Data center provider CentralColo has announced a comprehensive rebranding, starting with a name change. It is now called Element Critical and will be pursuing an “aggressive acquisition strategy” to combat the limited customer data center choices. Element Critical currently has two data center facilities in Northern Virginia and Silicon Valley. It is looking to expand […]
Trump administration continues hands-off approach to self-driving cars
The Trump administration on Tuesday published the latest guidelines for self-driving cars, the first update since taking over from the Obama administration. The 36-page report, called Version 2.0 by Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, continues the same hands-off approach to the emerging industry, with guidance being “entirely voluntary” with “no enforcement mechanism.” Most of the questions […]
Drive.ai and Lyft partner to test self-driving cars in Bay Area
Drive.ai and Lyft have announced a partnership to test self-driving cars in the San Francisco Bay Area. The trial will look into how Lyft can optimize the passenger experience, and expand Drive.ai’s technical capabilities with thousands of autonomous miles. Lyft has made a few big self-driving announcements in the past few months, including a research […]
Google launches augmented reality app ARCore for Android
Google has launched its own augmented reality kit for developers, called ARCore, a lighter version of the company’s Tango platform that does not require any specialized hardware to run. ARCore is a light software development kit, similar to Apple’s ARkit, which is able to track motion, understand flat surfaces, and estimate where the light will […]
Private Watson reports for duty as IBM provides cloud to U.S. Army
IBM announced on Wednesday that it has been awarded a two-year, nine-month contract to continue providing cloud services to the U.S. Army. The $135 million contract is a follow-up from the previous agreement IBM signed with the U.S. Army’s Logistics Support Activity (LOGSA) in September 2012. Under the previous contract, IBM said it helped the […]
Google hiring artificial intelligence talent in China despite being banned
Google is building an artificial intelligence team in Beijing, China, despite having its search engine and mobile app store banned in the country. The search giant has been recruiting heavily over the past year, and in May hinted that an AI research team based in China could be on the cards, according to the Financial […]
IOTA gets ready to hack for climate change this fall
The IOTA Foundation will be the platform sponsor for the upcoming Hack4Climate conference, taking place from November 12 to 16 in Bonn, Germany, alongside the UN Climate Change Conference. A blockchain hackathon for climate change is scheduled to last all four days. Developers will team up with climate experts to build unique solutions using distributed […]
“AI most likely cause of WW3” says Elon Musk
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has made another apprehensive comment on the future of artificial intelligence development, saying the country with “[artificial intelligence] superiority most likely cause of WW3” on Twitter. Musk, the most prominent critic of AI development, was responding to a comment by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said the nation that […]
Samsung granted permission to test self-driving cars in California
Samsung is the latest technology company to receive a permit to test self-driving cars in California, but does not plan on launching its own automotive anytime soon. The South Korean electronics giant will instead work on ‘control systems’ for self-driving vehicles. It has already conducted tests in its home country with Hyundai cars. See Also: […]
Domino’s and Ford to test self-driving pizza delivery service
Domino’s and Ford have partnered to test a self-driving pizza delivery service to customers in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The partnership will be part of Ford’s research into how customers respond and interact with self-driving vehicles. Randomly selected customers will have the option of trying the self-driving delivery service, according to The Verge. An engineer will […]
nuTonomy wants to be self-driving in Singapore by summer 2018
Self-driving startup nuTonomy said it hopes to launch a commercial ride service in Singapore by the second quarter of 2018, possibly in partnership with local ride-hailing service Grab. Originally an MIT spin-off, nuTonomy has worked on self-driving software for three years. It started trialling its tech in Singapore in 2016, and expanded its shuttle program […]
Colorado to deploy self-driving crash truck to shadow road crews
The Colorado Department of Transportation has said it will deploy a self-driving truck to protect road crews from speeding vehicles by the end of this fall, potentially extending the program to cover all road maintenance if the trial is a success. The self-driving truck will act as a “crash truck”, which moves slowly behind road […]
Google retires Firefly car to focus on mass-produced vehicles
Google’s self-driving division Waymo has announced it will be retiring the Firefly car, the nearly iconic pod-like vehicle that was manufactured in-house to experiment. Waymo is now moving to mass produced vehicles, like the Chrysler Pacifica minivan. It received 600 minivans from Fiat Chrysler last year and is in the process of outfitting the vehicles […]
Finland prepares for self-driving shuttle service this fall
Finland could be the first country to have a regular autonomous shuttle service, with city transportation officials aiming to debut the service this fall. Tests have been ongoing since August 2016, when the shuttle was first deployed on a quarter-mile course with 12 passengers on board. See Also: Scandinavia leaps ahead of everyone in IoT […]
UK Autodrive scheme to be tested on public roads this year
Ford, Jaguar Land Rover, and Tata Motors are collaborating in the U.K. on a scheme called Autodrive, which is working on communication systems for self-driving cars. The most recent test, held in Nuneaton, a town in Warwickshire, England, looked into several safety systems aimed at reducing accidents. These included emergency warning technology and collision warnings, […]
Jawbone goes into liquidation; founder launches new health startup
Jawbone, once rivaling Fitbit for the top spot in the fitness wearable market, has begun liquidation proceedings after years of lackluster product launches and job cuts. Hosain Rahman, the CEO and co-founder of Jawbone, has already established a new startup, Jawbone Health Hub, which will work on connected products for the health industry, says The […]
Frankfurt commuters may soon jump aboard self-driving shuttles
Continental, a German auto manufacturer, has announced plans to test a “robo-taxi” in Frankfurt. The CuBe (Continental Urban mobility Experience) will be a blueprint for the future development of autonomous shared transport in urban areas. The CuBe will be fitted with driver assistance programs and sensors already embedded into Level 2 cars found on the […]
Images of Fitbit next smartwatch reveal heart-rate improvements
Fitbit is on schedule, as its boss James Park keeps reminding us, to launch its next smartwatch by the end of the year. We don’t know what the smartwatch will be called, though Blaze 2 seems likely, but thanks to leaks we know its design and some of the hardware improvements. Images obtained by Wareable […]
Ford patents removable wheel for self-driving vehicles
In the interim between semi-autonomous and self-driving, cars will need to be able to switch modes with relative ease. Ford has shown one possible way to move to self-driving mode, by making the steering wheel and brake pedals removable. In a patent granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Ford shows how the […]
Tesla starts Australian “tiny house” tour to show off energy products
Tesla’s fully renewable ‘tiny house’ has started its tour of Australia, aiming “to educate the public on how to generate, store, and use renewable energy for their home.” The tiny house is fitted with Tesla’s solar panels and a Powerwall, the company’s energy storage solution. A Model X will tow the house on its tour […]