A self-driving cab has successfully ferried passengers across the busy streets of Tokyo in a trial that has been billed the world’s first demonstration of a public taxi ride by an autonomous vehicle. Passengers paid to be carried across the city in a driverless minivan supplied by ZMP, a robot technology company, and Hinomaru Kotsu, a taxi firm...
If you live in Seattle and want to pick up a quick snack without having to wait in a checkout line, you’ve now got two options for where you can do so, as Amazon officially opened its second cashier-less convenience store. To begin a shopping experience at an Amazon Go location, a customer must first download the Amazon Go app and swipe it upon...
If you live in certain neighborhoods in San Jose, California, you can now get some of your groceries delivered by a self-driving car. Bright green cars from the self-driving startup AutoX–with a backup driver inside–will pull up with your order in the trunk. In the backseat, the window rolls down to offer a shelf of extra food to buy. “Last...
What comes after physical-tracking wearables? Emotion-trackers, of course. There are several on the market and coming down the pike, including Upmood, launched via Kickstarter with the aim of raising just over £25,000. Upmood uses an algorithm that turns biometric data into analytics through a Bluetooth connection to the app to let you know of...
Real estate startup Compass has developed a high-end sign shaped like a magnifying glass, with a glowing ring. In the center of the ring is the real estate agents’ contact information. As a person walks by the sign, LED lights activate and cascade down the sides of the ring. The lights draw attention to a QR code on the sign. Scanning the code...
Inkhunter, an augmented reality app that lets users preview tattoos, is launching a marketplace for tattoo artists. The Ukraine-based company’s 8 million users can already upload a tattoo design or select one from Inkhunter’s library and see how it will look on their skin via AR. Now a new marketplace will connect users to a local artist who...
The Norwegian fertilizer giant Yara on Wednesday signed off on the world’s first electric and self-propelled container ship — the so-called Tesla of the seas — in a landmark in the development of autonomous shipping. The vessel, a collaboration between Yara, the engineering company Kongsberg, and Vard, has received some 133.6m NOK from the...
A university in Colorado has launched the world’s first space resources program. Just like Earth, asteroids are laced with valuable raw materials, everything from gold and silver to cobalt and titanium. According to the school’s website, the goal of the program is to prepare today’s scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, economists, and policy...
Chicago-based technology company SpotHero is transforming its parking facilities to communicate with autonomous vehicles to let them know which spaces to park in. The company's app allows drivers, the vehicles themselves, garages, car manufacturers and cities to communicate with each other, exchanging data and payments. The new parking features...
The 2016 U.S. election was not exactly the most secure affair. Even though tech companies and lawmakers are still sorting out what happened, that’s not stopping the state of West Virginia from thinking big and bold in 2018. According to CNN, the state plans to let soldiers who are permanent residents of the state but are serving overseas vote...