This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Sol Rashidi, a former tech executive at IBM, AWS, and Estée Lauder, who is based in Miami. The following has been edited for length and clarity. In the last 15 years, I have built and scaled AI capabilities, and I have over 200 deployments under my belt.I went from being an individual practitioner to running IBM's enterprise data management practice. I was the chief data officer at Sony Music, the chief analytics officer at Estée Lauder, and the head of ...

Ford is switching gears, away from some electric vehicles. In a news release on Monday, the company announced several changes to its EV production, saying it is deprioritizing fully electric large vehicles, which were not making it money."Ford no longer plans to produce select larger electric vehicles where the business case has eroded due to lower-than-expected demand, high costs and regulatory changes," Ford said in the release. The company also plans to stop the production of electric commercial vans i ...

Would buying Warner Bros. give Netflix too much power? The streaming giant is telling regulators it won't, and antitrust experts say the answer ultimately depends on how you define who Netflix competes with.Does Netflix compete with only paid streaming services, a market where it dominates? What about the TV dinosaurs it disrupted, or the social video services nipping at its heels? Could sleep even be a competitor, as its cofounder Reed Hastings famously suggested? Rival suitor Paramount Skydance has slam ...

The parent company of Roomba, which has sold millions of cleaning robots, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Sunday after 35 years of operation. In a Sunday press release, Massachusetts-based robotics company iRobot said it had filed for bankruptcy protection in the District of Delaware court.The company said that it would be wholly acquired by its main manufacturer and lender, vacuum cleaner maker Shenzhen PICEA. Picea has R&D and manufacturing facilities in China and Vietnam, per the release. The Picea ...

A new law barring children under 16 from opening or maintaining social media accounts took effect last week in Australia, forcing platforms to deactivate accounts for swaths of young users. In the words of Taylor Swift, however, Reddit would very much like to be excluded from this narrative because, it says, it's not a social media platform.Reddit made the argument in a lawsuit it filed against the Commonwealth of Australia and its Minister of Communications on Friday. The Australian law is meant to protec ...

Core Insights - Tesla is testing driverless robotaxis in Austin without human safety operators, marking a significant step in its autonomous vehicle program [2][4] - The company aims to expand its robotaxi fleet in Austin from 29 to 500 vehicles by the end of the year [3] - Recent observations show that there are currently 31 active robotaxis in Austin, indicating growth in the fleet [3] Group 1: Testing and Development - Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed that testing of driverless taxis without human occupants is underway, although not yet for paying customers [2] - Musk indicated that fully autonomous robotaxis would be operational in Austin within three weeks [4] - Previous tests of robotaxis required multiple interventions from safety monitors, highlighting the challenges faced in achieving full autonomy [5] Group 2: Public Reaction and Engagement - A video of a driverless Tesla Model Y in Austin generated excitement among Tesla enthusiasts, prompting them to test the service [1] - Tesla's AI chief expressed enthusiasm on social media about the commencement of driverless operations [2]

Group 1 - Employers maintain steady hiring activity during the holiday season, contrary to the belief that they pause interviews [1][2] - Companies aim to fill positions before the end of the year to utilize their talent-acquisition budgets effectively [2][3] - Job seekers can benefit from lighter competition during the holidays, as many others may pause their job searches [3][6] Group 2 - Networking during the holiday season is advantageous, as individuals are generally more receptive to outreach [5][6] - Delaying networking until January may result in lower response rates due to increased busyness from new projects [6] - The job market is expected to become more competitive in January as many individuals resume their job searches [6] Group 3 - Job hunting during the holidays can be mentally challenging due to distractions from holiday activities [7][8] - Maintaining a consistent job application routine can help mitigate the distractions of the holiday season [8]

For Rivian's chief of autonomy, the decision to put in lidar for the EV company's coming R2 SUV was obvious. James Philbin, Rivian's VP of autonomy and AI, told Business Insider that the price of lidar has decreased significantly enough in recent years to be able to put the sensor inside a personally-owned, mass-production vehicle."It's been on this incredible cost curve, where 10 years ago, it would be just unimaginable that you could put a lidar on a consumer vehicle. And now it's getting into that price ...

Over the last few months, we've written about where billionaires live and how the uber-rich spend their money. What about how they invest?A new report from UBS has the answers. This year, the bank conducted its annual survey of billionaire clients on several topics, including where they plan to invest their money for 12-month and five-year periods. Optimism in the near term seems to be highest around two areas in particular compared to 2024: Western Europe and China.Forty percent of respondents said they ...

Core Insights - Tesla is implementing a variety of incentives to boost sales and avoid a second consecutive year of declining sales [1][2] - The company is facing significant challenges in key markets, including Europe and China, due to political backlash and increased competition [4] - Tesla's sales in the US have dropped significantly following the removal of the $7,500 tax credit for new EVs [4] Group 1: Sales Strategies - Tesla is offering 0% APR financing for up to 72 months on select Model Y Standard purchases and leasing options without a down payment [1] - Buyers can trade in a gas car for 2,000 miles of free supercharging and receive complimentary upgrades valued at up to $1,500 on select inventory vehicles [2] - The company is racing to sell 555,000 EVs in the last quarter of the year to match last year's sales figures [3] Group 2: Market Challenges - Tesla's sales have significantly declined in Europe due to backlash against Elon Musk's political views [4] - In China, the company is facing intense competition from local electric vehicle manufacturers [4] - The removal of the $7,500 tax credit has led to a 35% drop in Tesla's US sales from September to October [4] Group 3: Future Focus - Elon Musk is shifting Tesla's focus towards AI and robotics, with plans for the Cybercab and Optimus robot to enter production next year [5]