TechMobility Topics

Tiny houses.  With the stock of affordable housing severely diminished in many parts of the country, the rise of tiny houses offers some people an alternative when considering a safe place to live.  A twist on that concept is the rise of tiny house villages, often near or just outside small towns in rural America.  Could this be a win-win for all?   

As of the end of 2024, the State of California had 48 percent MORE electric vehicle chargers than gas pump nozzles at 178,549.  This compares of just 120,000 gasoline nozzles.  However, only 17,000 of the chargers are fast chargers with the rest being the slower Level 2 chargers. 

On secret radio stations nationwide, a decades old news service has survived the move to digital.  They are called radio reading  services and they perform a vital function for the visually impaired. 

It’s official:  Duolingo, the language learning tech company, will “gradually stop using contractors to do work that AI can handle,” – that’s a direct quote from the company.  In case you still think that AI displacement of workers is years in the future, guess again!  

Mercedes-Benz is working on a solar "paintwork" that could give EVs thousands of miles of additional range per year.  These are new types of solar modules that could be seamlessly applied to the bodies of electric vehicles.  These efforts could eventually pave the way for a wafer-thin layer of paint that could generate additional 8,699 miles of range per year. 

According to a recent article in Roads and Bridges magazine, testing shows the need for new roadside safety hardware standards for EVs.  Roadside safety hardware like guardrails, median barriers, bridge rails, crash cushions, end treatments and breakaway support structures are designed to protect life and minimize injuries in the event of a crash.    I discuss. 

As both trucking fleets and truck manufacturers wade through what the industry calls the "messy middle" from ICE to EVs, PACCAR's Kenworth and Peterbilt nameplates are making a compelling argument for EVs in the vocational truck segment.  Listen to this podcast to learn more. 

A recent article in the business magazine Fast Company talked about a gas station of the future and the company behind it.  Nope, they haven’t given up on decarbonization, but what they are using for a feedstock to create the new fuels will surprise you.  Listen to this podcast to learn more. 

BYD, a leading Chinese EV manufacturer, has developed what it calls a Super e-Platform for its EVs that promises charging as fast as refueling, allowing for 249 of range in just five minutes of charging.  More importantly, the company is making that technology standard on almost all of its vehicles, regardless of price point.  Learn why this will quickly become a game changer for EV adoption rates. 

According to the National Safety Council, 891 people were killed and 37,701 were injured in work zone crashes.  Most of those deaths were motorists!  Technology is being deployed to reduce both the severity and frequency of these collisions.    We take a look. 

Every 31 seconds, a car gets stolen in America.  Since the Ford F-150 pickup truck has been the most popular vehicle sold in the country for over 40 years, it makes sense to surmise that many of those thefts would be of the popular truck.  Now Ford is offering new F-150 owners a mobile app engine immobilizer as part of its new Ford Security Package.  We review.