What We’re Reading
Elon Musk requires ‘FSD’ demo for every prospective Tesla buyer in North America (CNBC, March 25, 2024)
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, recently sent an email to employees mandating that customers be shown how to use the Full Self-Driving (FSD) system before completing vehicle deliveries in North America. “Going forward, it is mandatory in North America to install and activate FSD V12.3.1 and take customers on a short test ride before handing over the car,” Musk wrote in an email to staffers on Monday. “Almost no one actually realizes how well (supervised) FSD actually works. I know this will slow down the delivery process, but it is nonetheless a hard requirement.” Musk also announced a one-month trial of FSD for US Tesla cars. These decisions appear squarely aimed at countering criticism from regulators and consumers that Tesla has engaged in false advertising regarding the capabilities and limitations of FSD.
GM, Ford will reroute Baltimore shipments after bridge collapse (Reuters, March 26, 2024)
After the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on Tuesday morning, the Port of Baltimore has been closed, forcing companies like GM and Ford to reroute their vehicle shipments. The Port of Baltimore is the “busiest” automobile port in the United States, handling over 750,000 vehicles last year, according to the Maryland Port Administration.
While General Motors stated, “We expect the situation to have minimal impact on our operations. We are working to re-route any vehicle shipments to other ports,” Ford’s Chief Financial Officer John Lawler believes the bridge collapse will have a much bigger influence, stating, “It’s going to have an impact…We’ll have to divert paths to other ports…It will probably length the supply chain a bit.”
“[T]here will certainly be a disruption,” stated CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation John Bozzella. “Baltimore is the No. 1 automobile port in the U.S., and we’re in touch with federal officials to help them understand the scale of automotive operations there.”
New cars are now ‘the worst’ products when it comes to protecting consumer data (CNBC, March 23, 2024)
Cars today are constantly capturing data and many consumers don’t know how their data is being used, or that it’s being used at all. According to Counterpoint Technology Market Research, by 2030, 95% of cars sold are likely to have embedded technology which opens the door for companies to collect, share or sell data related to driver habits, and other personal information that people may not want shared. While most car manufacturers allow customers to opt out of data sharing, it can be difficult to find out how to do so as these settings are buried within menus, and doing so often requires disabling useful or desirable features such as navigation, remote unlock and the ability to receive service-related updates. So how do you protect your data? Check with the manufacturer to see what your options are for opting out and be sure to periodically review your privacy settings.