Drive.ai, a self-driving car startup once worth $200 million, is closing – San Francisco Chronicle

Mountain View startup Drive.ai, which made kits to turn regular cars into autonomous ones, will shut its office in June and lay off 90 workers in a permanent closure of its business, according to a filing with a state agency. At the same time, Apple has hired a handful of hardware and software engineers from… Continue reading Drive.ai, a self-driving car startup once worth $200 million, is closing – San Francisco Chronicle

Russia’s Yandex plans bold step for self-driving cars – Automotive News

Tweaks remaining before driverless operations, Polishchuk says, aren’t safety-related. There’s one specific spot where vehicles need to make a U-turn, and engineers are considering how to make the turn without confusing human drivers in the vicinity. In another area, near a bus stop, there’s a crosswalk in which pedestrians congregate. As they mill about, sometimes… Continue reading Russia’s Yandex plans bold step for self-driving cars – Automotive News

Argo AI is investing $15 million into a self-driving car research center at CMU

Argo AI will invest $15 million over five years to create a center for autonomous vehicle research at Carnegie Mellon University, one of the latest efforts by the Ford-backed company to accelerate the development of self-driving cars. The center, Carnegie Mellon University Argo AI Center for Autonomous Vehicle Research, will focus on advanced perception and… Continue reading Argo AI is investing $15 million into a self-driving car research center at CMU

A Qashqai Is Nissan Sunderland’s 10 Millionth Vehicle

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A Qashqai Is Nissan Sunderland’s 10 Millionth Vehicle

20 Jun 2019, 20:18 UTC ·
by Mircea Panait

Home > News > Industry

Founded in 1984, Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK is headquartered in Sunderland. Built on the site of a former RAF airfield, the factory where the Qashqai is manufactured is complemented by the Japanese automaker's distribution center and lots of on-site suppliers.
21 photos
Production at Sunderland started in 1986 with the Bluebird, then the Primera and Micra followed in 1990 and 1992. As of May 2019, the Micra and Primera are listed on second and third in terms of total production at the British plant. The Qashqai reigns supreme even though it’s been introduced in 2006, tallying more than 3,416,500 examples of the breed.
33 years on, Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK reaches the ten million mark with a Vivid Blue-painted Qashqai Tekna. The vehicle is optioned with ProPilot semi-autonomous driving technologies. “Building ten million vehicles is a tremendous achievement for everyone associated with the plant,” said Steve Marsh, vice president of manufacturing at Sunderland.
“Together we are determined to continue to drive up the high quality standards our customers have come to expect over the last three decades,” concluded the official, but we don’t agree with everything. For starters, continuously variable transmissions built by JATCO are as unreliable as CVTs get. There’s also the matter of Renault, which took its toll on build quality ever since the alliance was formed.
The Infiniti Q30 is also manufactured in Sunderland, a Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class with a different body shell, interior, and badging. Does it come as a surprise this crossover isn’t selling well? The luxed-up brand is leaving the western part of Europe in 2020 because of poor sales, totaling 5,800 vehicles in 2018.
Turning our attention back to production, Sunderland is also the place where the Leaf is manufactured for the United Kingdom and Europe. The all-electric hatchback is joined by the Juke, which will enter the second generation for the 2020 model year.
Parked bumper to bumper, Nissan claims the 10 million vehicles manufactured in Sunderland would stretch around the globe. Considering that Earth has a circumference of 40,075 kilometers (24,901 miles), the automaker’s statement appears to be correct.

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Renault and Nissan partner with Waymo to develop self-driving services

The Renault-Nissan alliance has signed an exclusive deal with Google’s sister company Waymo to develop self-driving services in France and Japan.The tie-up between the car-makers and the autonomous vehicles company will focus on “all aspects” of driverless mobility services for moving people and goods.The deal does not currently extend to working together to build autonomous vehicles – unlike Waymo’s previous tie-ups with Jaguar Land Rover and Chrysler.

Waymo inks driverless car deal with Renault, Nissan to develop autonomous vehicles

Waymo unveils a self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivan in Detroit, Michigan, U.S. on January 8, 2017.Brendan McDermid | Reuters Waymo has signed a deal with Renault and Nissan to develop self-driving cars and trucks for use in France, Japan and possibly other countries in Asia, including China, the autonomous car company announced Thursday.
It's the first agreement Waymo has signed to provide its technology and services to automakers working to build their own self-driving cars and services.
Waymo, a subsidiary of Google's parent company Alphabet, is currently testing a small fleet of autonomous vehicles just outside of Phoenix. Those vehicles, which are modified Chrysler Pacifica minivans, are part of Waymo's work to develop autonomous ride-share services. With Renault and Nissan, Waymo's relationship will be more as a provider of technology and services that each automaker will use as they develop their own self-driving vehicles.
“Our Waymo Driver can deliver transformational mobility solutions to safely serve riders and commercial deliveries in France, Japan and other countries,” John Krafcik, CEO of Waymo said in a prepared statement.
Renault and Nissan — which have a close yet strained relationship since the arrest and detention in October of Renault's former CEO Carlos Ghosn, who was also chairman of Nissan — are putting aside their differences when it comes to autonomous vehicles.
The companies said they're creating a joint venture companies to focus exclusively on driverless mobility services.
Thierry Bolloré, CEO of Renault, said in a statement that the deal will put his company, “at the forefront of driverless mobility new business streams in our key strategic markets.”
Hiroto Saikawa, president and CEO of Nissan echoed that confidence.
“Our expertise in the global automotive industry and expertise in strategic partnership will enable us to explore opportunities to grow our portfolio and deliver new value to customers with Waymo, the recognized leader in this space,” he said.
Waymo, formerly known as the Google Self Driving Car project, is considered a leader in autonomous vehicles, analysts and technology executives say.
That lead, however, is far from safe. General Motors' subsidiary Cruise, is expected to publicly launch its first autonomous vehicle later this year. Meanwhile, Uber is also working to develop autonomous ride-share vehicles.

Waymo takes its self-driving car ambitions global in partnership with Renault-Nissan

Waymo has locked in an exclusive partnership with Renault and Nissan to research how commercial autonomous vehicles might work for passengers and packages in France and Japan. This exclusive partnership has a deadline — the public announcement says it will last for “an initial period.” Waymo nor the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance provided details on when it… Continue reading Waymo takes its self-driving car ambitions global in partnership with Renault-Nissan

California has let two Chinese startups offer robotaxis to the public

China’s driverless cars are coming for passengers in the United States. AutoX and Pony.ai just became the first Chinese companies allowed to offer self-driving robotaxis in the state of California, according to notices posted on the website of the California Public Utilities Commission this week. Started in 2016 by Princeton University professor Jianxiong Xiao, called… Continue reading California has let two Chinese startups offer robotaxis to the public

GROUPE RENAULT AND NISSAN SIGN EXCLUSIVE ALLIANCE DEAL WITH WAYMO TO EXPLORE DRIVERLESS MOBILITY SERVICES

 Groupe Renault and Nissan to become the first automotive manufacturers to explore driverless mobility services with Waymo in France and Japan Exclusive agreement to initially focus on driverless mobility services for people and goods in France and Japan   Groupe Renault, Nissan Motor Co., and Waymo, leaders in their respective fields, have entered into an… Continue reading GROUPE RENAULT AND NISSAN SIGN EXCLUSIVE ALLIANCE DEAL WITH WAYMO TO EXPLORE DRIVERLESS MOBILITY SERVICES