Tunisian human rights activist Amira Yahyaoui couldn’t go to college. Not because she couldn’t afford it; where she comes from, college is virtually free. She lost the opportunity to pursue higher education, to finish high school, even, when she was exiled from Tunisia at age 17, under the repressive regime of the country’s former President,… Continue reading Human rights activist Amira Yahyaoui is battling the US college financial aid system
Author: Tech Crunch Online News
The uncertain future of shared electric scooters
Cities all over the world have seen an influx of two-wheeled, electric kick scooters on the road over the last couple of years. Scooters from the likes of Bird, Lime, Spin, Uber’s JUMP, Lyft and others are all trying to own the first and the last mile. The first mile is often understood as the… Continue reading The uncertain future of shared electric scooters
Search giant Baidu has driven the most autonomous miles in Beijing
While the public is asking, “When are we going to ride in autonomous cars?” Technology companies have been moving apace to test them on designated roads. In China’s capital city Beijing, eight firms drove a total of 153,600 kilometers (95442.6 miles) through their autonomous fleets in 2018, and Baidu, the country’s largest search engine service… Continue reading Search giant Baidu has driven the most autonomous miles in Beijing
Mobileye CEO clowns on Nvidia for allegedly copying self-driving car safety scheme
While creating self-driving car systems, it’s natural that different companies might independently arrive at similar methods or results — but the similarities in a recent “first of its kind” Nvidia proposal to work done by Mobileye two years ago were just too much for the latter company’s CEO to take politely. Amnon Shashua, in a… Continue reading Mobileye CEO clowns on Nvidia for allegedly copying self-driving car safety scheme
Lyft pops 21% on its first day of trading on Nasdaq after raising $2.2B in its IPO at a $24B valuation
Ride-hailing startup Lyft may bear the distinction of having highest net loss of any maiden public company ever going public, but despite that, it made its debut in a high gear this morning. Trading as LYFT on Nasdaq, the company’s shares opened at nearly noon today at just under $87/share, a pop of 21 percent on… Continue reading Lyft pops 21% on its first day of trading on Nasdaq after raising $2.2B in its IPO at a $24B valuation
Grab is talking to Ant Financial and PayPal about spinning out its financial services business
Grab, the $16 billion-valued ride-hailing firm that acquired Uber’s Southeast Asia business last year, is in talks with Alibaba’s Ant Financial and PayPal as it considers spinning out of its financial services unit to double down on its non-transportation business, TechCrunch has learned. The seven-year-old company’s coming-of-age moment was a deal to buy Uber’s regional… Continue reading Grab is talking to Ant Financial and PayPal about spinning out its financial services business
Europe agrees raft of safety features to be baked into new vehicles
All new vehicles sold in the European Union must have a wide range of safety features baked in as standard in the coming years, after EU institutions reached provisional agreement on a safety regulation that’s aimed at protecting passengers, pedestrians and cyclists. Once formally adopted most of the new safety features will become mandatory from… Continue reading Europe agrees raft of safety features to be baked into new vehicles
Alibaba, Tencent and other major names form $1.45B ride-hailing venture
For the last two years, Didi has been the dominant car-hailing force in China and its success has spawned a handful of competitors initiated by both internet firms and old-school carmakers. Just last week, another notable challenger has stepped up. T3, which is short for “top 3”, officially launched after a dozen entities, including three… Continue reading Alibaba, Tencent and other major names form $1.45B ride-hailing venture
Lidar and perception startup Innoviz raises $132 million
Innoviz, the Israel-based startup developing solid-state lidar sensors and perception software for autonomous vehicles, has raised $132 million in a Series C funding round that includes major Chinese financial institutions. The round, which makes Innoviz one of the better capitalized lidar startups, includes China Merchants Capital (SINO-BLR Industrial Investment Fund, L.P.), Shenzhen Capital Group and… Continue reading Lidar and perception startup Innoviz raises $132 million
Uber is paying $3.1BN to pick up Middle East rival Careem
After months and months of rumors it’s finally been confirmed that ride-hailing giant Uber is picking up its Middle East rival Careem in an acquisition deal worth $3.1 billion — with $1.7BN to be paid in convertible notes and $1.4BN in cash. Careem was founded as a ride-hailing rival to Uber in 2012 but has… Continue reading Uber is paying $3.1BN to pick up Middle East rival Careem