Tag: Possible_Terrorism_Warfare

Tesla expects to invest up to $6 billion over next two years in factories and equipment

David Butow | Corbis | Getty Images
Workers assemble cars on the line at the Tesla's factory in Fremont, California.

Tesla expects to spend up to $6 billion on factories and equipment over the next two years as it ramps up production and develops new vehicles, the company said in a regulatory filing Friday.

The electric car maker said it expects to spend just under $2.5 billion in capital investments for 2018 and $2.5 billion to $3 billion annually over the next two years.

Tesla is also planning to build a factory in China, which it is calling Gigafactory 3, where it hopes to eventually produce 3,000 of its popular Model 3 sedans a week. The filing cautioned that the time frame on its production targets was “subject to a number of uncertainties, including regulatory approval, supply chain constraints, and the pace of bringing the factory online.”

Gigafactory 1 is the company's plant near Clark, Nevada, where it makes batteries and parts of the Model 3 drive train. Gigafactory 2 is its solar power plant in Buffalo, New York.

Tesla is planning to start producing Model 3s in Shanghai to reduce the impact of tariffs. Because Tesla currently exports all of its vehicles to China, it has been hurt by stiff tariffs, some of which result from the trade war between China and the U.S.

Shares of Tesla were flat Friday morning.

In the filing, the company also revealed that the Justice Department and SEC are investigating Model 3 production targets.

The company has been burning through cash as it ramps up production and deliveries of its Model 3 midsize sedan, and it has big plans for the years ahead. Tesla unveiled an electric semi-truck last year but has not said much since then about when and how the company will produce the vehicles.

It is also planning a crossover sport utility vehicle called the Model Y, and a second-generation version of the Tesla Roadster that CEO Elon Musk has said will be quicker and faster than any other car on the road. Musk has also talked about his desire to make a pickup truck.

It also is attempting to build a business in rooftop solar power systems. In 2016, Musk revealed a planned roof tile that could collect solar power, but the company has so far shipped only a few systems.

WATCH:How taxpayers have boosted Elon Musk and Tesla

How taxpayers have boosted Elon Musk and Tesla
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Navigation and entertainment systems: Patent dispute: Broadcom wants a billion dollars from VW

Infotainment system in the Gulf Broadcom accuses VW of having infringed patents on navigation and entertainment systems. (Photo: AP) MunichVolkswagen According to a magazine report in a patent dispute with a billion claim of the semiconductor manufacturer Broadcom faced. The US group demand a billion dollars from the car company and threaten it, otherwise the… Continue reading Navigation and entertainment systems: Patent dispute: Broadcom wants a billion dollars from VW

GM CEO Barra says the automaker is watching China trade ‘very carefully’

General Motors Chairman & CEO Mary Barra (L) and President of General Motors China Matt Tsien attend a press conference in Shanghai, China September 15, 2017.

General Motors is keeping a close eye on China, CEO Mary Barra said Wednesday.

GM said its luxury brand Cadillac had record sales in China despite an ongoing trade war that's raised prices on steel and aluminum as well as on the vehicles themselves.

“We're watching it carefully and we're very hopeful that both sides will have dialogue and get to the table to work through some very important issues that both China and the United States have as it relates to trade,” Barra told analysts on a conference call Wednesday discussing GM's third-quarter earnings. “When we look at our positioning, we have many levers that we can pull to continue to have strong performance in China.”

While Ford and other automakers have reported trouble in China for the third quarter, it was a bright spot for GM.

The company reported record third-quarter “equity income” in the country, led by a 4 percent increase in Cadillac sales there. GM uses equity income to measure its performance in the region since the company follows the standard industry practice of selling its vehicles through a joint venture with Chinese manufacturer SAIC. Each company owns a 50 percent stake in the venture.

Barra told analysts the partnership has served GM well.

“I think we have the strongest partner in China with SAIC,” she said.

“At this time we are not looking to change the 50-50 structure,” Barra added. “It has served us well, and I think the strength of our results demonstrate that.”

But at the same time, sales in the country were down 15 percent over the same quarter last year, and there are signs of trouble in the region. A recent report from Bloomberg said the Chinese government is considering a cut to taxes on auto purchases to revive flagging sales.

GM said it was able to charge more for cars during the quarter and the declines came from less its profitable segments. It also said that sales of its luxury vehicles were up.

​Samsung posts Q3 record profit despite mobile setback

Samsung Electronics has posted its highest ever operating profits of 17.57 trillion won, up 21 percent from a year ago, in the third quarter of 2018, the company announced. Revenue was 65.46 trillion won, its second highest figure ever, the firm’s third quarter earnings report said. Its semiconductor business contributed operating profit of 14.56 trillion… Continue reading ​Samsung posts Q3 record profit despite mobile setback

CFO Uebber wants to leave Daimler

It was similar with Siemens and Thyssen Krupp. Also there were always more demands for splitting the company from the side of “investors” come. More and more parts of the company are being […] Quote from cynical europeans What nonsense you make of yourself. First and foremost, the starting point is completely different: on the… Continue reading CFO Uebber wants to leave Daimler

MIT reveals who self-driving cars should kill: The cat, the elderly, or the baby?

It is a classic problem and a test of where our morality lies: if a runaway trolley is uncontrollably heading down a set of tracks and you have the ability to use a lever and choose between either five people or one, what would you do? Featured stories Extend this to cars: would we prefer… Continue reading MIT reveals who self-driving cars should kill: The cat, the elderly, or the baby?

UPDATE 1-Veoneer delays 2020 targets on slower car production starts

(Adds details, background) STOCKHOLM, Oct 25 (Reuters) – Electronic car products maker Veoneer, carved out of Autoliv this year, forecast delays in achieving its 2020 income and sales targets due to postponed production starts for some car models, sending its shares tumbling. The Swedish company, which is focused on high-tech safety gear to target self-driving… Continue reading UPDATE 1-Veoneer delays 2020 targets on slower car production starts

Chinese state-owned automaker FAW Group gets $144 billion credit line

BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s state-owned automaker FAW Group said it signed a deal with 16 banks for a credit line worth over 1 trillion yuan ($144 billion), but did not give specific reasons as to why it wanted to secure access to such a large amount of funding. FILE PHOTO: A concept car is displayed… Continue reading Chinese state-owned automaker FAW Group gets $144 billion credit line

A global ethics study aims to help AI solve the self-driving “trolley problem”

In 2014 researchers at the MIT Media Lab designed an experiment called Moral Machine. The idea was to create a game-like platform that would crowdsource people’s decisions on how self-driving cars should prioritize lives in different variations of the “trolley problem.” In the process, the data generated would provide insight into the collective ethical priorities… Continue reading A global ethics study aims to help AI solve the self-driving “trolley problem”

Ford Celebrates Production Start of All-New 2019 Ranger Midsize Pickup and a New Era for a Storied American Factory

Ford today invited more than 3,000 employees from its newly transformed Michigan Assembly Plant to experience the best of the all-new Ranger on an on-site, off-road course  Ford has invested $850 million in Michigan Assembly to retool the plant to build the all-new Ford Ranger and future Ford Bronco 2019 Ford Ranger is part of… Continue reading Ford Celebrates Production Start of All-New 2019 Ranger Midsize Pickup and a New Era for a Storied American Factory