Transportation

Yes, Americans can opt out of airport facial recognition. Here’s how

Transportation /

U.S. airports are rolling out facial recognition technology to scan the faces of travelers before they board their flight. Americans, at least, get to opt out.  More than 230 U.S. airports have already rolled out facial recognition technology, according to the website of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the federal agency tasked with border […]

Yes, Americans can opt out of airport facial recognition. Here’s how Read More »

India’s Rapido becomes unicorn with fresh $120 million funding

Transportation /

Bike-taxi startup Rapido has become the latest Indian startup to become a unicorn, or reach $1 billion in valuation. The eight-year-old firm has raised $120 million in a new funding round led by WestBridge Capital, according to a regulatory filing. The new capital, a Series E infusion, underscores Rapido’s growing prominence in India’s mobility sector

India’s Rapido becomes unicorn with fresh $120 million funding Read More »

US border agents must get warrant before cell phone searches, federal court rules

Transportation /

A federal district court in New York has ruled that U.S. border agents must obtain a warrant before searching the electronic devices of Americans and international travelers crossing the U.S. border. The ruling on July 24 is the latest court opinion to upend the U.S. government’s long-standing legal argument, which asserts that federal border agents

US border agents must get warrant before cell phone searches, federal court rules Read More »

UK’s Zapp EV plans to expand globally with an early start in India

Transportation /

Zapp Electric Vehicles wants to turn its London-based electric two-wheeler brand into a global EV company. And India will be one of its launchpads, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. The company will launch its first product — an urban electric two-wheeler called the i300 — in the UK as early as next month, followed by Thailand.

UK’s Zapp EV plans to expand globally with an early start in India Read More »

Autonomous delivery startup Nuro is gearing up for a comeback

Transportation /

The California Department of Motor Vehicles this week granted Nuro approval to test its third-generation R3 autonomous delivery vehicle in four Bay Area cities, giving the AV startup a positive boost after facing some setbacks and financial struggles. The approval gives Nuro the ability to test its driverless delivery vehicle in Mountain View, Palo Alto,

Autonomous delivery startup Nuro is gearing up for a comeback Read More »

Applied Intuition closes $300M secondary four months after raising $250M

Transportation /

Autonomous vehicle software startup Applied Intuition has closed a $300 million secondary sale just four months after raising a $250 million Series E round, yet another sign of how white-hot the investment scene is for artificial intelligence companies. The secondary round adds Fidelity Management & Research Company to an already-stacked lineup of investors in the

Applied Intuition closes $300M secondary four months after raising $250M Read More »

Alphabet pours $5B into Waymo, Cruise scraps the Origin and Elon’s bet on autonomy

Transportation /

Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. Sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! I don’t know about you, but for me, the past few days have offered up even more evidence that our world is vulnerable to software bugs. Yep,

Alphabet pours $5B into Waymo, Cruise scraps the Origin and Elon’s bet on autonomy Read More »

Kodiak Robotics is taking self-driving trucks off road to reach profitability faster

Transportation /

Don Burnette, CEO and co-founder of self-driving truck startup Kodiak Robotics, had an “a-ha” moment when the company started working with the U.S. Department of Defense.  Kodiak’s mission has always been to pursue long-haul autonomous trucking, but two years ago, the startup won a $50 million contract from the DoD to help the Army automate

Kodiak Robotics is taking self-driving trucks off road to reach profitability faster Read More »

GM-backed Addionics aims to make lithium-ion batteries cheaper with wavy foil

Transportation /

In the lithium-ion battery world, the race to the bottom isn’t as ominous as it sounds. Battery manufacturers are under pressure from automakers to lower prices while maintaining or improving performance. They’ve largely delivered, with battery pack costs dropping from $780 to $139 per kilowatt-hour over the last decade, according to BNEF. That’s allowed electric

GM-backed Addionics aims to make lithium-ion batteries cheaper with wavy foil Read More »

Jio partners with Taiwan’s MediaTek to tap into two-wheeler EV market

Transportation /

India conglomerate Jio has partnered with Taiwanese fabless semiconductor giant MediaTek to supply the booming electric scooter market with digital dashboards. The partnership, which was announced Thursday at an industry event in New Delhi, will bring chips supplied by MediaTek and an Android-based operating system along with hardware developed by Jio to electric scooters in

Jio partners with Taiwan’s MediaTek to tap into two-wheeler EV market Read More »