Cannonball Run 2.0

Four friends from Michigan built a solar vehicle, technically a motorcycle, dubbed ‘The Cannonball Sun,’ and drove it 3100 miles from New York to Los Angeles. theverge.com

They documented every step of the way on their donation website and Instagram. thecannonballsun.com, instagram.com/thecannonballsun

“On July 21, 2024, Will Jones, Kyle Samluk, Brett Cesar, and Danny Ezzo—set a new record for making the run from Red Ball Garage in New York City to the Portofino Hotel in Redondo Beach—the famed start and finish of the Cannonball Run.” caranddriver.com

“All it took was a little convincing and some pizza,” Jones said. theverge.com

They didn’t break any speed records, and to my knowledge, they didn’t even invoke the name Burt Reynolds. However, they did prove that you can build a solar vehicle powered only by the sun and drive it across the USA in about 13 days.

Last week, I mentioned that OpenAI would go to war with Google. searchengineland.com

This week, that happened! OpenAI announced their prototype SearchGPT, a competitor to Google Search and Perplexity. You can try to sign up, but current access is limited. theverge.com

It’s a ballsy move from Sam Altman and the OpenAI team. But you kinda need to have those kinda balls if you’re going to drive around town in a Koenigsegg Regera. qz.com

OpenAI will likely learn quickly that running a search engine is harder than you think. theatlantic.com

Meanwhile, poor old Microsoft Bing remains the wallflower on the side of the gymnasium floor that no one ever asked to dance. Previously goating Google into the AI wars, Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO, has more recently admitted that even their partnership with OpenAI and advances in their own AI tech weren’t enough for Microsoft to compete with Google at Search. businessinsider.com

Many commentators have quipped that Google Search is broken. My friend Aimée Morrison commented on this in our podcast conversation. thechangeoptimist.com

This journalist wants to know why Google thinks they are a dead physicist. theguardian.com

And maybe the “broken-ness” of search gives OpenAI a chance to accomplish what Microsoft hasn’t.

In other news, this week, Google did what the BBC called a “U-turn” on their crumbling cookie policy and plans. bbc.com

Advertiser reactions to the stay of execution on cookies were mixed, ranging from confusion and relief to “I told you so.” searchengineland.com

I described this about-face in a WhatsApp group chat as “Google demonstrating how many fewer fucks they no longer give.”

Google benefits greatly from owned data sources outside of core search like Google Business Profiles, Google Maps, and the vast depth of content in YouTube that will continue to give it a competitive advantage over OpenAI for a long while—as long as Google doesn’t fuck it up.

It has been a long time since there were viable competitors in the search space (I still own and cherish my dot-com era AltaVista mug). To extend the value of their competitive advantage, Google may need to learn some new tricks.

They at least need to learn how to compete without dishing out billions of dollars to keep competitors at bay. That’s if the DOJ doesn’t decide for them. bloomberg.com, theverge.com, searchengineland.com

(Full disclosure: I am a former Google employee. I have no proprietary knowledge of Google’s inner workings or strategies. I have many great friends who still work for the company. I’m still a fan of many Google products. And I don’t currently own any Google shares or equity. #AndroidForLife)

Xiaomi wants to show you how fast they can go with their new SU7 Ultra prototype. notebookcheck.net

The iCar V23 electric SUV from Chery and Xiaomi’s subsidiary Zhimi Technology will sell for about $16,500 USD in China. carnewschina.com

Chery set a new Guinness World Record for the longest distance driven by a plug-in hybrid. carnewschina.com

BYD launches two new PHEVs with 1,500 km of combined gas and battery range and a starting price of about $18,770 USD. cnevpost.com

Chinese electric truck startup Windrose plans to set up a US-based assembly plant for its semi-trucks. reuters.com

Foxconn plans to build a new regional HQ and EV production plant in Zhengzhou. reuters.com, carnewschina.com

The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (that’s a fucking mouthful) presented its view at a hearing that the EU's preliminary assessment is incompatible with EU and World Trade Organization rules, suggesting that the EU should “think again” before they institute planned tariffs. reuters.com

Japanese carmakers went from “thank god we’re ‘all in’ on hybrids” to “oh shit, China makes quality EVs” at breakneck speed. ft.com

Chinese EV manufacturers are spending more on research and development than Tesla. cnbc.com

China’s dominance in rare earth metals is staggering. voronoiapp.com

Starlink internet is now available on over one thousand aircraft and will soon become available on flights from WestJet. teslarati.com, theglobeandmail.com

Elon will let you keep your NSFW tweets out of Grok’s AI model. bloomberg.com

Elon says the new Tesla Roadster will go into production next year. theverge.com

Elon also says Optimus robots will be used in Tesla factories next year (Elon says a lot of things). bbc.com

Elon has the ‘most powerful’ AI training cluster in the world, he congratulates his team(s) and Nvidia on X. venturebeat.com

Now, Elon wants Tesla to invest $5 billion in xAI. reuters.com

Battery sales keep Tesla profitable. arstechnica.com

Tokyo Robotics’ Torobo robot can hammer nails like nobody’s business, causing your future deck-building project to include more beers and fewer broken thumbs. interestingengineering.com, youtube.com

Weed-whacking robots may eventually replace the need for chemical pesticides in farming. theguardian.com

Enbridge announced the start of construction on its $358 million Panhandle Regional Expansion Project in southwest Ontario. ctvnews.ca

Morgan Stanley predicts an oil surplus in 2025. reuters.com

Solar panel recycling company SolarCycle uses second-hand solar panels to power its panel recycling plant. electrek.co

Battery giant CATL recorded faster profit growth, up 13.4% year over year, in the second quarter. reuters.com

Umicore delays $2.76-billion battery plant construction in Eastern Ontario pending review. canada.autonews.com

Saint John Energy makes and distributes cheaper electricity than the New Brunswick provincial energy system does. And the province isn’t happy about it. “Provincial utility warns of trouble if too many customers choose self-generation of energy to save money.” cbc.ca

I don’t know who the target audience is for the Jeep Dune EV. But it sure does look fun. electrek.co

Cadillac adds the thing you’ve always wanted in your vehicle. A fridge. theverge.com

Chevrolet has a new monster twin-turbo, 1,064-hp V8 Corvette. autoblog.com, cnbc.com

Ford developed a mapping feature that trumps Google Maps and Waze. autoevolution.com

Volkswagen agrees that “we'll have high times if you'll abide” in their Grateful Dead ‘Dead Forever Experience’ collaboration in Las Vegas, with super groovy ID.Buzz showcase. rollingstone.com

Toyota Mirai owners filed a class-action lawsuit against the carmaker over their shitty experiences with their hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle. electrive.com

Toyota plans to build a battery plant in the southwestern prefecture of Fukuoka. reuters.com

Nissan cuts back production in Japan. autoblog.com

Rivian made a software change that improved their vehicles’ charging times. insideevs.com

Lucid looks to source Canadian graphite for batteries. canada.autonews.com

Google dumps $5 Billion into Waymo. qz.com, arstechnica.com

Tesla, Ford, GM, and Stellantis stock prices all shit the bed on quarterly earnings. But maybe it’s an overreaction. barrons.com, autonews.com

Canadian Zero Emission Vehicle incentives usage doubled in the first half of 2024. autonews.com

Last Sunday was the hottest day on record. theguardian.com

Trump can’t get his story straight on EVs. nytimes.com

Dua Lipa directed a Porsche ad. And it’s kinda amazing. youtube.com

Bad Bunny sparked a Puerto Rican musical renaissance. And he’s crushed the streaming charts each year for the last two years (he’ll struggle to beat Taylor Swift in 2024). nytimes.com, voronoiapp.com

Machine Gun Kelly and Jelly Roll want to take you home down that lonely road. youtube.com

Post Malone and Luke Combs make a weird porta-potty-inspired music video. youtube.com

Lil Yachty & Ian don't care what the fuck your name is. youtube.com

Halsey lets you know that she knows she’s lucky. youtube.com