Category Archives: news analysis

Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Prescription Painkillers

One American dies of a drug overdose every 11 minutes and more than 2 million Americans are ensnared in addiction to prescription painkillers. Continue reading

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Hoffa: Opioid Use Due to Broken System

Opioid drugs, including prescription painkillers and heroin, killed more than 33,000 people in the U.S. during 2015, a record. The epidemic is straining public services and state budgets. Continue reading

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Autonomous Vehicles to Cut Auto Insurance Biz 71% By 2050

Autonomous vehicle and related driver assist technologies could upset the auto insurance market by 71%, roughly $137 billion by 2050, according to the latest research by KMPG. Continue reading

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Maven Gig Expands to San Francisco

By 2020, an estimated 43 % of the U.S. workforce will be made up of freelance workers. The nature of employment is changing, as corporations continue to shed middle class jobs. Maven Gig claims it is a “nimble platform that will grow and adapt with the shift.” Continue reading

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Automotive CX Summit – Dual Style to Customer Development?

“People liked going into the Apple Store, they liked to go somewhere to talk to a person face-to-face for support or to explain something. this is complex technology, it strikes me that’s the analogy the [automotive] industry should look at and say, “Ah-ha,” Munzel told AutoInformed during a phone interview. Continue reading

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Kiss Your Privacy Goodbye as Mastermind Grows

More than 6,000 dealerships now have access to the Mastermind technology that uses thousands of data points, gathered from the dealer management system (DMS) and combines it with Big Data – social media profiles, financial records, product and consumer life-cycle information, socio-demographics among other privacy invasion data – to calculate when a customer is ready to buy and why. Continue reading

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Milestones – One Millionth Porsche 911

The Porsche 911 arguably created a new category and remains a premium sports car despite its rear engine design – that critics pointed out was like a trying to throw a dart backwards at high speeds. Continue reading

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William Berman COO of AutoNation Resigns

The lack of a succession plan is not good news for stock holders. At the end of March 2017, AutoNation owned and operated 372 new vehicle franchises. AutoNation has sold more than 10 million vehicles, possibly the first automotive retailer to reach this milestone. Continue reading

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Toyota R&D Centers Expand in Michigan

Clearly in the gun sights of nit-twit Trump, Toyota claims to have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of more than 33 million cars and trucks in North America. It currently runs 14 manufacturing plants – 10 in the U.S., but with Mexico and Canada left out of the exact count. Continue reading

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GM Rebuffs Pending Greenlight Director Nominations

“Greenlight’s candidates were nominated specifically to advance Greenlight’s dual-class stock plan, which GM’s Board views as high-risk and detrimental to the long-term best interests of GM and its shareholders. Continue reading

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FAA Tests Drone Detection Systems at DFW

Drones that enter the airspace around airports can pose serious safety threats, of course. The FAA is coordinating with government and industry partners to evaluate technologies that could be used to detect drones in and around airports.
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California Air Resources Board – Ways to Lower Pollution Exposure for People Living, Working near Urban Highways

Strategies to Reduce Air Pollution Exposure Near High-Volume Roadways is a technical advisory about the potential health implications of living and working in existing or planned developments near hectic roads. Options are discussed that planners and others can put into place to protect public health in developments close to freeways and as so-called “infill” development, which is the opposite of urban sprawl, continues. Continue reading

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Chevrolet Bolt EV at 4.5 Million Miles

These all-electric miles by Chevy’s calculation have resulted in more than 175,000 gallons of fuel saved – based on the average EPA-estimated 26 mpg for 2017 vehicles in the U.S. Continue reading

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Mercedes-Benz Car Sharing Expands to Berlin via Croove

Four months after a small pilot program in Munich, a private car-sharing platform from Mercedes-Benz is slowly being expanding into in other major German cities. Now Croove is in Berlin with a program that continues to be open to vehicles of all makes, a decided departure from General Motor’s Lyft car sharing. Continue reading

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Silverstone – WEC Opening Round Pits Toyota against Porsche in the run-up to the Grueling 24 Hours at Le Mans

The first track appearance in real racing conditions sees Porsche and Toyota dueling with two very different LMP1 cars with mixed results in the fastest, most expensive top class. Continue reading

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