I can see the argument for keeping the service departments open as being at least plausible. Keeping the sales floor open so they can take advantage of panicked buyers is a lot less so. 

Silicon Valley person affiliated with the VC world here ... IMO we should be banned from funding autonomous tech.

I’m right there with you. I’ve seen saying the same thing throughout this entire self-driving hoopla, and people keep saying “but computers react faster! Computers can see things you can’t! They have lidar!”. Either these people aren’t understanding the restrictions of the available tools, or they have seriously…

Bingo! This is what I’ve been saying. The computers are good enough to keep the truck on the road, to follow directions, to miss most of the obvious obstacles.

Sad to see that someone with a balanced take and conscious understanding of the actual needs of the industry essentially forced out due to lack of funding. This is the kind of person I want developing this technology, not a bottom-line focused investment firm or “disruptive tech” bro.

Along the way, he also became a disbeliever, mainly because of the problem with edge cases, or solving for obstacles and other things on the road a self-driving car will encounter that it doesn’t usually do. That could be a deer, for example, or challenging weather conditions, but each case is different, and it…

This probably isn’t the right time to go 100% buy American, but this pandemic does illustrate the issue of being overly dependent on international suppliers for crucial supplies. At the very least we can confirm that China, South Korea, and Germany prohibited the exporting of medical supplies to combat the pandemic. I…

People forget that even when there was a war, it took about six months for American industry to convert from a civilian economy, to a wartime economy. This was even with the benefit of having the Lend Lease Act in place.

If you think the entirety of a medical device is made in a clean room by gowned workers then you’re in for a surprise.

I’m guessing auto plants are not up to the sanitation levels required of medical device manufacturers, and getting approval of those devices can take a long time...probably longer than they have.  I don’t believe this is a scenario where bypassing quality standards is a good move

The entire article is a disingenuous take to try to slam the Big 3 as usual because Erik would genuinely prefer that the Big 3 go under and we all lose our jobs. Toyota’s plants are still open. Tesla’s plants are still open. Almost all plants are still open with the exception of one Ford, one FCA, and Honda. And if…

Not to mention it’s hard to build a car from your living room. If you’re a CAD guy there’s absolutely no reason for you to go into the office every day even without the thread of coronavirus.

I agree. I’m in the let’s not be stupid but let’s also not drive the country into a ditch camp on this. The economic consequences will far exceed the medical. Unemployment just hit 17%. Sure for today it’s a short term thing..but how many or those jobs will come back?

I do wonder how much panic is being fomented from the media over this. Yes, the virus has killed some people, but the regular flu has killed more in the US last year than Coronavirus has in the entire world so far. Keeping an assembly plant open is giving people a chance to work. Maybe their only chance, as schools,…

They are in most capital markets, because if this very problem - they reward managers and boards (who are compensated in many ways that benefit from rising stock prices) for taking liquidity risks, only to then socialize the losses via too big to fail if those bets go wrong. The conflict of interest is a market…

First, airlines bought back stock to up share prices, just like any public company, because that was the best course of action for shareholders. To always act in the direct best interest of shareholders is required by law. When reactionary, lobby driven, legislation is created, these are the untoward effects.

stock buybacks =/= reinvestment

So yeah, I don’t feel bad for the guy who made himself a shit sandwich and is like “Wait I have to EAT THIS?”

I’m not going to contend against anything else in the article, but isn’t the google != verily part a bit pedantic? They’re both under the same umbrella, and really, who the fuck actually addresses them as alphabet? They started as google and in my mind they’ll remain as google, even after their scope has broadened and…

That’s exactly my point.  I think WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY more people are infected and are thinking that they only have a minor cough or cold.  I think it’s far too late to start banning sporting events and normal life.  We don’t do that for the normal flu which honestly, probably has a much higher mortality rate.