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- The Independent
‘Groundbreaking’ flights six-times faster than speed of sound one step closer as new engine unveiled
A flight between London and New York could take less than an hour if top speeds are reached
- TechCrunch
Elon Musk unveils the Robovan: the biggest surprise from Tesla's We, Robot event
Elon Musk unveiled a prototype of Tesla's Robovan on Thursday night during the company's We, Robot event in Los Angeles. The Robovan will be an electric, autonomous vehicle roughly the size of a bus, designed for transporting people around high density areas. "We're going to make this, and it's going to look like that," said Musk on Thursday night as the Robovan rolled towards center stage.
- The Independent
First class passenger horrified to find bedbug climbing up their leg during flight
The passenger sad they were ‘sufficiently freaked out’ by the incident
- The Independent
Boy, 17, killed in police chase outside London hospital as friend fights for life
One girl posted a tearful video to TikTok, adding: ‘We could have had a future together. If only police could do their job properly’
- INSIDER
I spent $2 million restoring a cruise ship I bought on Craigslist. The project took over my life, but I don't regret it.
After spending more than 15 years and tons of money on a labor of love, he walked away from the sinking ship. He said he made the right decision.
- Reuters
Shift to EV-only future would spell job losses, Toyota chairman warns
A shift to an electric vehicle-only future would lead to job losses among those who have been working on engine-related technologies, including at the many suppliers in the sector, Toyota Motor's chairman said on Thursday. "If electric vehicles simply become the only choice, including for our suppliers, those people's jobs would be lost," he said, adding he liked gasoline vehicles. Toyota, the world's biggest automaker by sales, has been more cautious in its approach to EVs than other makers.
- Reuters
Exclusive-China's Chery assembles cars in Russian plants vacated by Western rivals
Chinese carmaker Chery has started assembling cars in Russia for sale in the country at three factories vacated by Western rivals including Volkswagen and Mercedes, five people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Chinese carmakers have grabbed more than half of Russia's car market in terms of sales since most Western counterparts abandoned the country following Moscow's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Now, they are extending their reach to account for more of Russia's domestic production, too, highlighting how Beijing is playing a more influential role in Russia's changing manufacturing landscape and economy since the invasion.
- USA TODAY
Tesla unveils Cybercab driverless model in 'We, Robot' event
Tesla unveiled its self-driving taxi, Cybercab along with a van model during 'We, Robot' event Thursday night.
- Engadget
How to watch Tesla’s robotaxi event
Tesla will unveil its long-anticipated Cybercab on Thursday. CEO and noted fancy leaper Elon Musk will take the stage to showcase the company’s robotaxi plans.
- AFPTV
Musk unveils robotaxi, pledges it 'before 2027'
Elon Musk on Thursday unveiled what he said was a robotaxi capable of self-driving, predicting it would be available by 2027 -- about a decade after he first promised an autonomous vehicle.The Tesla CEO said the fully electric car -- which has no steering wheel or pedals -- would be priced under $30,000, would be charged wirelessly with inductive technology and would be "10 to 20 times safer" than human-driven cars."You can think of the car in an autonomous world as being like just a little lounge," he told a crowd at the Warner Brothers Studio lot near Los Angeles."You're just sitting in a comfortable little lounge, and you can do whatever you want while you're in this comfortable little lounge, and when you get out, you will be at your destination."Few details were given about the vehicle, whose gullwing doors are reminiscent of the Delorean made famous by the "Back to the Future" films, but Musk said Tesla already had 50 of them.He said the company was expecting to begin "fully autonomous, unsupervised" driving in Texas and California next year with existing models, and then move on to production of what he called the "cybercab"."I tend to be a little optimistic with time frames, but in 2026, so yeah, before 2027. Let me put it that way."- Robovan and Optimus robot -The evening, which started almost an hour late, was heavy on sunny visions of the future, but light on specifics.But it also showcased a mass passenger vehicle that Musk called "The Robovan."The vehicle, which looks like an enormous moving toaster, has no steering wheel, pedals or driver.It can seat up to 20 people or could be converted to carry goods, Musk said.He gave no details about production or any timeline.Musk also brought out dancing humanoid robots called Optimus that he said would one day be able to do menial tasks, as well as offer friendship."I think this will be the biggest product ever of any kind," he said, adding that he expected the robot to retail for $20,000 to $30,000. He gave no timeline on this, either, and it was not clear from the livestream what the robot's capabilities were, although it was shown walking amongst audience members, handing out plaques and serving drinks.- Trump -Musk's bullish pronouncements and dedicated fanbase have helped build Tesla into one of the world's most valuable companies.While he was once the darling of the political left for his environmentalist moves towards electrifying transport, he has become increasingly controversial.Since buying Twitter -- which he renamed X -- the free speech absolutist cut staffing on the platform, leading many long-time users and advertisers to abandon the forum.And he's currently spending time and money promoting Republican Donald Trump, echoing the billionaire presidential candidate's dire warnings about migrants and a crumbling America, including during an exuberant appearance at a weekend Trump rally that was widely mocked.Thursday night's robotaxi reveal was a long time coming.Musk first said in 2016 a fully automated car was two years away; a year later he was touting a vehicle by 2019 so clever that customers would be able to sleep while it drove them around.But as many automakers have found, self-driving is tricky.While lots of cars nowadays have limited automation, theoretically allowing the driver to cede some of the boring bits of driving to an onboard computer, the person behind the wheel still has to pay attention and jump in if the car does something unpredictable.That's because computers, unlike people, are not very good at reacting to unexpected events or situations they have never seen before.Other companies, such as Google's Waymo and General Motors' Cruise, have operated heavily regulated and limited pilot robotaxi programs for a few years already.Anything Tesla tries to put on the road will face the same kind of regulatory hurdles, as well as skepticism from the general public, many of whom have never seen a car without a driver.Immediate reaction to the reveals was mixed."Delusional nonsense from a liar who has been promising a robotaxi every year for a decade," wrote user @goodandnormal on X.Others on the platform were more enthusiastic, with some predicting that Tesla's share price will soar when US markets open."Tesla self-driving 'Robovan.' The future looks promising," wrote @CollinsEbot1.hg/sco
- Reuters Videos
Elon Musk unveils Tesla 'Cybercab' as focus shifts to robo-cars
STORY: Elon Musk made a big entrance late Thursday. He rolled towards the stage at the Warner Bros studios near Los Angeles in a new two-door Tesla which he calls the ‘Cybercab’. The vehicle has no steering wheel or pedals, and is meant to launch robotaxi services. Musk says it will go into production in 2026, priced below $30,000. And he says real self-driving will finally arrive: “So, we’ll move from supervised full self-driving to unsupervised full self-driving, where the car… you could fall asleep and wake up at your destination.”Musk also showcased a larger self-driving vehicle - the Robovan - which can carry up to 20 people. The debuts are all part of his move to rebrand Tesla as a robotics firm, not a mass-market automaker. The company’s humanoid Optimus robot was also on show to hammer home the point. The event sparked huge enthusiasm among fans, with Musk promising thhat owners would be able to make money renting out their cars as cabs. “Your average passenger car is only used about 10 hours a week out of 168 hours. So, the vast majority of the time, cars are just doing nothing. But if they're autonomous, they could be used, I don't know, five times more. Maybe 10 times more.”Some observers were more skeptical, however. One shareholder told Reuters he was disappointed by the lack of a clear timeframe for robotaxi services. Other investors noted a lack of detail on how quickly Tesla can ramp up production, and how it can overcome regulatory worries about safety. The Cybercabs rely on AI and cameras to get around, dispensing with the other sensors - like costly lidar - used by rivals like Alphabet’s Waymo. Experts say that approach significantly cuts costs, but also poses huge technical challenges. Musk also has a history of being overoptimistic on timing - and he said as much at Thursday's event.As early as 2019, he was promising to have robotaxis on the streets by the following year.
- CBC
Aging fleet, e-bus challenges push Ottawa back to diesel
OC Transpo staff are researching where to buy more diesel buses — something the city had never intended to do again — as it gives up on plans for high-capacity electric buses and struggles to maintain its aging conventional fleet.The capital's public transit agency gave an update Thursday for its e-bus procurement. It includes information about the latest round of delays and the city's decision to give up on purchasing any of the longer, 18-metre (60-foot) electric buses."If we lose that, does t
- South China Morning Post
Xpeng bets on Eagle Eye technology to enhance autonomous driving in new P7+ sedan
Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Xpeng has embarked on a new camera-based technology to enhance autonomous driving, fitting it into the P7+ sedan that it plans to launch in the local market starting next month. Its new self-driving system fitted with Eagle Eye hardware and software has proven to be more accurate in information collection, according to He Xiaopeng, founder and CEO of the carmaker. The technology can enhance the autonomous capability of the P7+, a fully-electric sedan to rival
- Evening Standard
Search for missing man in River Thames after boat with six on board capsizes
Emergency services are conducting a desperate search
- Evening Standard
Met officer who shot dead Chris Kaba says lethal force was 'lawful, proportionate and necessary'
Martyn Blake is accused of murdering Chris Kaba in the Streatham shooting
- Fortune
Why Europeans suffer flight shame—and are swapping the plane for the train
Flight shaming, or “flygskam” from its original Swedish name, is nothing new.
- Associated Press
Close call at Nashville airport came after planes were directed to same runway, probe shows
Investigators said Wednesday that air traffic controllers cleared an Alaska Airlines jet to take off from Nashville last month after telling pilots of a Southwest Airlines jet to cross the same runway. Pilots of the Alaska plane aborted their Sept. 12 takeoff at Nashville International Airport, applying the brakes so hard that the tires deflated as they are designed to do when they get too hot. The National Transportation Safety Board gave a timeline of the incident as part of a brief preliminary report.
- LA Times
Deadly road rage shooting in broad daylight shuts down 5 Freeway for hours, CHP says
Traffic on the 5 Freeway in Boyle Heights was shut down for hours Thursday and into early Friday after what the CHP said was a fatal road rage shooting.
- Reuters
Tesla gambles on ‘black box’ AI tech for robotaxis
(Reuters) -Tesla aims to stun investors Thursday night with its long-awaited “robotaxi unveil," a potential milestone after a decade of Elon Musk’s unfulfilled promises to deliver self-driving vehicles. Convincing regulators and passengers of the vehicle’s safety could prove much harder and take much longer — while its main competitors, such as Alphabet’s Waymo, expand robotaxi fleets they're already operating in select cities today. Tesla has to date pursued a different technological path than all of its major self-driving rivals - one with potentially higher rewards but also higher risks to both its business and its passengers, according to Reuters interviews with more than a dozen executives, consultants and academics specializing in self-driving technology and three former Tesla autonomous-vehicle engineers.
- People
7-Year-Old Survives Fatal Crash, Then Climbs Out of Wrecked Car and Calls for Help: Authorities
The young boy climbed 15 feet up an embankment to flag down a passing driver after a car crash, fire officials said