Autonocast

Automotive enthusiasm was once thought to be on the glidepath to extinction, but in recent years the automotive internet has enjoyed a renaissance of car appreciation. Brad Brownell has been at the center of much of that resurgence, helping found paradigm-shifting events and communities like Radwood and now Autopia. Brad joins the show to talk cars, the reinvention of what it means to be a car fan, and the core value of inclusion that ties it all together.

For years there have been complaints about misuse of a statistic showing that humans error is the last link in an often-complex causal chain in fatal crashes. Those complaints have risen to a crescendo in recent weeks, as more prominent voices have risen to denounce the number as a distraction from solutions beyond automation. On this week's episode, the gang discusses the infamous statistic, why it's so divisive, what it says about the sector's relationship with other road safety movements, and how to move forward in a positive direction.

Tesla's confrontation with US auto safety regulators continues to ratchet up, as the automaker pulled a stealth OTA recall of an Autopilot issue that was under active NHTSA investigation. Meanwhile, the respected and outspoken critic of Autopilot safety (among many other topics) Missy Cummings was announced as special safety advisor to NHTSA, prompting an online harassment campaign by Tesla fans. The gang sorts through these developments, while leaving a little time for Alex to report on the annual Self Racing Cars trackday and for Ed to share an NTSB job listing.

The gang is getting back out from behind their computer screens, bringing back tales of test drives and conferences for the latest discussion episode. Kirsten has been the busiest of the bunch, as her first drives of the hot new EVs from RIvian and Lucid (and a factory tour of the latter startup) prompt discussion of their execution and manufacturing. Ed's also just back from Micromobility America, where he notes on some of the changes in that scene, and Alex would tell you what he's been up to but then he'd have to kill you.

When the recently-confirmed NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy tweeted about listening to The Autonocast, the gang had to reach out and ask if she would be willing to make time for her own appearance on the show. Having responded in the affirmative, Chair Homendy has now become the first sitting auto safety official to appear on The Autonocast. From NTSB's evolving mission in the driving automation era to the board's findings in a series of Tesla Autopilot crashes, this sweeping conversation introduces one of the most engaged and forward-thinking auto safety officials working in the field today.

Cars and mobility might not be the first thing you think about when you hear the name Qualcomm, but like other high tech titans the chip maker is betting big on the automotive market. Nakul Duggal is Qualcomm's Senior Vice President and General Manager of Automotive, and he joins the show to discuss his strategy to put the firm's technology at the foundation of next generation vehicles. From the differences between smartphones and cars to Qualcomm's bid for the supplier Veoneer, this week's Duggal explains his approach and ambitions in the automotive sector.

In only its second year of existence, Autonowashing continues to make inroads on the public consciousness in part due to the work of people like Mahmood Hikmet. The Kiwi AV engineer made an incredible Youtube video breaking down the complex issues around partial automation and autonowashing like nobody had before, and he joins the show to discuss his work, and what he's trying to accomplish with it.

flight attendant: is there a doctor on this flight? dad: that should have been you me: not now dad dad: not asking for a meme plagiarist are they me: dad, Elon Musk plagiarizes memes and he saved those cave kids and ventilator patients dad: wow this meme format is hilarious

If the last decade or so of mobility technology tells us anything, it's that putting a camera on a vehicle unlocks a whole world of new opportunities. Our guest this week, Drover AI co-founder and Chief Business Officer Alex Nesic, did precisely that with on-demand scooters and he joins the show to explain the new possibilities his company has unleashed. From regulatory compliance to safety-enhancing ADAS-like features, we discuss the ways that a camera can address some of the biggest challenges that shared scooters present.

Big moves raise strategic questions this week, as Mobileye starts testing in New York, Aurora heads to Wall Street by way of Reid Hoffman's SPAC, and a Financial Times trend piece raises questions about the relationship of ADAS to AV strategy. From the traffic impact of privately-owned AVs to the public's ability to invest in the technology and the wisdom of calling automated driving systems a "driver," Alex, Kirsten and Ed chew through some of the sector's biggest questions in another classic discussion episode.

Public perceptions of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems have been dominated by Tesla's Autopilot, which presents itself as the most advanced Level 2 system by virtue of being more automated than others. But is more automation always better for driver assistance? Seeking answers, Alex and Ed sit down with Nick Sitarski and Derek Caveney of Toyota Motor North America, to understand how Toyota's long-standing principle of jidoka, or human-centered automation, has taken its Teammate ADAS design in a different direction.

With Kirsten out exploring the western wilds, Alex and Ed run amok and revert to their old habits of spending way too much time discussing Tesla. First up, the lads review the latest NHTSA order to report all ADAS and AV-involved crashes, which doesn't mention Tesla specifically but is clearly very much aimed at that company. Further discussion ensues about Andrej Karpathy's recent CVPR talk, the new Plaid Model S's absurd performance and even more absurd user interface.

Everyone has a strategy for the electric, autonomous mobility era, and the gang regularly discusses private sector strategies, but what about nation state competition for the future of transportation? Alex, Kirsten and Ed are joined by Nathan Picarsic of Horizon Advisory to dissect the evolution of China's industrial strategy, from traditional automotive to EVs to AVs and beyond. From Tesla's unique factory deal and recent publicity issues to China's domination of the EV supply chain, geopolitical competition meets mobility technology in this wide-ranging discussion.

The gang discusses a couple of Kirsten's recent scoops that speak to the complex business challenges the autonomous vehicle space is currently negotiating. From Raquel Urtasun's new startup to Aurora (and others) plans to go public, the big players are making some very high-stakes bets about how the sector will shake out. Plus: Tesla loses a top executive, Alex is fair and balanced, and everyone hates the phrase "solving autonomy."

Transit advocates have made autonomous vehicles something of a boogeyman lately, framing the emerging technology as a way to perpetuate the car's mobility monopoly and starve public transit of funding. In reality, transit is one of the most compelling applications and automation is a huge opportunity to dramatically improve public transit. To help explain this opportunity, Nathaniel Horadam of the Center for Transportation and the Environment joins the show to discuss a light-rail style automated bus rapid transit project he's been working on, and the automated transit opportunity more broadly.