Tag: Apple

Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer Interview: Making His Marque | Motoring | Drive – Luxury London

Dubbed the most influential person in the automotive industry, Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer has breathed new life into the 106-year-old company, making it the world’s fastest-growing car manufacturer. Following the launch of the brand’s first ever SUV, he talks success stories, company cars and why his future plans involve more than just motors. “I… Continue reading Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer Interview: Making His Marque | Motoring | Drive – Luxury London

UPDATE 4-Lyft valued at $24.3 bln in first ride-hailing IPO

(Reuters) – Lyft Inc was valued at $24.3 billion in the first initial public offering (IPO) of a ride-hailing startup on Thursday, raising more than it had set off to do as investors overlooked uncertainty over its path to becoming a profitable company. Lyft’s IPO sets the stage for the stock market debut of larger… Continue reading UPDATE 4-Lyft valued at $24.3 bln in first ride-hailing IPO

RCI Bank and Services launches its savings activity in Brazil

In line with its refinancing diversification strategy, RCI Bank and Services is pursuing development of its savings activity – for the first time outside Europe – with the launch of bank certificates of deposit[1] (CDB) for individual customers in Brazil. It is the first finance company to do so in the Brazilian market. RCI Bank… Continue reading RCI Bank and Services launches its savings activity in Brazil

Yandex inks deal with Hyundai to build self-driving car tech for its Mobis OEM division

On the heels of Hyundai becoming the latest investor in Ola, today another key deal was revealed that underscores Hyundai’s ambitions in next-generation automotive services. Yandex, the Russian search giant that has been working on self-driving car technology, has inked a partnership with Hyundai to develop software and hardware for autonomous car systems. While companies like… Continue reading Yandex inks deal with Hyundai to build self-driving car tech for its Mobis OEM division

Faraday Future gets new money from gaming company to build in China, and the US

Faraday Future FF91 prototype
The shame of Faraday Future's financial struggles is that it has what looks to be a viable new electric car, not just on paper, but ready to roll on the road—in prototype form—that may never actually make it to market.

On Sunday, the company revealed a new joint venture with a video-game company in China that could bring it $600 million to build a version of its FF91 in China.

The company will form a joint venture with The9, a Chinese video-game company that launched the first Chinese virtual currency and community in 1999 and once had the exclusive license to operate World of Warcraft in China. It trades on the NASDAQ stock exchange and is reportedly worth $100 million.

READ THIS: With cease-fire agreement, spark flickers toward Faraday's Future

The joint venture aims to produce a new model for the Chinese market based on the FF91, called the V9. The joint company plans to produce up to 300,000 V9s per year for the Chinese market.

In a statement released Sunday, Faraday Future said that The9 will initially invest $5 million, which Faraday Future will use to “overcome its short-term cash flow difficulties and support its ongoing equity financing efforts.”

The balance of the $600 million is dependent on meeting certain investment contingencies.

DON'T MISS: Faraday Future posts “For Sale” signs, as Evergrande backer announces first EV

The company also said the joint venture will help it get the FF91 into production in the U.S.

Faraday Future has a factory in California, where it planned to build the FF91, and had talent from Tesla, Apple, and quite a few automakers to develop the FF91, but it has laid off most of it staff after a funding dispute with its previous backer, Evergrande Health, a large, Hong Kong-based conglomerate intent on getting into the electric-car business. Evergrande also holds a majority stake in National Electric Vehicles Sweden, a Chinese company that builds electric versions of the last Saab 9-3 in China.

CHECK OUT: Faraday Future funder writes its own Saab story

That $2 billion funding deal fell apart in a volley of lawsuits when Faraday Future spent through the first round of funding building running production prototypes of the FF91. The lawsuits were later withdrawn as Evergrande agreed to let Faraday Future seek additional funding from other sources.

The company has since struggled to do so, and The9 represents its first new source of major funding since the $2 billion deal with Evergrande fell apart.

Third Generation Available: New Opel Vivaro on Sale Now

€24,600: Attractive starting price in Germany for Vivaro Cargo For every purpose: Vivaro as Cargo, crew cab, Combi and chassis Right sizing: Three lengths up to 5.30 metres, 1.90m in height for underground parking Heavy duty: Payload rises to more than 1,400 kg, trailer capacity to 2,500 kg Mobile office: Multimedia connectivity, sensor-controlled sliding doors… Continue reading Third Generation Available: New Opel Vivaro on Sale Now

Chinese EV startup XPeng is at the center of major trade secret disputes with Apple and Tesla

Last summer, a former Apple employee was charged by the FBI for allegedly stealing trade secrets related to the company’s secretive self-driving car project. This week, Tesla sued a former employee for allegedly stealing trade secrets related to Autopilot. While they happened many months apart, both sets of allegations have something in common: the employees… Continue reading Chinese EV startup XPeng is at the center of major trade secret disputes with Apple and Tesla

Tesla Accusing Ex-Employee Of Selling Self-Driving Technology To Chinese Rival

Tesla has been renowned as a pioneer in its field, creating incredible, more environmentally friendly cars that run without petroleum gas and working on technology that will one day mean cars will be able to completely drive themselves.

That technology has been improving drastically under the Tesla banner, but the brand has recently had some trouble with Chinese rival Xiaopeng Motors. The California-based company has accused a former employee, engineer Guangzhi Cao, of stealing their self-driving tech, the Autopilot source code, and selling it to the Chinese startup, according to a report by CNN.

The legal complaint filed by Tesla states that “Cao uploaded complete copies of the company’s self-driving source code to his personal Apple iCloud account.”

It is believed that he took a total of “300,000 files and directories” during his time working with Tesla.

But the lawsuit then explains that after Cao was given a job at Xiaopeng Motors, he suddenly deleted 120,000 of those files and even disconnected his Apple account from his work computer. He then proceeded to repeatedly log into his Tesla account and delete his browser history.

In the meantime, Xiaopeng Motors has denied any knowledge of such underhanded business regarding Cao, but state that it has launched an internal investigation within the company to determine if Tesla’s accusation is true.

“XMotors fully respects any third-party’s intellectual property rights and confidential information. The company has been complying and will comply [with] all applicable laws and regulations,” they said in a statement, according to a recent Reuters report.

Tesla’s claim goes back to January, shortly before Cao left Tesla for Xiaopeng officially.

Cao is one of four former employees who Tesla is going after in cases of intellectual property theft, according to the lawsuit filed on Wednesday. U.S. self-driving car startup Zoox Inc. is also part of the lawsuit for stealing “proprietary information and trade secrets for developing warehousing, logistics and inventory control operations.”

Tesla has been working on self-driving technology for a while now and has been testing it on the road already. But competition, particularly of the variety that could be promising the same product for a much lower price, could cause a serious problem for them in the long run.

As Reuters points out, Tesla has also started construction on a production factory in Shanghai, putting it in direct competition if the Xiaopeng Motors company has, in fact, gotten ahold of its coding technology.

Uber ‘picks NYSE’ for huge stock listing

Ride-hailing firm Uber will list on the New York Stock Exchange, according to reports, in one of the most anticipated stock debuts of the year. The decision to opt for the Wall Street exchange over the tech-heavy Nasdaq was first reported by Bloomberg, citing sources. It comes as smaller, ride-sharing rival Lyft prepares to list… Continue reading Uber ‘picks NYSE’ for huge stock listing