Waymo partners with Magna for new vehicle factory in Arizona
Alphabet's self-driving unit Waymo said on Monday that it plans to build Jaguar I-PACE and Zeekr vehicles with its autonomous technology at a new plant in Arizona as soon as this year, with Canadian auto parts supplier partner Magna International.
Waymo, which started as a small self-driving project within Google in 2009, has expanded slowly but steadily in a tricky autonomous vehicle market that has witnessed several casualties due to soaring investment, tight regulatory requirements and tough technological hurdles.
The Mesa, Arizona, factory is a multi-million dollar investment and has created hundreds of jobs, Waymo said in a statement, adding that this is a step towards scaling Waymo One — the company's fully autonomous ride-hailing service.
Waymo One is providing more than 250,000 paid passenger trips each week in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Austin after more than 4 million paid trips in 2024. It plans to add Atlanta and Miami and then Washington, D.C., by 2026.
The company plans to build over 2,000 more fully autonomous Jaguar I-PACE vehicles through next year and integrate Waymo's technology on new vehicle platforms, starting with Zeekr RT this year, the statement said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
20 hours ago
- Business Times
Local investor eyes acquisition of Singapore private club 1880 amid Hong Kong branch collapse
[SINGAPORE] A local investor is looking into the potential acquisition of Singapore private club 1880, following the sudden closure of its Hong Kong branch last Friday (Jun 6) – just seven months after opening in the territory. A source close to the matter told The Business Times that the potential buyer is 'in the very early stages' of doing due diligence, and sees the Singapore club as 'a viable and very decent' business. However, its ambitious expansion to Hong Kong has impacted the entire group. 1880 was founded in 2017 by Canadian entrepreneur, former adman and child actor Marc Nicholson, who has lived here since 2002. The club's luxurious 22,000 square foot space on the third level of InterContinental Singapore Robertson Quay was conceived by star British designer Timothy Oulton. Its name, 1880, refers to the decade Robertson Quay was founded. 1880 founder Marc Nicholson at the escalator shaft – designed to look like a giant kaleidoscope – leading to the club. PHOTO: BT FILE The club has since established itself as a hub where individuals can come together for discussions on topics ranging from global conflicts to social justice – just like the weekly gatherings of opinionated individuals that Nicholson's bohemian-minded parents used to organise in Montreal. There are about 100 to 150 programmes a month, including talks and dinners meant as platforms for social interaction and debate. The Hong Kong branch started operating in November last year. But unlike the Singapore version, part of it is open to the public. The club was also to have expanded to a six-storey beachside hotel it was constructing in Bali, but that business never opened. Citing former employees, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) said 1880 Hong Kong had about HK$20 million (S$3.3 million) of debts. It is now facing a probe by authorities after owing wages to over 100 staff. The club is also in rental arrears, having taken four storeys in Swire Properties' Two Taikoo Place office complex in Quarry Bay. A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Friday, 2 pm Lifestyle Our picks of the latest dining, travel and leisure options to treat yourself. Sign Up Sign Up SCMP reported that each member in Hong Kong had to pay a joining fee of around HK$24,000 and a monthly subscription fee of HK$1,300, or HK$14,000 for a full year. In an email to its Hong Kong members, Nicholson said the company had 'run into cashflow difficulties' and had not been able to recover from them. 'We have made every attempt to raise funds to continue the operations but were unsuccessful,' he wrote. He said 1880 Singapore will retain its brand and 'continue under a new group'. 1880 Hong Kong's members will be granted a one-year overseas membership to the Singapore club, as well as all reciprocal clubs around the world. Separately, in a letter to employees, Nicholson acknowledged the failure to secure new funding and apologised. In Singapore, the source told BT that 1880 is still able to pay its employees here and make partial payments for rent and to suppliers. Work is underway to fully understand how extensive its liabilities are – including the potential impact of Hong Kong members using the Singapore club. 'From a standalone perspective, without the burden of the Hong Kong branch, the business in Singapore can sustain itself,' says the source. 'It's not as toxic as it is in Hong Kong.' BT understands that there are over 2,000 members in Singapore and membership fees are reported to be S$5,000+, with monthly fees of $180+. In a 2019 interview with BT, Nicholson said he was looking to attract a maximum of 2,000 members. 'A sufficient base of members who come frequently, use the facilities and bring their guests will keep us profitable,' he said, adding that the club here has seven business units, including a restaurant, bar, spa and co-working space. 'And if each of these is profitable, turning a 10 per cent or so, that can cover the rent, cost of goods sold, staff wages and so on.' Should the club be acquired, the source said the potential buyer plans to retain its brand and focus on running the business properly with fresh capital and new ideas.
Business Times
21 hours ago
- Business Times
Broadcom gives tepid forecast, missing loftiest expectations
BROADCOM, a chip supplier to companies like Alphabet and Apple, gave a lackluster revenue forecast for the current quarter, suggesting that the AI spending frenzy isn't as strong as some investors anticipated. Sales will be about US$15.8 billion in the fiscal third quarter, which ends Aug 3, the company said in a statement on Thursday. Though analysts had estimated US$15.7 billion on average, some projections ranged US$1 billion higher than that figure, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The outlook signals that investor expectations for Broadcom's AI-fuelled growth run were too aggressive. Like Nvidia, the company is seen as a key beneficiary of a surge in artificial intelligence spending. Data centre companies rely on its custom chips and networking components to handle AI computing workloads. Broadcom's stock fell about 2 per cent in extended trading. The shares had earlier closed at US$259.93 in New York, leaving them up 12 per cent this year. Broadcom shares had climbed more than 30 per cent since the company delivered its previous results in March, bringing its market value to US$1.2 trillion. Much of the gain came in the past month — fuelled by signs that heavy spending on artificial intelligence gear is poised to continue in the coming months. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up That made it hard for Broadcom to impress investors, even with numbers that generally topped estimates. In the second quarter, which ended May 4, sales rose 20 per cent to US$15 billion. Profit, excluding some items, was US$1.58 a share. Analysts had estimated revenue of about US$15 billion and earnings of US$1.56 a share. Chief executive officer Hock Tan said AI-related revenue grew 46 per cent to US$4.4 billion in the period, driven by demand for networking equipment. Sales from AI will total US$5.1 billion in the current period, he said. Analysts estimated US$4.79 billion, with some projections as high as US$5.29 billion. Broadcom investors have focused lately on its custom design business, which is benefiting from sales to clients who want components to run AI workloads. The company also makes switch chips to direct traffic between the pricey graphics processors that train and run AI models. The chipmaker just began shipping the latest version of its Tomahawk switch, which it said can replace six of the previous version. Broadcom also makes connectivity components for the iPhone and sells virtualization software for running networks. Tan has built one of the most valuable companies in the chip industry through a string of acquisitions. He also has assembled a software unit that's now approaching the scale of Broadcom's semiconductor operations. That reach makes the company's forecasts a bellwether for demand over a broad swath of the technology industry. BLOOMBERG
Business Times
a day ago
- Business Times
Oil settles up as US, China teams to meet following Trump, Xi trade call
[HOUSTON] Oil prices settled higher on Thursday, recovering from the previous day's drop, on news that the US and China agreed to more trade talks following a phone call between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Brent crude futures settled up 48 cents, or 0.7 per cent, at US$65.34 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude settled up 52 cents, or 0.8 per cent, at US$63.37 a barrel. 'If we step back from the brink of a major trade war, it will increase demand expectations for oil both in the US and in China,' said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group. The official Xinhua news agency reported earlier that the talks were held at Trump's request. Trump said on social media his call with Xi focused primarily on trade and led to 'a very positive conclusion.' He announced further lower-level US-China discussions. 'We're in very good shape with China and the trade deal,' he told reporters later. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Trump are also in direct communication as part of Ottawa's bid to persuade Washington to lift tariffs, Industry Minister Melanie Joly said. The news encouraged investors a day after oil fell 1 per cent as data showed US petrol and distillate stockpiles grew more than expected, reflecting weaker demand in the world's largest economy. Geopolitical events and wildfires in Canada that threaten to reduce oil production are providing further price support, despite a potentially oversupplied market in the second half of the year with expected Opec+ production hikes, PVM analyst Tamas Varga said. Curbing gains on Thursday, Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, cut its July prices for Asian crude buyers to nearly the lowest level in two months. The Saudi price cut followed a move by Opec+ last weekend to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day for July. The strategy of Saudi Arabia, Opec's de facto leader, is partly to punish over-producers by potentially unwinding 2.2 million bpd of cuts between June and the end of October, in a bid to wrestle back market share, Reuters previously reported. In economic news, data on Wednesday showed the US services sector contracted in May for the first time in nearly a year. The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits increased for the week ending May 31, marking the second straight weekly jump, the Labor Department said on Thursday, citing softening labour market conditions amid mounting economic headwinds from Trump's tariffs. The release on Friday of the US nonfarm payrolls report for May could influence the US Federal Reserve's interest rate policy, while the market's focus will also be on geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said. REUTERS
