Food trucks in the U.S. have taken many forms, but have long been a popular option for dining. Now as the coronavirus pandemic alters the way we interact and engage with others, these kitchens on wheels may have a new function, especially on college campuses.
Rod Keller, CEO of the electric vehicle manufacturer AYRO is jumping at the opportunity to capitalize on the niche industry in a partnership with Gallery Carts. The new collaboration will combine AYRO's expertise in developing electric vehicles with Gallery's expertise in creating food delivery vehicles.
"Colleges are faced with, 'Well how do we provide food and beverage while at the same time, avoiding the mass crowds that you would typically see inside of a cafeteria?'" Keller told Cheddar.
So far, more than $500,000 has been poured into the collaboration as orders for the vehicles continue to amass. Keller said he's confident that as universities and other large campuses seek safer ways to feed their communities amid the pandemic, the need for their services will grow.
AYRO is also banking on buyers in higher education considering the long-term savings electric vehicles can provide. Keller said its electric vehicles save fleet operators at least 50 percent on fuel and energy costs.
"When people are moving cargo from one side of a university to another, or business campus, or hotel and resort, you don't need a full-sized truck with 400 miles of range running on gasoline to do that," Keller said.
Cryptocurrencies are getting off to a good week. Ethereum surged more than 4% in 24 hours on Monday, hitting a new all-time high above $4,700. Meanwhile, Bitcoin surged 7% to a price of $66,250. Haohan Xu, founder and CEO of Apifiny, joins Cheddar News with thoughts on the growing sector.
The latest Marvel movie hit theaters with one of the biggest opening weekends of the year. 'Eternals' opened over the weekend with an estimated $71 million, the fourth-best domestic debut this year. Erik Davis, managing editor at Fandango, joins Cheddar News to talk about the state of box office sales.
Ryan Lupberger, Sustainability Pioneer and CEO of Cleancult, joins 'Cheddar Reveals' to break down how Cleancult is redefining cleaning products and solutions to reduce their impact on the planet.
On this episode of 'Cheddar Reveals', Lydia McMullen-Laird and Samuel McMullen, co-founders of Live Zero Waste, discuss the sum of humanity's 'trash addiction' and lifestyle changes people can make to help reduce their individual trash output; Ryan Lupberger, Sustainability Pioneer and CEO of Cleancult, breaks down how Cleancult is redefining cleaning products and solutions to reduce their impact on the planet; Cheddar gets a look at Curiosity Stream's 'Going Circular.'
Payment processor Paypal will roll out a Venmo option for Amazon customers beginning in 2022 as the payment app continues to grow the number of merchants it works with.
Rental car company Hertz is jumping up from OTC trading to the Nasdaq after being delisted from the NYSE and undergoing bankruptcy in 2020. Interim CEO Mark Fields and Tom Wagner, co-founder and managing member at Knighthead Capital Management, joined Cheddar's "Opening Bell" to talk about reviving the business and how it plans to navigate issues like the ongoing car shortages. Regarding the electrification of the rental fleet, Fields noted that the company is looking to partner across the EV industry outside of the announced relationship with Tesla. The company is now trading under the ticker symbol HTZ.
The U.S. economy added 531,000 jobs in the month of October, painting a better picture of the economy that analysts had expected. Jared Bernstein, Council of Economic Advisers Member for President Biden joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Facebook officially announced that it is shutting down its facial recognition software which identifies users in photos and videos. The decision comes during growing societal concerns over the use of the technology. Cathy Hackl, Tech futurist and CEO of the Futures Intelligence Group joined Cheddar's Opening Bell.
