“Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride”–John F. Kennedy.
I wonder how JFK would have felt about an electric bike ride. Yes, an eBike. They are coming, as everything, but everything, seems to be adding technology.
While you’re reading about all this week’s future-related news, don’t forget that you can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
Future Transport–Cars, buses and trucks are going electric. So why not bicycles? General Motors has revealed two models of electric bike it plans to market beginning next year. And they are conducting a contest to name them.
Borrrringgg
–While electric and self-driving cars are getting all the attention on the ground, and flying cars above the ground, Elon Musk keeps digging underground. He announced that The Boring Company will preview its nearly completed transit tunnel in the L.A. suburb of Hawthorne on December 10, and plan to open for public rides soon thereafter.
—Chinese tech giant Baidu is the latest company to announce entry into self-driving car development. They plan to partner with Volvo and Chinese state automaker FAW.
–Is it a robot? Is it a transport? Is it supercart? Electronics giant LG is developing a “smart” self-driving shopping cart it hopes to launch in Korea. It will follow shoppers around and also help them to track their purchases.
Robotics/Automation–The good news? Amazon will be hiring 100,000 seasonal employees for the holiday rush. The bad news? That’s down from the 120,000 they hired last year. Expanded use of automation and robotics appears to be the reason for the decline.
–Even as Amazon expands automation in its holiday fulfilment services, it’s about to get some serious competition for its automated Amazon Go stores. Retail giant 7-Eleven has announced its intention to launch a cashier-less checkout system for its convenience stores.
_A Chinese startup company, Makeblock, has an interesting take on teaching students about robotics. They produce LEGO-like do-it-yourself robot kits.
SpaceX floating helipad. Image: NASA
Space Commerce–Elon Musk can’t be in the news for only one technology. His SpaceX company unveiled it’s floating helipad for space capsule recovery this week.
—Asteroid mining company Planetary Resources has been acquired by blockchain company, ConsenSys. Planetary Resources CEO, Chris Lewicki, who will join the new company, was interviewed on Seeking Delphi 2017 APF minicast #3 last year. (below)
Coming soon–a three-part Seeking Delphi™ podcast series on future driving–including episodes on self-driving cars and flying cars.
Seeking Delphi™ podcasts are available on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook
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