Everyone needs to get around. How we do it will change more over the next decade than it has in the last century. Legacy automakers, like Ford and GM, are scrambling to become technology-savvy companies, and the tech industry is trying to cash in on the change. New players, like Rivian and Tesla, are disrupting the industry and sometimes stumbling. We look at how self-driving hardware and software make the automobile better or, in some cases, deeply flawed. We cut through the hype and empty promises to tell you what’s really happening and what we think is coming. Verge Transportation cares about all moving machines and the place they have in the future.
The PV7 is longer than Kia’s previous electric van and comes in two versions: one for passengers and one for cargo.
This cargo bike is meant to get your workman juices flowing by fitting “bear trap” pedals to a limited edition Omnium Mini-Max with a stainless-steel frame, left raw (but clear coated) to revel in the heat discoloration of its welds. There’s no motor here — if you need one, this collab isn’t for you. Just 150 units will be sold in Europe for €4500 starting September 24th.
The EV company announced plans to sell 25,000 vehicles to Estonia-based mobility company Bolt for a robotaxi service in Europe. The robotaxi will be based on Lucid’s upcoming midsized Cosmos vehicle and will be Level 4 capable. This is Lucid’s second major robotaxi deal, after announcing plans to deploy 20,000 vehicles with Uber and Nuro in the US. With Lucid burning cash and facing heavy market pressure, these types of deals are a possible bridge to a more secure financial future.
The bill would require all new cars, including electric vehicles like Tesla, to be capable of receiving AM radio broadcasts. It now advances to the Senate, where a companion bill has already racked up 60 cosponsors. The bill’s main sponsor Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) celebrated the House passage in a statement:
This vote sends a clear message to car manufacturers that AM Radio is a lifeline that must be protected in new vehicles. From emergency response to sports, entertainment, and news, AM radio is an essential communication tool for tens of millions of Americans.
Some automakers have dropped AM radio in recent years, citing dwindling audiences and possible interference with electric powertains.
Update September 16th: Cars would be required to receive AM broadcast, not send broadcasts.
The electric automaker has until September 30th to answer a series of questions about how its steering-wheel- and pedal-less Cybercab complies with federal safety standards.
Two boat manufacturers, Crest Marine and Balise Pontoons (both owned by MasterCraft Boat Holdings), announced today their plans to enable smartphone projection in their upcoming models in 2027. The boats will feature a seven-inch “marine touchscreen” that will display CarPlay or Android Auto alongside marine-specific technology. The manufacturers are also working with marine navigation app Savvy Navvy to offer access to nautical charts, smart routing, GPS tracking, live weather, and tidal data — all displayed on the same screen as other apps. Avast!
The robotaxi company is partnering with taxi operator Nihon Kotsu and ride hailing app GO to offer on demand, 24/7 self-driving rides through both the Waymo and GO apps in 2027. Waymo has been testing its vehicles in Tokyo since 2025, but this is the first time it’s put an official date on the launch of its commercial robotaxi service. The company is eyeing additional overseas markets, including London and Munich.
Reuters quotes Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel saying that, “….we’ve spent time supporting the investigation and reviewing some of the surrounding circumstances, and we’ve decided to pause our operations with 21 Air, the operator of Flight 7598.”
So far, the NTSB reports that despite warnings about speed, “There was not a consistent verbal response to the comments about speed” from the plane’s pilot before it overran the end of the runway on September 6th, killing five people.
The second-generation Tesla Roadster appears to be set for a reveal on October 1st. That’s nearly nine years since the prototype was first shown off in November of 2017, and we’re still probably at least another year or so out from availability.
The amount of data about you that many cars collect — and sell to third parties — is staggering.
Miami is looking like the next market for Elon Musk’s steering-wheel-less autonomous vehicles. But a few of the gold two-seaters were spotted in New York City — albeit with steering wheels and human safety monitors driving manually. It’s likely just a marketing maneuver, since fully autonomous vehicles are prohibited in New York. Governor Kathy Hochul recently reversed a decision to allow Waymo to deploy its vehicles outside the city after pushback from labor groups.
Sources tell the Financial Times that “spurious” flight data entered by a UK military jet “triggered a series of events” that grounded flights across the country earlier this week:
The entry caused a meltdown within the wider air traffic control system that took hours — and several attempts — to restart, the people said.
The tunneling venture announced it raised $3 billion in a Series D funding round led by the United Arab Emirates that values the company at $23 billion. Last year, the Boring Company signed a preliminary agreement to dig the Dubai Loop, a 4-mile (6.4km) tunnel that includes four stations linking the Dubai International Financial Centre and Dubai Mall. With this new financing, the company plans on developing over 150km (93 miles) of tunnels throughout Dubai.
[The Boring Company]
YouTuber Josh West thought he was going to show his wife a good time by booking a Cybercab for their date night in Austin. Instead, a hard-braking episode left her with a sore neck, and then the Cybercab tried to drop them off in an empty parking lot at night. “Kind of wonky,” an amiable West says. “Definitely work left to do.”
Issues with the butterfly doors and bizarre drop-off locations cloud what is an otherwise impressive, future-forward experience.
Lyft customers hailing a ride in Waymo’s service area (which includes Downtown/Broadway, North Nashville/Germantown, East Nashville, Midtown, and South Nashville) could be matched with a robotaxi. Waymo and Lyft first announced they’d be teaming up for a robotaxi service in Music City nearly a year ago. Lyft is also handling fleet services, such as cleaning, maintenance, and EV charging, through its Flexdrive subsidiary. Customers who would prefer a robotaxi ride can also book one through Waymo’s own app.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a letter to the automaker that he was “deeply alarmed” that Ford licenses tech from battery maker CATL and automaker Geely, Reuters reports. Ford responded by accusing Duffy of being “wrongheaded” and “chasing headlines” — which, if you know Duffy, makes perfect sense. The letter drops a few months after the Trump administration banned Geely-owned Polestar from selling its EVs in the US.
I found this Washington Post story about the “lowly” seat belt warning — how they came to be, which automakers have the best and worst chimes, and the people who are still militantly opposed to wearing seat belts — to be highly fascinating. The occasion is that the federal government is delaying new rules that would require automakers to install more persistent warnings. It’s troubling because seat belts literally save lives, and so do reminders to wear them.
[The Washington Post]
Season two of the Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League put five cars on the track this weekend, and it was going more smoothly than the series’ 2024 debut, for a while.
Unimore Racing suffered a sensor failure while leading the race on lap ten, causing it to suddenly slow down and stop on track, where the second-place Polimove car ran into it — maybe next time they’ll add training data from Hulkenberg or Hadjar.
Several UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, and others, have grounded departing flights as the National Air Traffic Services (NATS) deals with a “technical issue” affecting its “flight processing system.” NATS adds that its “engineers are on site and working urgently to resume normal operations as quickly as possible.”
After taking the wraps off its all-electric SkyNomad SUVs in July, Xiaomi has officially launched the four-car lineup in China, which starts at RMB 209,900 (~$31,275) for the N70 Pro model.
The priciest SkyNomad N90 Studio Max offers a pop-up camping roof, rotatable front seats, a collapsible table, and back seats that fold into a bed. It costs RMB 299,900 (~$44,685).
Road Rage is a new short film in production that casts a murderous autonomous car as the bad guy — and taps into everything people already fear about AI on the road.
Some of the pro-Tesla content creators that the company invited to its closed-door Cybercab event are starting to post their first rides.
Right now, Tesla is holding a private event with a bunch of pro-Tesla influencers to celebrate the “launch” of its autonomous Cybercab vehicle. But in a break from the past, the company is not livestreaming the event. Several influencers posted on X that the company made them sign NDAs and barred them from posting any content until the event is over. Not really the sign of confidence a lot of investors were looking for!
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has worked to send tailpipe pollution policies to Congress to repeal. US District Judge Beryl Howell accused the EPA of “Orwellian doublethink.”
According to the company’s newly launched Robotaxi website, children under the age of 13 are not permitted to ride in the Cybercab — even if they’re riding with an adult. Kids between the ages of 8-13 are allowed in Tesla’s Model Y robotaxis, but only when riding with an adult. And those under 8 are not allowed at all. Even stranger, the Cybercab’s compliance documents (PDF) include detailed instructions for installing child seats. Which is it, Elon?
We still have no word on when this supposed event is taking place. All we know is that it’s in Austin, which predictably has seen a surge of gilded Cybercabs hit the streets. Reuters says it’s supposed to start at 5:45PM ET, citing a Cybercab engineer’s tweet that I can’t seem to verify. Either way, we’ll be monitoring the event and will hopefully have more updates to share later today.
