Check out what CAR has been checking out! We asked some members of the Center for Automotive research team to share what they have been reading, watching, or listening to recently.

What Kwaku is Checking Out: 

Kwaku’s Thoughts:

An Intelligent Vehicle Digital Cabin (IVDC) leverages real-time characterization of
the driver’s state, intent, and behavior to tailor features and services to the consumer. 
The integration of computational intelligence, AI/ML, sensing methods, and connectivity
information plays a significant role in delivering and capturing value from an IVDC for stakeholders.

The paper “Artificial Intelligence Methods in In-Cabin Use Cases: A Survey,” reviews
interesting contributions leveraging AI/ML for driver state monitoring, driving assistance,
and takeover readiness.

 

What Prasad is Checking Out: 

Prasad’s Thoughts:

Minerals without mines and assembly without lines are two auto industry disruptors that are keeping me awake at night these days. This first has to do with the circular economy around electric vehicle batteries. The second has to do with autonomous vehicles redefining an automaker’s factory – no not autonomous cars, but autonomous carts with vehicle sub-systems, programmatically moving in a factory to “self-assemble” into cars.  Certainly, artificial intelligence and human intelligence coexist throughout, with human factory labor taking on new roles strategically assigned in select areas. The implications extend to sustainability, technology, labor, economics, and policy and the results will be fascinating.

 

What Steve is Checking Out:

Steve’s Thoughts:

I have been impressed with Hyundai’s growth over the years and especially now, their transformation from a low-cost entrant to a reputable OEM and tier supplier brings forth a lot of great technologies. What strikes me most is that Hyundai is involved in so many technologies across a variety of industries providing a variety of propelled products including cars, trucks, marine, agriculture, etc.  It provides an ideal development path to introduce new technologies in lower volume, lower risk applications and progress them into higher volume and more cost-sensitive markets. They have a great number of activities and announcements with numerous tech giants in alternative propulsion, AI, Connectivity and SDV.  

What Alex is Checking Out:

Alex’s Thoughts

A recent Hertz regulatory filing cited weaker demand and higher operating costs for electric vehicles as the firm looks to sell 20,000 EVs in the U.S., which will fund the purchase of replacement vehicles with internal combustion engines. Efforts by OEMs to lower vehicle costs through manufacturing techniques like gigacasting, coupled with Tesla’s aggressive push to cut prices and maintain its market share dominance in EV sales, continue to contribute to the depreciation of EV residual shares.

Furthermore, while IRA requirements effective January 1st, 2024 restrict the number of vehicles eligible for the Clean Vehicle Credit, subsidies include another attempt to reduce vehicle prices for prospective buyers in a high-interest rate environment. These pressures reduce the resale value of EVs and influence the size of Hertz’s loss on the liquidation of their EV fleet. Hertz’s oversized bet does not promote a smooth recovery from bankruptcy. However, the flood of EVs from their former fleet into the used marketplace could sustain downward pressure on vehicle prices and facilitate gradual EV adoption into the future.