Baidu Inc. is racing against Waymo and GM's self-driving development. The Chinese company is one of the first to receive a license to operate autonomous taxis without a person in the driver's seat. The company says they provided 213K rides in Q4 last year, making them the world's busiest self-driving taxi service.
Tesla cut about 200 jobs from its Autopilot project in a now-closed San Mateo, CA, office. The cuts come as part of sweeping efforts to reduce costs across the company. Despite the cuts, Tesla has started offering a $6K Enhances Autopilot as an intermediate step between standard Autopilot and Full Self-Driving.
Waymo will start delivering Wayfair brand home goods using a fleet of autonomous semi-trucks. Google parent company Alphabet's other favorite child, Waymo, is testing the self-driving trucks with JB Hunt Transport Services in Texas for six weeks in July and August.
TL:DR — A high-ranking S. Korean-based auto park maker is pulling a divide and conquer, while SK Group, the 2nd largest individually controlled S. Korean conglomerate, invests in safe chargers for apartment buildings. Each move feels like an investment in being key players in the global shift toward electrification.