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The Road to Autonomy

Latest episodes

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Nov 9, 2024 • 35min

Episode 244 | Autonomy Markets: Self Driving's Next Chapter: Trump Policies, Lyft Partnerships, and Musk's Influence

The political landscape is evolving, with Trump potentially reshaping the future of autonomous vehicles. Expect a national framework that could challenge California's strict regulations. Toyota is strategizing to regain its market position through partnerships like May Mobility. Las Vegas showcases the challenges of deploying self-driving cars, highlighting a successful 100,000 paid rides by Motional. Additionally, the impact of union dynamics on the adoption of autonomy brings intense discussion, especially with Elon Musk's shifting political stance.
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Nov 5, 2024 • 39min

Episode 243 | Tesla's CyberCab Insurance Challenge: How Will Personally Owned Autonomous Vehicles Get Coverage? 

Sergey Litvinenko, Co-Founder & CEO, Koop joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss insuring personally owned autonomous vehicles beginning with the Tesla Cybercab. Insuring autonomous vehicles without steering wheels and pedals presents unprecedented challenges that could potentially halt widespread adoption if the insurance is not figured out. While there currently isn’t an insurance product for personally owned fully autonomous vehicles, perhaps Tesla Insurance may have been created specifically to address this challenge? A critical aspect of insuring personally owned autonomous vehicles will be the handling of post-accident repairs and liability. OEM-backed insurance, particularly Tesla Insurance, is best positioned to handle these challenges due to their direct access to vehicle data, repair capabilities, and understanding of their unique vehicle designs. While there may be initial concerns about litigation and fraudulent claims, the comprehensive data collection from autonomous vehicles will help combat false claims. The future of personally owned autonomous vehicle insurance is likely to see rates decrease over time as safety performance improves.Episode Chapters0:00 Insuring CyberCab4:23 Insuring Personally Owned Autonomous Vehicles 7:13 Liability for Personally Owned Autonomous Vehicles with No Manual Controls9:01 Repairing Personally Owned Autonomous Vehicles 13:23 In The Event of a Crash, Who is Responsible? 23:36 Rider Liability Insurance 26:54 Underwriting Risk36:43 First Personally Owned Autonomous Vehicle Policies 38:27 Key TakeawaysRecorded on Tuesday, October 29, 2024--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Nov 2, 2024 • 45min

Episode 242 | Autonomy Markets: Waymo’s New EMMA Model for Autonomous Driving, Zoox’s Pending Launch and The Great Tesla Divide

In this episode of Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Waymo’s new EMMA model (End-to-End Multimodal Model) for Autonomous Driving, their increased weekly ridership and how a shortage of skilled mechanics and technicians could slow down the growth of the Waymo One service. As Waymo grows their service, Zoox is now preparing to join the party and launch a robotaxi service in both San Francisco and Las Vegas next year. While Zoox is about to join the robotaxi party, Tesla and their desire to launch a robotaxi service continues to divide the public and the market.Episode Chapters0:00 Waymo3:02 Autonomous Vehicle Mechanics 5:46 Uber11:20 Pricing Waymo One14:53 Economy18:12 Waymo EMMA model (End-to-End Multimodal Model) Paper21:53 Tesla Shade27:28 Zoox31:41 Aurora Delays Driver Out Until April 202538:45 Lyft39:36 WeRideRecorded on October 31, 2024--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Oct 29, 2024 • 41min

Episode 241 | Off-Road Autonomy: Emerging Multi-Billion Dollar Markets

Sam Abidi, President, Apex Advisors joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss the rapidly evolving off-road autonomy market, its unique dynamics and why the market is full of opportunity. Autonomy is transforming off-road industries, from sprawling mine sites to vast agricultural fields and busy construction sites. As traditional equipment manufacturers and innovative startups race to meet surging demand, autonomous systems are proving to be more than just a solution to persistent labor shortages—they’re becoming a cornerstone of operational excellence.The economics are compelling: autonomous vehicles operate longer, work more efficiently, and significantly reduce operational expenses. Mining companies can run their haul trucks around the clock, farmers can precisely manage their fields with fewer workers, and construction sites can maintain productivity even amid staffing challenges.This convergence of necessity and innovation has sparked intense competition, as both established heavy equipment giants and agile tech startups vie to capture their share of this rapidly expanding market. What’s driving this gold rush? The promise of scalable operations and robust profit margins, underpinned by proven success stories across multiple sectors.Episode Chapters0:00 Off-Road Autonomy Market2:35 Ag Autonomy8:51 Startups Competing with Established Industrial OEMs11:01 OEM Deals13:20 Off-Road Autonomy Regulatory Market 16:05 Western Australia Mines20:10 Apex Advisors 24:20 Workforce Development 27:34 Private Equity Roll-Ups 35:17 Growth of the Off-Road Autonomy Market38:31 Future of Off-Road AutonomyRecorded on Monday, October 18, 2024--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Oct 26, 2024 • 38min

Episode 240 | Autonomy Markets: Autonomy IPOs Heat Up: Tesla's 20% Rally, WeRide’s $440M IPO, & Waymo’s $5.6B Funding Round

In this episode of Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss the opening of the autonomy IPO market and investors increasing desire to own autonomous vehicle companies. On October 23rd, Tesla’s stock rallied 20% following earnings that beat the street and Elon Musk’s continued commentary about Tesla’s robotaxi ambitions. WeRide completed its NASDAQ IPO raising $440M on October 25th, the same day Waymo announced a massive $5.6B funding round led by Alphabet with participation from Tiger Global and Sliver Lake.Episode Chapters0:00 Capital Markets are Open3:07 Tesla Robotaxi Service in Palo Alto?5:43 The Interrelationships and Risks of the Elon Musk Companies10:43 WeRide IPO19:37 Waymo's Latest Funding Round23:17 Lucid is Finding Out Autonomy is Hard29:40 Wayve32:02 Cruise Goes Driverless in Houston33:16 Uber37:02 Next WeekRecorded on October 25, 2024--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Oct 22, 2024 • 53min

Episode 239 | From TuSimple to Bot Auto: Xiaodi Hou's New Plan for Profitable Autonomous Trucking

Xiaodi Hou, Founder & CEO, Bot Auto joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss his plans for building and scaling a profitable autonomous trucking company.In a revealing conversation Dr. Xiaodi candidly discusses his departure from TuSimple and the founding of Bot Auto, offering candid insights into lessons learned, decisions he made and why his new approach to building an autonomous trucking business is largely focused on profitability over rapid scaling.Episode Chapters0:00 What Happened at TuSimple3:52 What if TuSimple Did Not Go Public6:46 Decision Making9:41 Bot Auto Business and Commercialization Strategy 20:39 Bot Auto Cost Structure 24:07 Making a Truck Autonomous and Going Driver-Out30:18 Safety33:11 Tesla FSD (Full Self-Driving)37:08 Bot Auto Lanes39:47 Small Teams44:53 Commercial Operations Timeline50:35 GPUs52:17 TakeawayRecorded on Monday, October 14, 2024--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Oct 19, 2024 • 41min

Episode 238 | Autonomy Markets: More Details Emerge on Tesla's FSD 13 Robotaxi Bet, Uber's Ambitions, Emerging Autonomy IPO Market

In this episode of Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss the details emerging from Tesla’s robotaxi unveiling at We, Robot. Tesla’s robotaxi is projected to have a 200-mile range with FSD 13 powering Full Self-Driving Unsupervised. Could FSD 13 be Tesla’s breakthrough autonomy moment? Or will it be a later version of FSD? Later the conversation shifts to the emerging news about Uber’s potential acquisition of Expedia and what that acquisition would mean to both the travel and autonomy markets.The IPO market for autonomy is heating up, as Horizon Robotics has filled for an IPO on the Hong Kong Exchange and Pony AI is preparing for a U.S. listing. Could this be a sign of things to come?Episode Chapters0:00 We, Robot 15:39 Autonomy Use Cases 18:48 Horizon Robotics and Pony.AI IPOs 24:46 Potential; Uber / Expedia Deal 33:24 Lyft Makes a Move? 40:06 Next WeekRecorded on October 17, 2024--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Oct 15, 2024 • 40min

Episode 237 | Tesla's Cybercab, Waymo's Expansion, and the Growth of Robotaxis

Pete Bigelow, Senior Reporter, Automotive News joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss the latest developments in the autonomous vehicle industry including the introduction of Tesla’s Cybercab, Waymo’s expansion and the growth of robotaxis. On 10/10 Tesla unveiled Cybercab, a two passenger robotaxi as Waymo ramps up operations in multiple cities around the U.S., Hyundai works on their Motional strategy and Zoox prepares to launch commercial service in Las Vegas in 2025. Even as Robotoaxis scale, certain OEMs are still focused on developing SAE Level 3 systems which come with complex regulatory issues. Along with the regulatory issues comes liability and who is at fault in the event of a crash. It’s a problem that has not been solved yet and one that certain special interest groups might not want to be solved.Episode Chapters0:00 We, Robot6:55 President Tump on Autonomous Vehicles8:34 Shared Rides11:45 Zoox in Las Vegas14:00 Motional / Hyundai21:14 Tort Reform29:02 Tim Kentley Klay's HYPR33:10 Mobileye34:47 VW ID Buzz Autonomous Vehicle Service37:33 Robotaxi OutlookRecorded on Friday, October 11, 2024 --------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Oct 13, 2024 • 36min

Episode 236 | Autonomy Markets: Tesla's We, Robot Event: AI Confusion or Cybernetic Revolution

In this episode of Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Tesla’s We Robot event, an event that Grayson has dubbed as “Autonomy Disneyland” and the markets mixed market reaction to the event.While the We Robot event was impressive and Disneyesque, it fell short on providing concrete details about timelines, financial projections, and technological progress in Tesla’s development of full self-driving (FSD). The lack of substantive details led to an 8% drop in Tesla’s stock price, while Uber and Lyft’ stocks gained on no further details about Tesla’s proposed robotaxi network service. Overall, the We Robot event was impressive. Cybercab, Robovan are Tesla’s vision for an autonomous future. Optimus is getting closer to moving into homes, and we suspect Tesla has something else up there sleeves. Episode Chapters0:00 Optimus (Robots)2:35 Full Self-Driving (FSD)9:40 Cybercab19:24 Uber & Lyft26:12 Does Amazon Integrate Zoox into a Prime Mobility Tier?28:33 Inductive Charging 32:56 Autonomy Disneyland34:54 Next WeekRecorded on October 11, 2024--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Oct 8, 2024 • 42min

Episode 235 | Ford Slashes BlueCruise Price, GM vs Tesla, Coveted Costco Partnership

David Welch, Detroit Bureau Chief, Bloomberg joined Grayson Brulte on TheRoad to Autonomy podcast to discuss Ford's BlueCruise price cut and GM's burgeoning competition with Tesla for personally owned autonomous vehicles. Ford continues to face headwinds without an autonomous driving partner as GM prepares to once again commercialize Cruise and Tesla prepares to introduce the robotaxi on 10/10. Without a partner and Waymo currently open to doing deals with several OEMs, could Ford once again strike a partnership this time not with Google but with Waymo?There are a lot of questions to be answered as the market for personally-owned autonomous vehicles begins to emerge. When the market is fully emerge, one of the biggest questions that remains is which company will secure the coveted Costco partnership?Episode Chapters0:00 Car Software Subscriptions 8:06 GM Cruise Subscription 10:53 GM vs. Tesla13:03 Could Ford Go Back to Waymo?15:31 May Mobility18:53 Autonomous Driving Stacks20:52 AVRide21:38 Commerce Dept. Connected/Autonomous Vehicle Proposed Rules24:22 Autonomous Driving Stacks for Select Markets25:32 Hyundai 28:32 FSD Approach 30:19 Zoox37:03 Costco Autonomous Vehicle Partnership 39:12 Aurora Driver-Out 40:03 Key Takeaways Recorded on Tuesday October 3, 2024 --------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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