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.
The venture capitalist and husband of Serena Williams was one of the first investors in Coinbase. He told Cheddar he's staying away from the more speculative ICOs and instead investing in the "picks and shovels" that provide fundamental support for the long-term viability of cryptocurrencies.
AT&T announced this week it will bring 5G capabilities to Charlotte and Raleigh, North Carolina and Oklahoma City by the end of 2018. Melissa Arnoldi, President of Technology and Operations at AT&T, says building in these locations may help close the rural-urban digital divide.
Pinterest has lost both its SVP of Engineering and SVP of People, the company confirmed to Cheddar. The departures come as $12 billion Pinterest is reportedly prepping to go public in 2019.
The San Francisco-based fintech firm's Series B funding round is led by Kleiner Perkins. Tally lets users link their various credit cards and pays them off on their behalf.
Mike Shields, Advertising Editor at Business Insider, predicts there will be a battle royale among original-content streaming platforms like YouTube TV, Twitch, Facebook Watch, and Instagram's IGTV. YouTube's strategy, Shields tells Cheddar, is to attract new talent with 6-figure payments.
The Tesla exodus continues, with the departure of a top sales Exec just adding to the string of departures from the company. Mark Spiegel, Managing Member at investment firm Stanphyl Capital, explains why investors should avoid the stock as Telsa faces another executive's departure.
Rich Greenfield, media and tech analyst at BTIG, discusses why there's no better time than right now to get in on Spotify. The streaming music platform is set to announce earnings on Thursday.
Spotify is set to report earnings on Thursday, and Rich Greenfield, Media and Tech Analyst at BTIG, tells Cheddar that now is the time to invest in the music-streaming service.
Cheddar has learned that the company's VP of Hardware has left the company after disappointing sales of its Spectacles augmented reality glasses. The devices have lost Snap $40 million.
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