Last updated on February 9th, 2026 at 05:25 pm
GM revives autonomous vehicle program with focus on personal-use cars (CBT News, August 12, 2025)
General Motors is reviving its self-driving car efforts with a crucial shift in strategy: abandoning robotaxi ambitions in favor of developing autonomous vehicles for personal buyers. The company is bringing back ex-Cruise employees while growing its engineering teams, led by Sterling Anderson, GM’s newly appointed product development head who previously spearheaded Tesla’s Autopilot program. Additionally, GM is conducting real-world testing with lidar-equipped vehicles operated by human drivers on public streets, collecting critical data to advance fully autonomous technology that will ultimately deliver “eyes-free, hands-free” driving capabilities.
Wait times for this Chinese EV are so long that the CEO is telling buyer to consider rivals (Electrek, August 12, 2025)
Xiaomi’s new YU7 electric SUV, positioned to undercut Tesla’s Model Y with a longer range and a lower price, has sparked a frenzy in China, receiving a staggering 240,000 orders within just 18 hours of launch. But while the demand has exceeded expectations, production constraints mean customers may have to wait up to a year or more for delivery. In a statement, CEO Lei Jun acknowledged the delays and encouraged potential buyers in urgent need of a vehicle to consider alternatives such as XPeng’s G7, Li Auto’s L8, or even Tesla’s Model Y. While the YU7 has quickly established itself as a competitive force in the crowded Chinese EV market, Xiaomi’s open acknowledgment of its limitations reflects a transparent and pragmatic approach to customer expectations.
Tesla is hiring robotaxi test drivers in New York City, but company hasn’t applied for permits (CNBC, August 12, 2025)
Tesla has launched a hiring campaign in Queens for “vehicle operator, Autopilot” roles, tasking operators with driving engineering vehicles, collecting audio and video data, troubleshooting software, and filing detailed reports. Despite this ambition, the city’s Department of Transportation confirms that Tesla has not applied for the permits required to test autonomous vehicles on NYC streets, a legal step that remains unfulfilled as Tesla presses forward with robotaxi preparation. Concurrently, Tesla is running limited robotaxi operations in Austin and San Francisco with safety personnel inside but aims to scale its autonomous ride-hailing footprint, potentially covering “half of the U.S. population by year-end,” according to Elon Musk, pending regulatory approvals.
Tesla shuts down Dojo, the AI training supercomputer that Musk said would be key to full self-driving (TechCrunch, August 7, 2025)
Tesla is shutting down its Dojo supercomputer project, ending in-house chip development for driverless tech. Lead engineer Peter Bannon is leaving, and remaining team members will be reassigned within Tesla. The move follows the departure of about 20 employees who started their own AI firm, DensityAI, building chips and hardware for robotics, AI agents, and automotive use. This shift marks a major change in Tesla’s AI strategy, moving away from Musk’s vision of Dojo as the core of full self-driving and robotaxi ambitions. Musk recently emphasized Tesla’s focus on Cortex, a new AI supercluster in Austin. Tesla plans to rely more on external partners like Nvidia, AMD, and Samsung for chips, including a $16.5 billion deal with Samsung for AI6 inference chips. This decision comes as Tesla’s board offers Musk a $29 billion pay package to maintain his leadership and push AI initiatives forward.
NHTSA Issues First-Ever Demonstration Exemption to American-Built Automated Vehicles (US Dept. of Transportation, August 6, 2025)
The NHTSA granted Zoox an exemption for its driverless vehicles, marking the first-ever exemption for American-built vehicles under the expanded Automated Vehicle Exemption Program (AVEP). This change, part of Secretary Duffy’s Innovation Agenda, levels the playing field for U.S. companies by allowing them to participate in AVEP, previously limited to foreign AVs. The program simplifies the exemption process, promoting U.S. technology and safety by enabling companies to test noncompliant vehicles on U.S. roads. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy praised the initiative as a dual victory for safety and innovation, positioning the U.S. as a leader in autonomous vehicle development. Chief Counsel Peter Simshauser emphasized the efficiency of the expanded review process. As part of the exemption, Zoox must alter vehicles to indicate non-compliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. NHTSA is also closing its investigation into Zoox’s self-certification.
Elon Musk teases new Tesla ‘Full Self-Driving Supervised’, but manage your expectations (Electrek, August 6, 2025)
Elon Musk has announced a new update for Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) which promises “10x improvements.” However, past experiences suggest caution in managing expectations. In a recent post, Musk mentioned enhancements like a tenfold increase in parameters and better video compression, slated for public release next month if testing succeeds. Although Tesla’s FSD for consumer vehicles hasn’t shown notable progress this year, focusing instead on its Robotaxi service in Austin, shareholders hope this new update leverages lessons learned from the Robotaxi deployment. In June, Musk initially teased a “4x increase” in parameters for this update, now expanding it to “10x.” However, previous promises, like the disappointing FSD v12.5 update claiming a “5x increase,” resulted in less reliable performance, making it prudent to remain cautious about these new claims.
