Ford Can Only Produce a Maximum of 50,000 Mustang Mach E Electric Vehicles in First Year Due to Battery Constraints
November 27th, 2019Via: SlashGear:
Battery constraints will limit the number of Mustang Mach-E electric SUVs in Ford’s first year of production, the automaker has confirmed.
…
Joe Hinrichs, Ford President of Automotive, confirmed that the first year of production would top out at around 50,000 of the SUVs.
That’ll be shared globally around all of the markets Ford will launch the BEV in, not just earmarked for the US, Ford North America Product Communications Manager Mike Levine confirmed.
Audi to Cut 10% of Workers to Fund Shift to Electric Vehicles
November 26th, 2019Via: Reuters:
Volkswagen’s luxury car unit Audi on Tuesday said it would cut one in ten jobs, freeing up billions of euros to fund its shift toward electric vehicle production.
Ford Challenged Tesla to an ‘Apples to Apples’ Tug-of-War Between Pickup Trucks – Musk Says ‘Bring It On’
November 26th, 2019Update: Ford Chickens Out
Via: Electrek:
Ford now says that it is not participating in the Tesla Cybertruck vs. F-150 tug-of-war rematch as it calls the first one “absurd.”
As we reported earlier today, Tesla CEO Elon Musk agreed to redo the Cybertruck vs. Ford F-150 tug-of-war challenge after claims the first one wasn’t fair.
It appears that Tesla used a rear-wheel-drive version of the Ford F-150, and during a Twitter exchange with scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson, Musk agreed that it would fairer if both trucks were loaded during the challenge.
Musk agreed to a rematch and even agreed to bring Ford onboard after an executive from the automaker, Sunny Madra, challenged Tesla to a fairer tug-of-war between the F-150 and the Cybertruck.
However, Ford has now issued a statement saying that Madra wasn’t actually challenging Tesla to redo the test and made it sound like they are not doing a rematch (via Fox):
Sunny’s tweet was tongue in cheek to point out the absurdity of Tesla’s video, nothing more.
They continued:
With America’s best-selling truck for 42 years, we’ve always focused on serving our truck customers regardless of what others say or do. We look forward to our all-new F-150 hybrid coming next year and all-electric F-150 in a few years.
While Ford doesn’t seem to be willing to participate, it looks like Tesla is going to move forward with a rematch after Musk took the criticism of the first video to heart.
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Via: CNBC:
Tesla’s futuristic pickup truck appears set to go head-to-head against the Ford F-150 in an “apples to apples” tug-of-war battle.
The anticipated showdown, which could take place as early as next week, comes shortly after Tesla unveiled its all-electric Cybertruck.
Related: Was Cringe Inducing Cybertruck Window Demo Failure a Marketing Stunt?
Massachusetts State Police Tested Out Boston Dynamics’ Robot Dog
November 26th, 2019Via: WBUR:
Cops have long had dogs, and robots, to help them do their jobs. And now, they have a robot dog.
Massachusetts State Police is the first law enforcement agency in the country to use Boston Dynamics’ dog-like robot, called Spot. While the use of robotic technology is not new for state police, the temporary acquisition of Spot — a customizable robot some have called “terrifying” — is raising questions from civil rights advocates about how much oversight there should be over police robotics programs.
The state’s bomb squad had Spot on loan from the Waltham-based Boston Dynamics for three months starting in August until November, according to records obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts and reviewed by WBUR.
The documents do not reveal a lot of details on the robot dog’s exact use, but a state police spokesman said Spot, like the department’s other robots, was used as a “mobile remote observation device” to provide troopers with images of suspicious devices or potentially hazardous locations, like where an armed suspect might be hiding.
Was Bolivian Coup About Lithium?
November 26th, 2019Via: Counterpunch:
Over the course of the past few years, Bolivia has struggled to raise investment to develop the lithium reserves in a way that brings the wealth back into the country for its people. Morales’ Vice President Álvaro García Linera had said that lithium is the “fuel that will feed the world.” Bolivia was unable to make deals with Western transnational firms; it decided to partner with Chinese firms. This made the Morales government vulnerable. It had walked into the new Cold War between the West and China. The coup against Morales cannot be understood without a glance at this clash.
Uber Loses London License Over Safety Concerns
November 25th, 2019Via: New York Post:
Uber on Monday was stripped of its license to operate in London over the company’s failure to ensure passenger safety.
Transport for London deemed the ride-hailing giant “not fit and proper” to hold a license because it has not done enough to stop unlicensed and uninsured drivers from carrying riders.
“Safety is our absolute top priority,” Helen Chapman, the agency’s director of licensing, regulation and charging, said in a statement. “While we recognize Uber has made improvements, it is unacceptable that Uber has allowed passengers to get into minicabs with drivers who are potentially unlicensed and uninsured.”
Prince Andrew Secretly Met Ghislaine Maxwell Inside Buckingham Palace
November 25th, 2019Via: Daily Mail:
Prince Andrew secretly met his friend Ghislaine Maxwell at Buckingham Palace in early June – just a fortnight after US prosecutors announced they were reopening their inquiry into the activities of convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, their mutual friend.
Ms Maxwell, the daughter of disgraced newspaper tycoon Robert Maxwell, has been accused of procuring underage girls for Epstein. She denies the claims.
Andrew, 59, met Maxwell on June 6 inside the Prince’s private Palace quarters, and she is said to have brought four other people along with her.
‘They were all smartly dressed and looked very official… They stayed for about two hours.
‘It seems very likely they would have been discussing the fallout from Epstein’s misdemeanours and what they planned to do about it,’ a source told The Sun.
Thieves Steal Treasures Worth ‘Around’ 1 Billion Euros In German Museum Heist
November 25th, 2019Via: Forbes:
About 100 pieces of royal jewelry thought to be worth at least €1,000,000,000 ($1,101,365,000) are missing from one of Europe’s oldest museums after thieves stole them in a Monday morning heist, which one German newspaper billed as “the biggest art theft since World War II.”
Doctors Say WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange ‘Could Die’ in British Jail
November 25th, 2019Via: DW:
More than 60 doctors have written an open letter saying that Julian Assange’s health has deteriorated so much that the WikiLeaks founder’s life is in danger inside a British jail.
The 48-year-old Australian citizen is currently serving a 50-week sentence in a top-security prison outside London for jumping bail. He is to fight extradition to the US, where he is wanted for violating the Espionage Act in connection with WikiLeaks’ publishing of classified documents, after having served this sentence. If found guilty, he could end up receiving a 175-year sentence in a US prison.
Physical, psychological issues
The medical experts wrote to British Home Secretary Priti Patel saying they had “concerns about Mr. Assange’s fitness” to go through the hearing, which is set for February next year.
“Mr. Assange requires urgent expert medical assessment of both his physical and psychological state of health,” the doctors agreed in the letter, released on Monday.
“Were such urgent assessment and treatment not to take place, we have real concerns, on the evidence currently available, that Mr. Assange could die in prison. The medical situation is thereby urgent. There is no time to lose.”
California Raises Pot Taxes
November 25th, 2019Via: AP:
California is increasing business tax rates on legal marijuana, a move that stunned struggling companies that have been pleading with the state to do just the opposite.
Hefty marijuana taxes that can approach 50 percent in some communities have been blamed for pushing shoppers into California’s tax-free illegal market, which is thriving. Industry analysts estimate that $3 are spent in the illegal market for every $1 in the legal one.
The California Cannabis Industry Association said in a statement that its members are “stunned and outraged.”
The group said the higher taxes that will take effect Jan. 1 will make it even worse for a legal industry struggling under the weight of heavy regulation and fees, local bans on pot sales and growing and a booming underground marketplace.
