Shared electric bike and scooter services are constantly at war with each other — whether it’s battling for an operating permit in a highly coveted market, raising a massive round of funding or making a key hire. Today, the war continues with Lyft’s recent hiring of Eugene Kwak, Bird’s now-former head of vehicle product. Kwak’s… Continue reading Lyft poaches Bird’s head of vehicle product
Author: Tech Crunch Online News
The road ahead for Waymo, AV engineering and mobility, with Waymo CTO Dmitri Dolgov
Earlier this month, TechCrunch held its annual Mobility Sessions event down in San Jose, where leading mobility-focused auto companies, startups, executives and thought leaders joined us to discuss all things autonomous vehicle technology, micromobility and electric vehicles. Extra Crunch is offering members access to full transcripts key panels and conversations from the event, including a… Continue reading The road ahead for Waymo, AV engineering and mobility, with Waymo CTO Dmitri Dolgov
From liberal arts PhD to pre-IPO startup CEO with Shift’s Toby Russell
Transitioning between different types of professional roles can be challenging — new expectations arise, and fresh ways of seeing the world are required to be successful. A few weeks ago, I interviewed Anjul Bhambhri of Adobe about how she transitioned from engineering into product, where she now leads the company’s customer experience cloud. This week,… Continue reading From liberal arts PhD to pre-IPO startup CEO with Shift’s Toby Russell
Known for its electric scooters, Gogoro moves toward its future as a mobility platform
Since the launch of its first electric scooter in 2015, Gogoro co-founder and CEO Horace Luke has frequently been asked when the startup is going to expand beyond Taiwan. In its home country, Gogoro’s two-wheel vehicles, with their distinctive swappable battery system, are now the top-selling electric scooters. But Luke says the company has always… Continue reading Known for its electric scooters, Gogoro moves toward its future as a mobility platform
Lyft opens to the public autonomous driving data set from its Level 5 self-driving fleet
Lyft is offering to the public a set of autonomous driving data that it calls the “largest public data set of its kind,” containing over 55,000 3D frames of captured footage hand-labeled by human reviewers, data collected by seven cameras and as many as three lidars depending on the car used, plus a drivable surface… Continue reading Lyft opens to the public autonomous driving data set from its Level 5 self-driving fleet
Apple’s latest Tesla hire specializes in car interiors
Another high-level Tesla engineering executive has hopped over to Apple. Steve MacManus, who was vice president of engineering at Tesla, is now a senior director at Apple, according to an update on his LinkedIn profile. Bloomberg was the first to report MacManus had taken the position at Apple. MacManus, whose was in charge of interior… Continue reading Apple’s latest Tesla hire specializes in car interiors
Onward raises $1.5 million to offer round-trip rides to older adults needing assistance
Uber and Lyft aren’t designed to transport people who need a little help getting out of the house or need someone to help get them from the doctor’s waiting room back to their home. While Uber, for example, has launched Uber Health to help patients get to their appointments, the drivers are not vetted with… Continue reading Onward raises $1.5 million to offer round-trip rides to older adults needing assistance
Uber tests monthly subscription that combines Eats, rides, bikes and scooters
Uber is actively testing a monthly subscription pass that combines rides, Eats, bikes and scooters. In this pilot phase, Uber is testing a few different iterations in San Francisco and Chicago, but each version includes a fixed discount on every ride, free Uber Eats delivery and free JUMP (bikes and scooters) rides. The pass costs… Continue reading Uber tests monthly subscription that combines Eats, rides, bikes and scooters
Tesla drops request for restraining order against allegedly dangerous short seller
Tesla has withdrawn its request for a court-ordered restraining order against Randeep Hothi, documents submitted to the court where the complaint was filed revealed Friday. Hothi, an individual who is very vocal on social media about his short position in Tesla, had gone to extreme and potentially dangerous lengths in his avid attempts to collect… Continue reading Tesla drops request for restraining order against allegedly dangerous short seller
Self-driving startup AutoX expands beyond deliveries and sets its sights on Europe
AutoX, the Hong Kong and San Jose, Calif.-based autonomous vehicle technology company, is pushing past its grocery delivery roots and into the AV supplier and robotaxi business. And now, it’s taking its business to Europe. AutoX has partnered with NEVS — the Swedish holding company and electric vehicle manufacturer that bought Saab’s assets out of… Continue reading Self-driving startup AutoX expands beyond deliveries and sets its sights on Europe