It really is impressive how many unknowns there are about the next decade in transportation. Sure, there have always been innovations and surprises, but to be unsure what most vehicles will even be powered by in 10 years, nor who — or what — will be in the driver’s seat, is astounding. Battery-electric vehicles are the leading contender to usurp internal combustion, eventually, though the road to that outcome is full of hurdles. Solid-state batteries (SSB) are seen as one of the key innovations to get there, various makers saying they’ll have at least one product with a solid-state battery on the market by the end of the decade. The overall numbers of SSB-powered vehicles might remain surprisingly low well into the 2030s, though. In Toyota’s internal news outlet, Toyota Times, the automaker wrote, “In the [SSB] mass production phase anticipated for 2030 and beyond, the companies are looking to boost capacity to several thousand tonnes (several tens of thousands of vehicles) in line with Toyota’s product plans.”

The “companies” referred to are Toyota and Japan’s petrochemical conglomerate Idemitsu Kosan, which formalized collaboration on SSBs this year. Right now, Toyota and Idemitsu are working on the development times for solid electrolyte and resulting quality and cost. When those are locked in, the firms will work on a pilot facility for commercialization. Initial commercial effort will take two years of testing and validation before wider production commences in 2030.

The “several tens of thousands of vehicles” appears to have gone through at least one revision after publication. In Jalopnik’s writeup, the capacity was quoted as “over ten thousand vehicles.” Even at the larger sum, that’s considerably less than onlookers expected, but that might be because onlookers expected too much, not because Toyota overpromised. The automaker’s talked big numbers for BEV sales, but has talked just as bigly about what kinds of electrified powertrains those sales will entail: At least four kinds of battery technologies, plus hydrogen, and hybrids. In 2021, Toyota said it expected to have an SSB ready by 2025. In 2022, a Toyota engineer said the first product to get an SSB would be a hybrid on go on sale in the first half of the decade.

Luxeed – a young, premium EV brand developed between Chery Automobile and Chinese tech giant Huawei, has shared new details of its flagship sedan, the S7. In a matter of months since first teasing the Tesla Model S competitor, followed by an influx of pre-orders, Chery and Huawei have now shared trim variants, pricing, and of course, range – which tops out at an impressive 855 km.

Luxeed is a new all-electric brand in China and when we say “new,” we mean we didn’t even know the official name of the joint effort between China’s Chery and Huawei until about four months ago.

In that time, we’ve seen Huawei tease its first model, learned its core specs from a regulatory filing in China, and saw the S7 sedan’s first unveiling three weeks ago, ahead of an official launch that took place today.

Save this for later! From the Moon to the planets to the stars, read about the celestial events happening in December 2023!

Labroots recently shared key celestial events for November 2023 which offered skywatchers an opportunity to witness 16 days of events that included numerous meteor showers, comets, and planetary encounters. Now, Labroots wishes to share with you 22 days of celestial events for December 2023 that will ensure astronomy fans will not be disappointed. Each event is labeled in all caps for the type of event (e.g., MOON, PLANET, COMET, etc.) to provide skywatchers additional excitement to catch these incredible events!

December 1 (MOON and STAR): The Earth’s Moon will pass between 1–2 degrees from the star Pollux, which is located just under 34 light-years from Earth and resides within the constellation Gemini.

December 2 (MOON, STARS, and METEOR SHOWER): The Earth’s Moon will pass between 3–4 degrees from the Beehive Cluster, which is an open cluster of stars located approximately 577 light-years from Earth and is approximately 15 light-years in diameter. Additionally, the Phoenicids meteor shower will be at its peak with a variable number of observable meteors per hour.

“We want the robot to ask for enough help such that we reach the level of success that the user wants. But meanwhile, we want to minimize the overall amount of help that the robot needs,” said Allen Ren.

A recent study presented at the 7th Annual Conference on Robotic Learning examines a new method for teaching robots how to ask for further instructions when carrying out tasks with the goal of improving robotic safety and efficiency. This study was conducted by a team of engineers from Google and Princeton University and holds the potential to design and build better-functioning robots that mirror human traits, such as humility. Engineers have recently begun using large language models, or LLMs—which is responsible for designing ChatGPT—to make robots more human-like, but this can also come with drawbacks, as well.

“Blindly following plans generated by an LLM could cause robots to act in an unsafe or untrustworthy manner, and so we need our LLM-based robots to know when they don’t know,” said Dr. Anirudha Majumdar, who is an assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Princeton University and a co-author on the study.

For the study, the researchers used this LLM method with robotic arms in laboratories in New York City and Mountain View, California. For the experiments, the robots were asked to perform a series of tasks like placing bowls in the microwave or re-arranging items on a counter. The LLM algorithm assigned probabilities on which would be the best option based on the instructions, and promptly asked for help when a certain probability threshold was achieved. For example, the human would ask the robot to place one of two bowls in the microwave but would not say which one. The LLM algorithm would then trigger, causing the robot to ask for additional help.

Publisher denies Futurism report, says they didn’t use AI.

Guillaume/iStock.

One example cited by Futurism, which first reported the story, was of Drew Ortiz, who was listed as a “Product reviewer,” complete with a profile and a picture, for Sports Illustrated on its website.

LONDON, Nov 30 (Reuters) — The president of tech giant Microsoft (MSFT.O) said there is no chance of super-intelligent artificial intelligence being created within the next 12 months, and cautioned that the technology could be decades away.

OpenAI cofounder Sam Altman earlier this month was removed as CEO by the company’s board of directors, but was swiftly reinstated after a weekend of outcry from employees and shareholders.

Reuters last week exclusively reported that the ouster came shortly after researchers had contacted the board, warning of a dangerous discovery they feared could have unintended consequences.

Large language models such as that used by ChatGPT could soon become essential tools for diagnosing and treating patients. To protect people’s privacy and safety, medical professionals, not commercial interests, must drive their development and deployment.

OpenAI didn’t mean to kickstart a generational shift in the technology industry.

The biggest thing in tech since the iPhone was basically an accident.

Tesla finally delivered the long-awaited Cybertruck to the first batch of customers. But there’s still a long road ahead for the angular, polarizing truck.

Any team that can restore at least a decade’s worth of muscle, brain, and immune function in older adults will claim the top prize.

Money can’t buy happiness, but X Prize founder Peter Diamandis hopes it might be able to buy better health.