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Thursday seems ready to run as we talk about CDK coming back on-line yesterday for a test group of dealers. We also talk about Waymo’s green light in San Francisco as well as a major Netflix experience coming to a mall near you. 

Eight days after two cyberattacks severely disrupted its dealership management system, CDK Global has made progress by successfully testing a system reboot with a small group of dealers.

• • In an afternoon statement to Automotive News, the company said "We have successfully brought a small initial test group of dealers live on the Dealer Management System (DMS), and once validation is complete, we will begin phasing in other dealers."
  • CDK plans to phase in other dealers once validation is complete as efforts are also underway to restore additional applications, including CRM and service solutions.
  • "We understand and share the urgency for our customers to get back to business as usual," CDK said in a statement.
  • One dealer even posted an image of his screen with a comment that he’s ‘never been so happy to see this screen’
    
    

Despite numerous challenges, Waymo’s robotaxi service is now thriving in San Francisco, bringing driverless taxi rides closer to becoming commonplace as Waymo One, using self-driving Jaguars, is now available to everyone in San Francisco.

• San Francisco is the second city to fully adopt Waymo, following Phoenix, Arizona.
• Limited service is currently available in Los Angeles, with plans to expand to Austin, Texas, later this year.
• The service has faced several hurdles, including safety probes, software recalls, and even vandalism.
• Despite these issues, Waymo has had significant demand, with 300,000 people on its San Francisco waitlist.
• As of April, Waymo’s cars have driven over 3.8 million miles in San Francisco.
• Waymo aims to become profitable, competing with Uber and Lyft, and recovering development costs.
• For now, Waymo stands as the future of the US robotaxi industry, especially after its closest competitor, Cruise, had its California licenses suspended.
  
  

Netflix has announced plans to open its first two permanent experiential entertainment venues in Dallas, TX, and King of Prussia, PA, in 2025.

• These Netflix Houses will include shopping outlets, eateries, and immersive activities based on popular Netflix series and films anbd will feature experiences from shows like Bridgerton, Money Heist, Stranger Things, and Squid Game.
• Netflix CMO Marian Lee described the venues as places to enjoy immersive experiences, unique food and drinks, and retail therapy as each location will occupy over 100,000 square feet in former department stores at Galleria Dallas and King of Prussia Mall.
• “Imagine waltzing

Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

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