Google and Renault are working on a software platform for future vehicles that is based on Google’s platforms.
The two companies are building on their four-year-old relationship and are looking to redefine automotive software by utilizing the power of Google Cloud and Android Automotive. According to The Verge, the companies want to create a “software-defined vehicle,” one that will send a steady stream of data to Google’s cloud servers for analysis.
As part of their expanded partnership, Renault is making Google its “preferred cloud provider,” although that only applies to the automaker’s Renault, Dacia, Alpine, and Mobilize brands.
While the two companies already worked together to bring Android to the automakers vehicle, this new deal will add far more advanced capabilities. For example, the software will create a “Digital Twin” of a vehicle using AI “for an easier and continuous integration of new services into the vehicle and the creation of new onboard (In-Car Services) and offboard applications.”
The expanded deal is a big win for Google as the company works to gain traction as the industry’s third-largest cloud provider. Many other automakers have gone with Google’s larger rivals.
At the same time, it remains to be seen if users will be comfortable with yet more of their data making its way to Google servers.
The world’s leading automotive alliance, Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, is spending a billion dollars over the next five years investing in technology-focused mobility startups. François Dossa, Head of Alliance Ventures, a strategic venture capital fund of the company, says that they want to invest money in the new technologies that will make the mobility of the future and the car of the future.
Our Sector is Suffering Not an Evolution, But a Revolution
We want to invest money in the new technologies that will make the mobility of the future and the car of the future. We take this very seriously because our sector is suffering not an evolution, but a revolution. We’ve been for years using a car always the same way, your two hands on the wheel and your view on the road, and this is going to change. Many new technologies that we will not develop internally because it would be too long and too expensive and this is why we have to rely on startups.
We are excited with everything related to mobility. In mobility, I can also think of my legs that will be a part of the mobility, so it will be multimodal, not only a car. If I want to go from A to B, I have to be able to use my legs, a bike, a scooter, a car, a train, a van, a bus, and all this together is going to be the new journey that our customer will have. Customers in the future will consider that we are a service company and this is the big change that we have to do. We are good at manufacturing cars and we have to be good at offering a service to our customers.
Should we have our own platform or should we use someone else’s platform? We decided to have our platform, so we’re going to build our platform and I’m in charge of that. On a platform are all the tech bricks that you need to have to offer, ride-hailing, ride pooling, ride sharing, and goods delivery to your customers.
My activity is not to acquire companies, it is to acquire shares in companies. I don’t want to be the owner. If I think of a start-up, if I acquire the startup I kill the startup. We are a company of 475,000 people, that’s a very big company, very kind of heavy company, and we need to keep the fact that in the startup they grow very fast. All these technologies they’re moving very fast. This is why I don’t want to acquire but I want to be part of the shareholder of the company.
What’s Happening in China is Just Amazing
China is the most amazing area in terms of innovation. Number one in the world. What’s happening in China is just amazing. We have been investing in a company called WeRide, it’s a level 4 autonomous startup in China. With level 4 I can tell you, I had a demo with their car in normal traffic conditions and the car goes on the highway and nobody is driving the car. My first reaction I was really dying. I was oh my god and we had 30 minutes and it worked extremely well.
That’s very clear and it’s something that I’d like to say. About 40 years ago the Japanese companies went to the States and to Europe, they copied what we were doing. Then ten years ago, the Chinese did this also. Now I think it’s our time to go to China to look at what they are doing and to copy, because if not they’re going to kill us. We have to be very cautious about China and there are a lot of opportunities especially in deep tech new technologies. With AI, the Chinese know exactly where they are going. They tell you well we have a plan, it’s the central government plan where they want to be in 5, 10, and 15 years.
AI is everywhere, so we have four main activities for investment. First one is the new mobility and this is the decision that we made about the platform. Then we have all related to autonomy, autonomous cars connectivity, and services. and EV, electric vehicles. We are the leader in EV and we want to keep this position, and we need to make a lot of investment and startups are very good at this.
The Key Driver is Really the Technology
Even though I’m not American, I think that money is very important. For me, money is important and it’s also a way to be sure that we invested in the right startups because they will grow and then we’ll make money out of this investment. But this is not the key driver. The key driver is really the technology. We are a strategic fund and so we are here to bring into the Alliance companies and the new technologies that will make this new mobility and this car of the future. That’s really really clear in our mind but we’ll make money also out of it.
About Alliance Ventures:
Alliance Ventures is a strategic venture capital fund of up to $1 billion over the next five years, operated by Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, the world’s leading automotive alliance.
The fund, launched in 2018, with a $200 million initial investment is co-located in Amsterdam, Silicon-Valley, Paris, Yokohama, Beijing and Tel Aviv from where it targets technology and business model innovation in New Mobility, Autonomous Driving, Connected Services, EV & Energy and Enterprise 2.0.
Alliance Ventures is the main interface with the Alliance and its member companies for start-ups, incubators, accelerators, investors and the venture capital eco-system. By drawing on expertise and business opportunities from across the world’s leading automotive alliance, we pursue strategic investments at all maturity stages in startups developing disruptive technologies or businesses, focusing mainly on Series A and B, plus follow-on investments to support the start-up’s growth.
Former GM vice chairman Bob Lutz commenting on Nissan’s Carlos Ghosn arrest says that no CEO is immune to CEO disease. He said that he’s surprised at this, but in a way not too surprised. “Carlos is also extremely aware of his own capabilities and his own importance and that type of personality can slip into borderline behavior,” noted Lutz.
Bob Lutz, former GM vice chairman, offered his thoughts on the arrest of Nissan’s Carlos Ghosn and the future of The Alliance between Nissan, Renault, and Mitsubishi:
No CEO is Immune to CEO Disease
It’s both surprising and disappointing and as Phil DuBose said, let’s not forget that he’s innocent until proven guilty. As for retaining the CEO or presidency or a chairmanship of Renault, if he is in fact found guilty of a felony of underreporting taxes or misappropriating company property, there’s there’s no way that another large corporation in the world is going to retain him as CEO. That’s just out of the question. If he loses the Nissan job they’re basically all gone. He’s 64 anyways and he has many many millions.
I’m both surprised at this and in a way… not too surprised. Carlos has always since I’ve first known him a highly capable person of very high intelligence but also extremely aware of his own capabilities and his own importance. That type of personality can slip into borderline behavior. No CEO is immune to CEO disease.
Think about it, everywhere he goes all three corporations, nothing but admiration, adulation, yes boss, etc. No negative feedback ever. The President of the United States at least he reads the media so there’s some constant negative feedback, but a CEO never gets any. CEOs tend to develop, in the business, we call it CEO disease. CEOs tend to develop this… I am God’s gift to leadership and everybody loves me and I’m fabulous and over a while, they tend to believe that they’re above the rules and above the law and then they start misbehaving.
The Alliance Has Worked Fabulously Well and Will Continue
I was a huge critic of The Alliance at the time it happened. I said it would never work and you know to my amazement it has worked fabulously well for both companies and that will continue. The business is getting more competitive, we have new mobility encroaching on profitability and new car sales and so forth so the three-way sharing between Mitsubishi, Renault, and Nissan will continue because it’s just plain the right thing to do. I would imagine that the fact that The Alliance has worked for all three companies means that they’ll find a way to continue it.
Carlos Gomes Incredible Goals Will Not Be Missed
I think the goals that Carlos put in place for Nissan may be replaced by other goals that are more realistic or less publicized. What we tend to forget is that many of those goals that he put out there and said Nissan market share will be such-and-such by the year such and such, they never materialized anyway.
Sometimes setting difficult goals will energize the organization to reach them, sometimes they won’t, and sometimes unrealistic goals will cause the organization to do anything they have to do to reach the goal and that can sometimes trigger unethical behavior or stupid behavior like in the case of Nissan.
In the US, for a while, excessive incentives and basically giving away the profitability in order to make the market share goal. So I don’t think that Carlos Gomes incredible goals will be missed at all.
It has been announced that this coming Sunday, July 10th, will be the final issue of News of the World, the popular 168 year-old British tabloid.
News of the matter was made worse when The Guardian published a story indicated News of the World paid out £100,000 in bribes to police officers in the London area.
James Murdoch, Deputy Chief Operating Officer, and son of Rupert, announced the shutdown to the staff:
“I have important things to say about the News of the World and the steps we are taking to address the very serious problems that have occurred.
It is only right that you as colleagues at News International are first to hear what I have to say and that you hear it directly from me. So thank you very much for coming here and listening.
You do not need to be told that The News of the World is 168 years old. That it is read by more people than any other English language newspaper. That it has enjoyed support from Britain’s largest advertisers. And that it has a proud history of fighting crime, exposing wrong-doing and regularly setting the news agenda for the nation.
When I tell people why I am proud to be part of News Corporation, I say that our commitment to journalism and a free press is one of the things that sets us apart. Your work is a credit to this.
The good things the News of the World does, however, have been sullied by behaviour that was wrong. Indeed, if recent allegations are true, it was inhuman and has no place in our Company.
The News of the World is in the business of holding others to account. But it failed when it came to itself.
In 2006, the police focused their investigations on two men. Both went to jail. But the News of the World and News International failed to get to the bottom of repeated wrongdoing that occurred without conscience or legitimate purpose.
Wrongdoers turned a good newsroom bad and this was not fully understood or adequately pursued.
As a result, the News of the World and News International wrongly maintained that these issues were confined to one reporter. We now have voluntarily given evidence to the police that I believe will prove that this was untrue and those who acted wrongly will have to face the consequences.
This was not the only fault.
The paper made statements to Parliament without being in the full possession of the facts. This was wrong.”
The announcement came on the heels of several phone-hacking scandals, which involved members of the Royal Family and a missing 13-year old girl, whom was later found dead. It appears as though advertisers had had enough, and began pulling their campaigns:
@MitsubishiPress Mitsubishi Press UKMitsubishi has now suspended its NotW media spend while the paper’s being investigated regarding the Milly Dowler phone hacking allegations.1 day ago via web · powered by @socialditto
Mitsubishi even took it a step further, donating their ad spend to the Childline charity.
@MitsubishiPress Mitsubishi Press UKBased on a Facebook user suggestion, Mitsubishi is donating its #NotW ad spend to the Childline charity.1 day ago via web · powered by @socialditto
@renault_uk RenaultUKWe acknowledge the concerns regarding the allegation of phone hacking by News of the World. We confirm that we have no advertising planned.2 days ago via web · powered by @socialditto
@renault_uk RenaultUKRenault has no media advertising planned with NOTW, nor will it commit to any future activity, until the formal investigation is complete.1 day ago via web · powered by @socialditto
It’s unclear at this time if News Corp plans on shifting the staff of News of the World to their other UK media companies, which includes: The Sunday Times, The Sun, and The Times.
Do you think that News Corp should shut down News of the World? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.
“I have important things to say about the News of the World and the steps we are taking to address the very serious problems that have occurred.
