Episode 98 | The Changing Landscape of Cities

John Rossant, Founder & CEO, CoMotion and Advisory Board Member, NEOM joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss the changing landscape of cities. 

The conversation begins with John discussing the vision for the futuristic region of NEOM which is roughly the size of Massachusetts located in the Northwest of Saudi Arabia. 95% of the NEOM region will be preserved in it’s natural state and there will be no highways or carbon emissions. Sustainability is at the core of NEOM.

NEOM is a very big bet on hydrogen. The core energy of NEOM is hydrogen. – John Rossant

The heart of NEOM should be THE LINE development which is a 75-mile long and 1,600 foot skyscraper which is connected by a high-speed train.

The world does needs a radical experiment like this. We can not continue urbanizing as we have been, we are ruining the planet. If we can think of a way to do this in a sustainable way using renewable energy, that could be pretty interesting. – John Rossant

In the United States, the City of Miami is growing and changing as new individuals move into the region from around the world. However the issue facing Miami today is the city’s all-in approach to cryptocurrency without diversification. Could the lack of the City’s diversification lead to another classic Miami boom and bust cycle? Grayson and John discuss the current state of Miami’s economy, while offering their unique opinions on the future of Miami. 

Miami, it’s a much much much bigger story than just crypto. – John Rossant

One of the stories emerging in Miami is the focus on decarbonizing ocean transport. Over in NEOM, there is a a mixed-use urban development called OXAGON located in the Red Sea which when completed will be the largest floating structure in the world. 

In time, I think the Red Sea will become the new Mediterranean in terms of kind of yachting in paradise, boating, etc. – John Rossant

The story emerging in Dubai is Cruise preparing to deploy the fully autonomous Cruise Origin in 2023 on public roads. With the advancement of NEOM and the emerging Cruise deployment in Dubai, the Middle East is beginning to emerge as a growing market for autonomy. While the Middle East is a growing market for autonomy, New York City is a shrinking market for mass-transit.

Mass-transit and public transportation have to be made fun and seamless. – John Rossant

This is where multi-modal and on-demand mobility is thriving as consumers want what they want, when they want it without friction. 

Wrapping up the conversation, Grayson and John discuss why the future of mobility is choice. 

Recorded on Tuesday, July 26, 2022

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