Some of the world's leading automakers are all turning to the same company to help bring past the self-driving finish line. Aurora CEO and Co-Founder Chris Urmson joins Cheddar at CES to discuss his firm's newly-announced partnership with Volkswagen Group. He describes his company's goal as providing the "drivers," by way of software, for autonomous vehicles.
The partnership is focused on developing "mobility as a service" initiative in major cities. Urmson describes how Aurora will help Volkswagen Group's fleet of self-driving cars, known as Sedric, connect people in urban communities. He explains how the service initiative will help people with mobility issues of their own, as well as making transportation easier for commuters.
Urmson reveals how his company spent the past year working with Volkswagen Group to integrate its system into the automaker's fleet. He breaks down Aurora's high-pedigree founding team, including himself, a veteran of Google's self-driving initiative, and Sterling Anderson, one of the minds behind the launch of Tesla's Model X.
Ford and Walmart envision a world in which products are delivered straight to customers' doors ー no driver required. The two titans of industry are teaming up along with Postmates to explore delivery via self-driving cars in Miami-Dade County, Fla.
The former president of Pinterest has a new mission to curb tech addiction. Tim Kendall left his perch as the top business chief of the $12 billion company one year ago and is now the CEO of Moment, a mobile app that aims to teach people how to reduce their phone use.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) spoke with Cheddar's J.D. Durkin about Amazon's move to Crystal City and what it means for the people of Virginia. "This is both going to be an economic driver and, frankly, put this region more on the map as a tech headquarters," Warner told Cheddar.
Qualtrics CEO Ryan Smith rang the closing bell alongside SAP CEO Bill McDermott to celebrate his company's last minute buyout by SAP. Smith and McDermott talk to Cheddar about Qualtrics' planned expansion, their goals for enterprise technology and why they think the $8 billion acquisition makes so much sense. "Our mission is bigger than everything. We want XM, or experience management, all over the world, and this is by far the best way to do it," Smith told Cheddar.
NASA is partnering with an unlikely organization for one of its newest experiments ー The Michael J. Fox Foundation. NASA is planning on growing crystals out of the proteins that are likely connected to Parkinson's disease. Sarah Lewin, associate editor at Space.com, told Cheddar that growing the crystals in space will give scientists more information on the proteins and hopefully lead to a breakthrough in curing Parkinson's.
The burgeoning sport of drone racing is about to go autonomous. The professional Drone Racing League is preparing to launch a circuit for A.I. drones to compete against one another ー and, eventually, against human-controlled drones. Nicholas Horbaczewski, the founder and CEO of the DRL, previewed the new circuit in an interview on Cheddar Wednesday.
Federal regulators have subpoenaed Snap as part of a probe into its 2017 initial public offering, the company confirmed in a statement to Cheddar.
E-cigarette maker Juul announced new concessions to limit rampant teen vaping on Tuesday ー including pulling certain products from stores and abandoning social media feeds ー in the face of increasing pressure from the FDA and anti-smoking groups.
Trendy beverage maker Dirty Lemon may have halted production of its CBD-infused drink due to legal concerns, but CEO Zak Normandin insisted the company isn't otherwise slowing down or playing it safe. Rather, it is working to expand the brand's physical presence and develop new products.
In a big year for mergers and acquisitions in the healthcare industry, consumers are right to fear rising insurance premiums and prescription drug prices. But eHealth ($EHTH) CEO Scott Flanders told Cheddar on Tuesday that vertical integration, like Aetna's merger with CVS, might actually help combat rising costs by creating more choices for consumers.
