
Over 1,200 driverless cars recalled over crashes in the US
An American ride-hailing company has recalled more than 1,200 of its driverless cars after more than two dozen minor crashes.
Waymo, which is owned by Google-parent Alphabet, on Monday recalled some of its 5th Generation Automated Driving Systems with software released before November 7.
'The software may cause the vehicles to collide with certain roadway barriers, such as chains and gates,' states the recall notice posted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which aims to prevent injuries and save lives.
A total of 1,212 units are subject to the recall.
It comes after the company learned of 16 collisions its self-driving vehicles had with barriers including chains and gates from 2022 to the end of last year.
There were no injuries reported related to the faulty software.
The NHTSA began investigating the Waymo vehicles a year ago after instances of them possibly breaking traffic safety laws. More Trending
Some of the incidents 'involved collisions with clearly visible objects that a competent driver would be expected to avoid', the NHTSA found.
Waymo said it updated the software to fix the bug and it was deployed across the fleet in December.
It comes more than a year after Tesla recalled more than 362,000 of its vehicles in America over concerns that the self-driving technology could cause crashes.
The NHTSA determined that Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta software did not adhere sufficiently to traffic safety laws, by allowing vehicles to 'exceed speed limits or travel through intersections in an unlawful or unpredictable manner increases the risk of a crash'.
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The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
Can Pope Leo XIV solve the Vatican funding crisis? Here's how the Holy See manages money
Vatican City, the world's smallest country, is facing a significant budget deficit. The city-state primarily relies on donations, ticket sales from the Vatican Museums, investment income, and its real estate holdings to finance the Catholic Church's central government. And unlike other nations, the Vatican does not tax its residents or issue bonds. In 2022, the Holy See published a consolidated budget projecting 770 million euros, with the majority allocated to embassies worldwide and Vatican media operations. However, in recent years, revenue has fallen short of covering expenses. Pope Leo XIV now faces the challenge of securing the necessary funds to steer the Vatican out of its financial difficulties. Withering donations Anyone can donate money to the Vatican, but the regular sources come in two main forms. Canon law requires bishops around the world to pay an annual fee, with amounts varying and at bishops' discretion 'according to the resources of their dioceses.' U.S. bishops contributed over one-third of the $22 million (19.3 million euros) collected annually under the provision from 2021-2023, according to Vatican data. The other main source of annual donations is more well-known to ordinary Catholics: Peter's Pence, a special collection usually taken on the last Sunday of June. From 2021-2023, individual Catholics in the U.S. gave an average $27 million (23.7 million euros) to Peter's Pence, more than half the global total. American generosity hasn't prevented overall Peter's Pence contributions from cratering. After hitting a high of $101 million (88.6 million euros) in 2006, contributions hovered around $75 million (66.8 million euros) during the 2010's then tanked to $47 million (41.2 million euros) during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many churches were closed. Donations remained low in the following years, amid revelations of the Vatican's bungled investment in a London property, a former Harrod's warehouse that it hoped to develop into luxury apartments. The scandal and ensuing trial confirmed that the vast majority of Peter's Pence contributions had funded the Holy See's budgetary shortfalls, not papal charity initiatives as many parishioners had been led to believe. Peter's Pence donations rose slightly in 2023 and Vatican officials expect more growth going forward, in part because there has traditionally been a bump immediately after papal elections. New donors The Vatican bank and the city state's governorate, which controls the museums, also make annual contributions to the pope. As recently as a decade ago, the bank gave the pope around 55 million euros ($62.7 million) a year to help with the budget. But the amounts have dwindled; the bank gave nothing specifically to the pope in 2023, despite registering a net profit of 30 million euros ($34.2 million), according to its financial statements. The governorate's giving has likewise dropped off. Some Vatican officials ask how the Holy See can credibly ask donors to be more generous when its own institutions are holding back. Leo will need to attract donations from outside the U.S., no small task given the different culture of philanthropy, said the Rev. Robert Gahl, director of the Church Management Program at Catholic University of America's business school. He noted that in Europe there is much less of a tradition (and tax advantage) of individual philanthropy, with corporations and government entities doing most of the donating or allocating designated tax dollars. Even more important is leaving behind the 'mendicant mentality' of fundraising to address a particular problem, and instead encouraging Catholics to invest in the church as a project, he said. Speaking right after Leo's installation ceremony in St. Peter's Square, which drew around 200,000 people, Gahl asked: 'Don't you think there were a lot of people there that would have loved to contribute to that and to the pontificate?' In the U.S., donation baskets are passed around at every Sunday Mass. Not so at the Vatican. Untapped real estate The Vatican has 4,249 properties in Italy and 1,200 more in London, Paris, Geneva and Lausanne, Switzerland. Only about one-fifth are rented at fair market value, according to the annual report from the APSA patrimony office, which manages them. Some 70% generate no income because they house Vatican or other church offices; the remaining 10% are rented at reduced rents to Vatican employees. In 2023, these properties only generated 35 million euros ($39.9 million) in profit. Financial analysts have long identified such undervalued real estate as a source of potential revenue. But Ward Fitzgerald, the president of the U.S.-based Papal Foundation, which finances papal charities, said the Vatican should also be willing to sell properties, especially those too expensive to maintain. Many bishops are wrestling with similar downsizing questions as the number of church-going Catholics in parts of the U.S. and Europe shrinks and once-full churches stand empty. Toward that end, the Vatican recently sold the property housing its embassy in Tokyo's high-end Sanbancho neighborhood, near the Imperial Palace, to a developer building a 13-story apartment complex, according to the Kensetsu News trade journal. Yet there has long been institutional reluctance to part with even money-losing properties. Witness the Vatican announcement in 2021 that the cash-strapped Fatebenefratelli Catholic hospital in Rome, run by a religious order, would not be sold. Pope Francis simultaneously created a Vatican fundraising foundation to keep it and other Catholic hospitals afloat. 'They have to come to grips with the fact that they own so much real estate that is not serving the mission of the church,' said Fitzgerald, who built a career in real estate private equity.
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Scotsman
23 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Rangers takeover complete as new era begins: board layout, goals, cash injection, next manager latest
Historic moment as American investors take control of Glasgow side Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... At just after 11pm on Thursday night, a new era at Rangers Football Club got underway when the last e-signature was received confirming a consortium of American investors, led by Andrew Cavenagh and 49ers Enterprises, as new majority shareholders at Ibrox. The deal is set to trigger a new cash injection of up to £20 million in the club for football operations. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Gone are the days of handing over a pound coin for control of Rangers. 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'This club's history and traditions speak for themselves, but history doesn't win matches. We know that the true way to honour the club's heritage will be to drive performance. Our focus is simple: elevate performance, deliver results, and bring Rangers back to where it belongs - at the top." Marathe has recently experienced football success in his role as Leeds chairman. The Elland Road club secured promotion back to the English Premier League this season amid renewed excitement at the club. As Rangers vice-chairman, he will now split time between Ibrox and Elland Road as well as the San Francisco Bay Area. However, Cavenagh is expected to be the most visible of the new owners. Mark Taber, Andrew Clayton and Gene Schneur, who is a co-owner of Leeds United, will join Cavenagh and Marathe on the Ibrox board. No fans rep on Rangers board As it stands, there will be no place for a fans' representative on the board. Fans' group Club 1872 were the eighth largest shareholder in the club. Supporter engagement is a key strand of the American sports ethos though what it will look like at Rangers, time will tell. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'At 49ers Enterprises, we have built a track record of sporting and business success, but our driving motivation is our deep connection to the clubs and communities we serve,' said Marathe. 'We are excited to join Andrew and our other consortium of investors in a new era for this iconic club, and we are determined to build something that supporters can be proud of for years to come.' Thornton described what he called 'the new ownership phase' of Rangers as a 'significant step forward'. He added: The incoming shareholders bring not only funding but also deep expertise in strategic planning, infrastructure development, and sporting excellence. On behalf of Rangers, I also want to put on record our appreciation to the outgoing board members who have selflessly served the club. Paraag Marathe will also be heavily involved at Rangers. | Getty Images 'I also want to acknowledge our major shareholders whose backing has brought the club to this point, the vast majority of whom have chosen to reinvest in the club and continue with us on the next stage of the journey.' The journey, of course, is a slightly loaded term these days when used in association with Rangers. It speaks of a long, often fraught odyssey back up the leagues following the club's descent into financial oblivion in 2012. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Even when a return to the top tier was attained, it has rarely run smoothly save for a spell under Steven Gerrard when they won the Scottish title for the first time since 2011. They also reached the Europa League final under Giovanni van Bronckhorst in 2022.


Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Tesla shares rebound slightly after $150bn wipe-out triggered by Musk's spat with Trump
Tesla shares were sent into freefall on Thursday after Elon Musk sounded off about Donald Trump and his policies on social media this week. The debacle saw roughly $150billion wiped from Tesla's market value in one of the worst days in months. While the electric car maker's share price tumbled 14 per cent on Thursday, it rebounded slightly on Friday following some indications tempers were cooling between the duo. Earlier this week, Trump threatened to cut off government contracts to Musk's businesses, including rocket firm SpaceX, which has contracts worth tens of billions of dollars with the US government. In response, Musk fired back and said: 'Go ahead, make my day.' The saga seemed to quieten somewhat on Friday as Musk broke his silence by agreeing with an X post that claimed he never attacked Trump personally. The initial feud was ignited over Musk's opposition to Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill', before he launched into a series of attacks on the president and alleged he was 'in the Epstein files. Trump quickly branded Musk 'crazy' and said he has 'lost his mind'. The president also moved to sell his Tesla that he bought from Musk when their relationship was rosier in March, in a parting insult after saying he ousted Musk from his White House. US subsidies and contracts at Federal and state level are worth billions to Tesla, which also currently benefits from a $7,500 tax credit available for electric vehicle purchases. Tesla shares closed at $295.14 this week, down around 14 per cent on less than a week ago and down nearly a quarter on where they were six months ago. But the shares are still around 66 higher than they were a year ago. Tesla shares rose more than 60 per cent between the start of November when Trump was elected to the end of 2024. But investor pressure over Musk's controversial role in the White House ultimately led to him to stepping down from his unofficial 'DOGE' department, which had sparked protests and vandalism directed at Tesla. Tesla shares were on a run more recently, however, after Musk confirmed the group would be testing an autonomous, driverless 'robotaxi' service in Austin, Texas, this month. Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said this week: 'Tesla shareholders are stuck in the middle of the battle zone as whatever happens to Musk will act as a proxy for the car company's share price. 'Trump has signalled he could terminate US government contracts with Musk's companies, causing Tesla's share price to crash 14 per cent in a day.' He added: 'Musk's outspokenness is becoming a liability for Tesla shareholders. 'He recently pledged to stay on as CEO for at least another five years, but if he cannot be restrained from stoking fires on the public stage, Tesla's board might have to think long and hard about his future with the business.' Neil Wilson, UK investor strategist at Saxo Markets, said on Friday: 'I spoke almost a year ago to Mark Spiegel of Stanphyl Capital in New York. 'He said it was just a matter of time before Musk and Trump fell out – the only question was who would shaft who first but his view was that sooner or later everyone "gets Musked". 'An ugly, name-calling, chest-thumping public brawl on Twitter between the richest guy in the world and the most powerful guy in the world – it's what the platform was made for. 'It's also whacked Tesla stock as bulls need to reassess their upside case for the carmaker. 'Both probably realise that this is doing each of them a lot of harm – Musk could lose billions of dollars in government contracts and tax credits, while Trump could see his 'big beautiful bill' fail to pass.'