Five Ways Smartphones Could Impact Driverless Cars
Posted on Jan 5, 2019
With early tech adopters such as Google, Tesla and Uber already experimenting with driverless cars—and recording impressive results, at that—there are no more doubts that the world is staring at the greatest revolution in both the transport and tech sectors. Many changes are imminent. Human drivers are likely to pave the way for computers, traditional car steering will be replaced by tech-rich algorithms, and roads will become safer and more organized. Read the full story.
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Commissioner Issues Regulations Prohibiting Gender Discrimination in Automobile Insurance Rates
Posted on Jan 3, 2019
California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has issued new regulations that prohibit the use of gender in private passenger automobile insurance ratings in California. The Gender Non-Discrimination in Automobile Insurance Rating Regulation became effective on January 1, 2019. “My priority as Insurance Commissioner is to protect all California consumers, and these regulations ensure that auto insurance rates are based on factors within a driver’s control, rather than personal characteristics over which drivers have no control,” said Commissioner Jones. This is not the first regulatory action...
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NHTSA Streamlines Autonomous Vehicle Approvals
Posted on Dec 20, 2018
On December 18, 2018, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said it issued a final regulation streamlining the review process. NHTSA eliminated a requirement that calls for the agency to determine that a petition is complete before publishing a summary for public comment. Deputy NHTSA Administrator Heidi King said in a statement that the “rule improves both the efficiency and transparency of the process to focus on the safety review.” Under the law, automakers can petition for an exemption for up to 2,500 vehicles for vehicle safety standards as long as they are at...
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Honda Looking for Business Partners Regarding Autonomous Work Vehicle
Posted on Dec 19, 2018
Honda will be seeking potential business and technology partners for its prototype off-road vehicle, the Honda Autonomous Work Vehicle, at CES 2019. Combining Honda’s all-terrain vehicle (ATV) and emerging advanced autonomous technology, the Autonomous Work Vehicle was designed by Honda R&D Americas to enhance efficiency and safety for public, commercial and consumer enterprises. Since introducing the Autonomous Work Vehicle as a concept under the name 3E-D18 at CES 2018, Honda has worked with a variety of partners to beta-test and evaluate potential uses in a broad array of...
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Autonomous Trucks Could Radically Transform US Logistics Within a Decade
Posted on Dec 13, 2018
McKinsey & Company, a global logistics think tank based in the United States and Europe, predicts that in about eight years autonomous trucks with no humans on board could be routinely operating in North America. That finding is the first of a five-part report on near-term technological disruption in global logistics. The report’s look at autonomous truck trends notes that trucking moves about two-thirds of all goods shipped in the US and that truck driving is currently the most common occupation in more than half of all US states. Moreover, the report cautions that trucking remains a...
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How GM, Ford and Volkswagen Are Reacting to the Electric Car Revolution
Posted on Dec 11, 2018
Conventional wisdom says the only constant in life is change. Those who create change often think their innovations will be permanent, but they never are. The auto industry has enjoyed a long and successful history of building vehicles powered by internal combustion engines. Many car company executives assumed the merry-go-round ride would never end. Then along came Tesla and suddenly everything changed. Traditional auto manufacturers are seeing their comfortable worldview upended by the approaching revolution in electric and autonomous cars. According to some, the action in the future will...
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Subprime Auto Lending Hits 11-Year Low
Posted on Dec 6, 2018
Despite an increase in subprime loan volume in the third quarter, auto loans to consumers with the riskiest credit histories hit their lowest overall share of the market in 11 years, according to Experian. Subprime and deep subprime originations accounted for 21.19% of the total auto loan origination market, down 1.5% from the year earlier, Experian said in its latest report, released December 5. Experian defines subprime borrowers as those with credit scores between 501 and 600. Deep subprime borrowers have scores between 300 and 500. Read the full analysis.
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The vote by the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission enacts a June executive order by Gov. John Hickenlooper. NHTSA Terminates Self-Driving School Bus
Posted on Nov 28, 2018
Federal safety regulators last month demanded that the community stop carrying students on an autonomous shuttle designed to look like a school bus. A cease-and-desist letter sent by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration officials said using the vehicle for that purpose “puts the safety of children and others at risk.” Since the order, the shuttle has stopped its three-block route. The demand abruptly ended an experiment that leaders in Babcock Ranch, a planned development northeast of Fort Myers, had begun five weeks earlier as part of an effort to incorporate innovative...
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Colorado Adopts California Emissions Standards
Posted on Nov 26, 2018
Colorado has adopted vehicle emission rules that incorporate California standards. Under the rules, new vehicles sold in Colorado must average 36 mpg (15 kilometers per liter) by 2025. That’s about 10 mpg (4 kilometers per liter) over the existing standard. Colorado now joins several other states in taking proactive steps to avoid any weakening of federal standards by the Trump administration.
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How Insurance Markets Will Expand in the Age of Autonomous Vehicles
Posted on Nov 21, 2018
Though it’s estimated that by 2025 auto insurance premiums will drop by $25 billion as a result of the adoption of driverless cars, the insurance market is expected to recover through new lines of coverage, according to a report by market analyst Accenture released last year. In fact, new coverage lines will generate substantially more premiums than are lost – to the tune of almost $81 billion. During the recent annual Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS) conference in San Diego, Jamison Narbaitz, senior counsel with Clyde & Co., discussed three areas of insurance that will...
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BlackBerry Buys Cylance for $1.4 Billion
Posted on Nov 19, 2018
BlackBerry Ltd. executed a $1.4 billion purchase of California-based cybersecurity company Cylance, which further illustrates how tech companies are involving their operations in the autonomous vehicle space. Under John Chen, BlackBerry has shifted to selling software to manage mobile devices, as well as systems in driverless cars. The company’s QNX software allows carmakers to offer a range of features such as infotainment, connectivity, in-car network security, an advanced driver assistance system and an over-the-air software update platform. Privately owned Cylance’s software will...
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Ford and Walmart to Test Self-Driving Cars in Miami
Posted on Nov 15, 2018
Ford continues to double-down on its self-driving-car testing program in Miami-Dade, announcing a new grocery delivery partnership with Walmart. Ford will work with Walmart’s existing partnership with Postmates to deliver Walmart groceries to customers. The catch: They’ll arrive in vehicles designed to mimic the behavior of an autonomous vehicle. (Backup safety drivers are still behind the wheel.)
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How Autonomous Vehicles Could Shape Future Development
Posted on Nov 13, 2018
Autonomous vehicles are poised to dramatically change cities’ roads (from congestion to safety) and commuting patterns, but developers think the innovation will also have a profound impact on the types of buildings that can be constructed. According to ZOM Living CEO Greg West, the greatest constraining factor to urban real estate development is parking. Building entrances for people to walk in is easy, he said, but constructing entrances and garages to store hundreds of cars is a major challenge. Read the full analysis.
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Six trillion is what the world has to spend for an electric car-only future
Posted on Nov 7, 2018
These days, electric cars can drive further and be charged faster than previously. Automakers are beginning to churn out at least one electric variant, with more than 100 battery-powered models to be available by next year. Does that mean the affordable car of the future has arrived? Sales numbers suggest it’s getting closer. Consumers bought more than one million electric vehicles last year, an increase of almost 60% from 2016, even as global car demand turned lower. China, with an aggressive green vehicle policy, accounts for almost half of worldwide electric passenger-car sales. The...
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