Carma Technology is suing Uber for patent infringement, claiming the ride-sharing giant has violated five of its patents related to matching riders with vehicles. This is not a classic patent troll scenario, and industry experts say Uber faces a tough battle.
Carma, founded in 2007 by Sean O’Sullivan, alleges its sophisticated patent strategy spans 18 years and includes a 30-patent family. Each of the five patents holds multiple claims, complicating Uber’s defense.
"What’s important to understand here is, Carma isn’t just asserting five patents. They have had a very sophisticated strategy of patent procurement that they’ve been working on for the past 18 years." — Larry Ashery, IP attorney.
The issue surrounding these patents means Uber will face a challenging and multi-faceted litigation process.
Zoox is in hot water again, issuing its second software recall in a month after a collision involving one of its robotic taxis and an e-scooter rider in San Francisco. The incident occurred at low speed when the vehicle braked to yield.
The e-scooterist fell but reported no further contact after the Zoox vehicle resumed its movement.
In better news, Zoox secured a deal as the "official robotaxi partner of Resorts World Las Vegas," featuring a dedicated pickup and drop-off location.
Bedrock Robotics is quietly making waves in the autonomous vehicle sector with former Waymo leader Boris Sofman at the helm. Still operating in stealth mode, the San Francisco startup is developing a self-driving kit for retrofitting construction equipment.
Firefly Aerospace announced a $50 million investment from Northrop Grumman to advance its medium launch vehicle, Eclipse.
Pallet raised $27 million in Series B funding led by General Catalyst to expand its warehouse logistics software.
Volteras, a London-based EV startup, closed an $11.1 million Series A to build virtual connective technology for EVs to support the power grid.
Way Data Technologies, founded by ex-Lucid Motors and Wolt veterans, secured €2.6 million in pre-seed funding.
Amazon has ended its partnership with Stellantis for in-car software, pivoting toward an Android-based system instead. This shift comes after Stellantis aimed to generate $22.5 billion from software revenue.
Tesla’s Cybertruck is facing criticism as unsold vehicles stack up in a Detroit shopping center, while recent data shows sales in Europe and the U.K. have plummeted nearly 50%.
Volkswagen executives are receiving prison sentences related to the 2015 emissions scandal, marking a long fallout from the incident.
TuSimple (now CreateAI) is under scrutiny for transferring sensitive data to a Beijing-owned firm, breaching U.S. national security agreements. Further details have yet to emerge.
