Ford’s Lane Change Signals a Shift Away From AV Development
As others follow Ford’s lead, the emphasis now will be greater automation of highway driving with heavy reliance on driver monitoring.
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India Renews Its Push for Homegrown Fabs
By Sufia Tippu
What’s at stake?
India has been trying unsuccessfully for decades to create strategic alliances for semiconductor manufacturing. Now, amid the confluence of geopolitics, economic uncertainty and supply chain disruptions, India’s best shot may be in chip assembly, test and packaging.
An oft-repeated joke in Silicon Valley goes something like this: What comes first, Middle East peace or a fab in India?
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Tale of Two Chip Wars: First Japan, Then China
As a cub reporter in Tokyo in 1992, I covered the U.S.-Japan chip war. Living now in the U.S., I’m watching America’s latest chip war with China building steam like a slow-motion train wreck.
In both conflicts, the U.S. goal is defending its lead in technology innovation, while hobbling its rival’s rapid advances.
Read More »Tale of Two Chip Wars: First Japan, Then China
Will Intel’s Pro-West Advocacy Draw China’s Ire?
By Bolaji Ojo
What’s at stake?
Intel has closely tied its future to Western governments working on holding back Chinese technology advancement and revitalizing local semiconductor production. Will this push make China see Intel as another friendly foe, potentially jeopardizing its current operation in the Communist country?
Autonomous Driving: Taxis, Toasters, Trucks and Trillions
If the shuttering of Argo AI marked the end of the beginning, the beginning of the end is the realization that technological development in the automotive industry is always an iterative process.
The Lithium-Ion Battery Was a Long Time Coming
What’s at Stake:
Early in the previous century, about 38 percent of vehicles on American roads were powered by electricity. Last year, just 3 percent of new U.S. cars sold were electric. Those statistics underscore the decidedly uneven development and market impact of the leading electric vehicle battery chemistry. As author Charles Murray notes, lithium-ion technology has nonetheless helped reignite the EV market after many fits and starts.
Veteran technology journalist Charles Murray chronicles the history of the lithium-ion battery and its central role in propelling EVs in Long Hard Road: The Lithium-Ion Battery and the Electric Car (Purdue University Press, September 2022).
Read More »The Lithium-Ion Battery Was a Long Time Coming
Tech Roadmap for Automakers Disillusioned With Robotaxis
OEMs will likely double down on their Level 2 → 2+ → 3 strategies. But there is a very real risk of a race to the bottom since each option comes with challenges.
Argo AI’s Demise Reveals Automakers’ AV Miscues
What’s at stake?
What went wrong with Argo AI is the wrong question. Rather: What’s up with Argo’s investors? What outcome did investors Ford and Volkswagen expect? Were they prepared to play the long game? Most important, do they understand what it takes to build a highly automated vehicle that’s both sexy and safe?
As the enthusiasm of its largest investors–Ford and Volkswagen–for autonomous vehicles waned, Argo AI’s fate was sealed.
Read More »Argo AI’s Demise Reveals Automakers’ AV Miscues
Winners, Losers in the Fall of Argo AI
Argo’s IP will be dispersed by financial backers Ford and VW, but Qualcomm appears to be the biggest winner.
China’s Startup Army is Being Disarmed
Beijing’s attempts to create a complete technology ecosystem, including extended supply chains for semiconductor design, production and packaging, are being boxed in on a number of fronts.