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Fortune – Top Tesla analyst shocks market with prediction that volumes will drop, prompting stock swoon to 10-month low

Article from Fortune on how Tesla is no longer a "red-hot growth stock." This article is pertinent because it shows how Tesla is getting desperate, which of course will affect how they try to further monetize FSD and Auto Pilot, perhaps before they are ready.
Read MoreFortune – Top Tesla analyst shocks market with prediction that volumes will drop, prompting stock swoon to 10-month low

SF Chronicle – Why Waymo robotaxis won’t be taking passengers to SFO, or on Bay Area freeways, anytime soon

Article from SF Chronicle explaining that though the CPUC granted Waymo permission to serve the peninsula, Waymo still needs permission from SFO to serve the airport. Also, Waymo does not have a timeline for expanding to cover the peninsula. Plus Waymo doesn't currently provide autonomous service on freeways yet due to safety issues.
Read MoreSF Chronicle – Why Waymo robotaxis won’t be taking passengers to SFO, or on Bay Area freeways, anytime soon

Bloomberg – How Apple Sank About $1 Billion a Year Into a Car It Never Built

In depth article from Bloomberg on the history of the Apple car project. Describes how Apple tried to outdo everyone else and start with Level 5 autonomy. That was one of their many mistakes. Also, interesting that Steve Jobs was apparently first to raise idea of an Apple car. Also, Apple considered buying Tesla at one point, and considered partnering with various automobile companies to actually manufacture the vehicle. But the biggest problem was indecision.
Read MoreBloomberg – How Apple Sank About $1 Billion a Year Into a Car It Never Built

Washington Post – Apple ramped up its autonomous car project last year. Now, it’s killing it.

After spending billions of dollars, Apple realized that it is best to completely abandon their autonomous electric vehicle program. This article is very relevant because it shows that the current autonomous vehicle business is in collapse. It is an especially important message for Cruise.
Read MoreWashington Post – Apple ramped up its autonomous car project last year. Now, it’s killing it.
Cruise stock chart

How bad of a situation is Cruise in?

It isn’t looking good. It has been 4 months since their epic disaster of seriously injuring a pedestrian, misinforming regulators and the public, and shutting down service. They have pushed out almost all of their executives and a quarter of their staff. And they do not appear to have a recovery plan. Things do not look good. One has to expect Cruise to be sold in a fire sale or simply abandoned by the end of 2024. This post covers a few recent factors that point in this direction.
Read MoreHow bad of a situation is Cruise in?

TechCrunch – Stellantis CEO says there’s still life in Waymo deal for self-driving delivery vans

This article is only of interest because it shows how drastically robotaxi plans have changed over the last few years. Waymo purchased from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (now Stellantis) 100 minivans in 2016 and then another 500 in 2017. In January 2018 it was announced that Waymo was ordering "thousands" of minivans for a 2018 self-driving fleet rollout. In August 2018 it was announced that Stellantis was going to supply (up to) 62,000 minivans to Waymo/Google. But that is all just a distant memory.
Read MoreTechCrunch – Stellantis CEO says there’s still life in Waymo deal for self-driving delivery vans

SF Chronicle – Driverless robotaxis are causing less mayhem on S.F. streets. City officials explain why

Robotaxi disruptions for emergency responders have fallen significantly for the last 6 months. This is due to Cruise suspending operations, and because Waymo is now more careful to avoid geolocated incidences. Also, Waymo now gives emergency responders ability to manually move a vehicle.
Read MoreSF Chronicle – Driverless robotaxis are causing less mayhem on S.F. streets. City officials explain why