous vehicles had to lose, and electric vehicles had to win. It wasn’t… Continue reading Autonomous driving’s blunders are good news for the climate
BrightDrop expands e-delivery van business to Canada with DHL Express
BrightDrop, General Motors’ electric delivery van subsidiary, added DHL Express Canada to its portfolio of customers, marking the company’s entrance into its first international market. BrightDrop has also started production on its Zevo 600 delivery vans (formerly called EV600) at GM’s CAMI Assembly plant in Ontario, the company said Monday at the plant’s grand opening.… Continue reading BrightDrop expands e-delivery van business to Canada with DHL Express
Loft Dynamics raises $20M to tackle pilot shortage with VR training
Loft Dynamics, a Swiss startup creating virtual reality (VR) simulation technology for helicopter pilots, has raised $20 million in funding from U.S. venture capital (VC) firms including David Sacks’ Craft Ventures, Sky Dayton, and Up Ventures. Alongside the funding, the company is also formally announcing its name-change from VRM Switzerland. Founded out of Zurich in… Continue reading Loft Dynamics raises $20M to tackle pilot shortage with VR training
Apple expands car key sharing, Bird charts out a strategy and layoffs come for Motional
The Station is a weekly newsletter dedicated to all things transportation. Sign up here — just click The Station — to receive the full edition of the newsletter every weekend in your inbox. This is a shorter version of The Station newsletter that is emailed to subscribers. Want all the deals, news roundups and commentary? Subscribe… Continue reading Apple expands car key sharing, Bird charts out a strategy and layoffs come for Motional
Taur’s Carson Brown on why owned scooters > shared scooters
Carson Brown, co-founder and head of product at electric scooter startup Taur, spent four years riding a self-balancing electric unicycle to work. Today, he rides a scooter multiple times a week. As a micromobility user, Brown has thought a lot about the design of light electric vehicles. What elements do they need to have to… Continue reading Taur’s Carson Brown on why owned scooters > shared scooters