**The Week in Mobility: Waymo in Hot Water, Tesla Makes Big Moves, and More**
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This week’s been a real wild ride in the world of transportation, and I’m excited to dive into some of the highlights. But first, a quick breaking news update: Waymo’s in hot water after its robotaxis were spotted passing stopped school buses in at least two states. The NTSB is now investigating. You can read the full story over here.
Now, let’s get to the rest of the action…
Tesla’s been making some major moves, and it’s clear they’re trying to show off their progress and dominance in autonomous driving. One of the most notable developments is that they’re now offering robotaxi rides in Austin without a human security driver in the front seat. That’s a big step towards fully autonomous vehicles.
But Tesla’s not just focused on the tech – they’re also killing off Autopilot, the advanced driver-assistance system that’s been a part of their cars since 2014. Autopilot’s had its ups and downs over the years, with some critics saying the name implies the system’s more advanced than it actually is. Tesla’s always maintained that Autopilot’s a more limited system, but the name’s still caused confusion.
The timing of the decision to kill Autopilot is interesting, coming just a week after they announced they’d stop charging a one-time fee for the Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software and switch to a monthly subscription. When you add it all up, it seems like Tesla’s trying to position themselves as an AI and robotics company, generating more revenue from FSD.
But there’s potentially another reason for the move. Tesla’s currently facing a 30-day suspension of their manufacturing and vendor licenses in California after a judge ruled they’d engaged in misleading advertising by overstating the capabilities of Autopilot and FSD. Dropping the Autopilot name while cashing in on FSD might be a way to pacify the DMV.
**Other News and Deals**
Zipline, the autonomous drone-delivery and logistics startup, just raised $600 million in new funding. They’ve been around for over a decade, starting in Rwanda delivering blood, and have gradually expanded their service to other African nations and the US.
ABZ Innovation, a European maker of industrial-quality agricultural and industrial drones, raised $8.2 million in a funding round led by Vsquared Ventures.
Ethernovia, a San Jose-based startup that makes Ethernet-based systems for autonomous vehicles, raised $90 million in a Series B funding round led by Maverick Silicon.
Serve Robotics, the sidewalk delivery robot company backed by Nvidia and Uber, acquired Diligent Robotics in a deal valued at $29 million. Diligent builds robots designed to help in hospitals by delivering lab samples, supplies, and other tasks.
Terralayr, a German grid-scale battery storage company, raised €192 million in a round led by Eurazeo.
**Notable Reads and Tidbits**
Austin Russell, the founder and former CEO of bankrupt lidar firm Luminar, agreed to hand over data from his phone related to the company in an electronic subpoena.
Geely Holding Group launched its five-year blueprint, which includes a piece on robotaxis. They plan to have their Cao Cao Mobility ride-hailing unit operate a fleet of 100,000 robotaxis in major cities in China by 2030.
GM’s shifting production of two gas-powered cars from China and Mexico to a US manufacturing plant in Kansas. That change might also mean the end of their rebooted Chevrolet Bolt EV, the only car currently built at the Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas.
Tesla’s restarting work on Dojo3, their previously abandoned third-generation AI chip. But this time, it’s not focused on training self-driving models – instead, Elon says it’ll be dedicated to “space-based AI compute.”
Waymo’s finally launched its robotaxi service in Miami, and riders will be accepted on a rolling basis. They’ve got a waitlist of nearly 10,000 local residents, so it’s about time!
And one more thing…
Alex Roy, co-host of Autonocast with yours truly and Ed Niedermeyer, just drove from LA to NYC in a Tesla Model S with the Full Self-Driving Supervised software handling all the driving. He’s done this route before, setting the transcontinental driving record in 2007 when he traveled it in 31 hours and 4 minutes. This time, the FSD (model 14.2.2.3) drove 100% of the 3,081-mile journey, including exiting the freeway and parking at EV chargers. He clocked in at 58 hours and 22 minutes.
That’s all for this week, folks! Thanks for joining me on this wild ride through the world of mobility. If you’re new here, make sure to sign up for our newsletter to get these updates delivered straight to your inbox. And if you’re a regular, thanks for the support!
