Following approval from the city of Santa Monica, Uber is deploying bikes and its first set of scooters via JUMP, the bike-share startup it acquired earlier this year. Although these are Xiaomi Ninebot scooters, Uber says it’s branding them with JUMP for the sake of consistency when it comes to its personal electric vehicle services. “JUMP… Continue reading Uber deploys JUMP scooters and bikes in Santa Monica
Tag: Uber
UK Uber drivers to stage 24 hour strike over pay and conditions
A UK union that represents the interests of Uber drivers has called a 24 hour strike for tomorrow. Ride-hailing giant Uber may not be comfortable thinking of the people who do the driving on its platform as workers but, in 2016, a UK employment tribunal ruled against its classification of a group of then current… Continue reading UK Uber drivers to stage 24 hour strike over pay and conditions
The game of alliances is set up in the autonomous car
Who will win the race for the autonomous car? The car manufacturers multiply in any case the alliances, to give themselves the best chance of one day reaching the finish line. Thursday, Toyota unveiled the creation of a joint venture with SoftBank to develop his “e-pallet”, a sort of wagon capable of making deliveries without… Continue reading The game of alliances is set up in the autonomous car
Secretive robot-car maker Zoox opens up
As the self-driving car navigated the narrow, winding streets leading to San Francisco’s Coit Tower, Jesse Levinson narrated from the back seat like a proud parent. “Isn’t that cool, how we slowed down for that person and then nudged around him?” said the chief technology officer of self-driving startup Zoox. “See how steep this street… Continue reading Secretive robot-car maker Zoox opens up
Japan’s Toyota and SoftBank to form joint venture for new mobility services
Japanese automaker Toyota and tech giant SoftBank announced Thursday that they are forming a joint venture by April 2019 that will use data to optimize supply and demand in the transportation space.
The company, called Monet Technologies, will coordinate between Toyota's information infrastructure for connected vehicles and SoftBank's so-called Internet of Things platform that collects and analyses data from smartphones and sensors, the Japanese corporations said in a joint statement.
In the first phase, Monet plans to roll out just-in-time vehicle dispatch services for Japanese public agencies and private companies to meet user demand. Those services include on-demand transportation and corporate shuttles.
By the second half of the 2020s, the joint venture will roll out an on-demand mobility service that will use Toyota's self-driving, battery-operated electric vehicle called e-Palette for various purposes. They include meal deliveries, where the food is being prepared inside the vehicle, hospital shuttles that can conduct medical examinations on board and mobile offices.
Monet will roll out its mobility services in Japan before focusing on future expansion on the global market.
Toyota launched plans for the so-called e-Palette earlier this year and described the concept as a “fully-automated, next generation battery electric vehicle” that can be customized and scaled for various mobility services.
The companies said that the joint venture will start at 2 billion yen ($17.49 million), and will be increased to 10 billion yen in future. They did not specify a timeline.
SoftBank will own 50.25 percent of the joint venture while Toyota will take 49.75 percent. SoftBank Corp representative director and CTO, Junichi Miyakawa, will be president and CEO of the new joint venture.
That news came after Toyota's rival Honda said it was taking a stake in General Motors subsidiary Cruise Holdings as part of a plan for the two automakers to work together and build an autonomous vehicle. Honda will invest $2.75 billion over the next 12 years, which includes paying GM $750 million immediately as it takes a 5.7 percent stake in Cruise Holdings.
Both Toyota and SoftBank are separately developing technologies that are used in self-driving cars and related services.
The two companies have also invested in major ride-hailing firms: Toyota is invested in Uber and Grab while SoftBank backs both firms as well as China's Didi Chuxing.
Automakers around the world are making multibillion-dollar investments and creating long-range plans for rolling out autonomous vehicles. Many of them are teaming up with other companies to share risks, technologies and expensesassociated with building self-driving cars since it will take time before those vehicles can be mass-produced and sold for a profit.
Many analysts think the widespread adoption of self-driving cars will start to pick up in 2021 or 2022.
— CNBC's Phil LeBeau contributed to this report.
SoftBank and Toyota team up to develop services powered by self-driving vehicles
SoftBank is getting into self-driving car services after the Japanese tech giant announced a joint-venture with Toyota in its native Japan. SoftBank is invested in Uber and a range of other ride-hailing startups like Didi in China and Grab in Southeast Asia, but this initiative with Toyota is not related to those deals. Instead, it… Continue reading SoftBank and Toyota team up to develop services powered by self-driving vehicles
UPDATE 2-Toyota, SoftBank to team up in self-driving and other technology -sources
TOKYO (Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) and SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) will announce a partnership on automated driving and other technology on Thursday, sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Toyota logo is seen during the first press day of the Paris auto show, in Paris, France, October 2, 2018.… Continue reading UPDATE 2-Toyota, SoftBank to team up in self-driving and other technology -sources
A Self-Driving Truck Startup Keeps It Simple, Stupid
If anything has changed between today and the halcyon days of 2016, it’s that those building and marketing self-driving tech are now less… promise-y. The robots are still coming, the software developers and hardware mavens and balance sheet-wielding CEOs insist. But more and more, they emphasize that this work is hard, the problems varied, the… Continue reading A Self-Driving Truck Startup Keeps It Simple, Stupid
Daimler names new CEO to lead push into electric, autonomous vehicles
Daimler said Wednesday that Dieter Zetsche is stepping down as CEO and will be replaced by a long-serving executive who has most recently been leading the automaker’s research and development efforts, including its push into electric vehicles. The company has proposed that Zetsche, who was CEO of Daimler for 12 years, become chairman of the… Continue reading Daimler names new CEO to lead push into electric, autonomous vehicles
Mideast ride-hailing app Careem resumes Oman services
DUBAI (Reuters) – Careem has resumed services in Muscat, Oman after signing an agreement to partner with a local taxi company, the Middle East ride-hailing app company said on Monday. FILE PHOTO: An employee shows the logo of ride-hailing company Careem on his mobile in his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah July… Continue reading Mideast ride-hailing app Careem resumes Oman services