Jim Mullen, Executive Director, Council for Economic Resilience (CFER) joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss the far-reaching economic benefits of automation and autonomy and how these technologies benefit every single member of society.

Autonomy is good for the economy. From national security and job creation to supply chain resiliency and lower inflation, automation and autonomy are critical pillars of economic resilience. Reflecting on his time in the Trump administration (45), Jim reflects on the early groundwork that the administration took towards developing and implementing a national autonomous vehicle framework.

Four years later, with President Trump back in the White House and China aggressively ramping up their automation and autonomy ambitions at the detriment to the United States. The need for a national autonomous vehicle framework that allows autonomy to prosper in the United States is more urgent than ever.

Automation and autonomy will not only create high-paying jobs and lower inflation but these technologies will also empower underserved communities, unlock entirely new industries, and ensure that America maintains the strongest, most resilient economy in the world.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Automation & Autonomy Policies

4:45 What if Autonomous Trucks were Rolling During Covid?

6:55 Benefits of Automation & Autonomy

14:23 National Autonomous Vehicle Framework

18:24 Grassroots Community Engagement

23:04 The Amazon Effect

24:11 Automation & Autonomy’s Impact on Society

33:48 Public Support of Automation & Autonomy

36:37 American Leadership

40:16 Key Takeaway

Recorded on Thursday, May 29, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Tesla’s robotaxi launch in June 12th in Austin, Waymo’s relationship with Uber and Senator Lummis’ Autonomous Vehicle Advancement Act. 

Tesla’s initial robotaxi deployment in Austin will launch with just 10 Model Ys operating within a limited operational design domain (ODD). While modest in scale, investor interest is intensifying as Tesla plans to gradually expand its service area, potentially surpassing Waymo’s current coverage in Austin by year-end.

Meanwhile, Waymo and Uber face mounting pressure as Tesla enters the market. Speculation continues to grow around Waymo’s long-term partnership with Uber, raising questions about whether Waymo will pursue a hybrid strategy with Uber or focus solely on their Waymo One platform.

A potential partnership with Toyota could offer Waymo both strategic clarity and political capital, especially as U.S. lawmakers look to advance the Autonomous Vehicle Acceleration Act of 2025, a bill that could potentially lay the groundwork for a national autonomous framework.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Tesla Robotaxi Launch

6:56 Tesla Model Y Self-Delivery

8:16 Tesla Robotaxis on the Highway

10:20 New Tesla Robotaxi Markets 

12:23 Waymo Announcements 

18:05 Waymo / Uber Relationship 

27:32 What if Tesla Bundled Robotaxi Rides with a Car Lease?

29:17 Autonomous Vehicle Advancement Act

33:13 Unforced Error of the Week

35:07 Next Week

Recorded on Friday, May 30, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chuck Price, President, AI Kinetics joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss the current state of autonomous trucking. 

From the continued speculation that Volvo is shutting down Volvo Autonomous Solutions (VAS) in North America to PACCAR’s deafening silence following Aurora’s driver-out launch, the autonomous trucking industry is navigating a period of uncertainty. 

Meanwhile, Daimler’s growing influence and factory-grade chassis are reshaping the competitive landscape, as the prospect of Waymo re-entering the trucking market looms large. If Waymo returns, what happens next? Chuck offers his candid insights into how quickly Waymo could rescale Via, their autonomous trucking division, and what that would mean for the future of the industry, if Waymo re-entered the autonomous trucking market.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Current State of Autonomous Trucking

6:00 Waymo Via

11:46 Building an Autonomous Truck

22:52 Daimler Truck

26:00 Autonomous Trucking Models

34:17 Licensing 

36:09 Owning & Operating an Autonomous Trucking Fleet

40:36 Driver-Out Operations 

50:39 Aurora / PACCAR Relationship

53:57 Aurora's Path Back to Driver-Out

58:44 2027

1:01:13 Key Takeaways 

Recorded on Thursday, May 22, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk preview Tesla’s upcoming FSD robotaxi launch, Waymo’s continued interest in personally-owned autonomous vehicles and Aurora’s stumbles. 

As we approach June, all eyes are on Austin in anticipation of Tesla’s highly awaited robotaxi launch. With real-world testing already underway, Tesla is taking a measured yet impactful approach by prioritizing safety.

Meanwhile, Waymo has surpassed 10 million paid rides and is signaling a strategic expansion into personally-owned autonomous vehicles. 

On the freight side of autonomy, the autonomous trucking market is heating up, even as Aurora stumbles. After successfully launching driver-out commercial operations in April, Aurora was forced by its OEM partner, PACCAR to reinstate a safety driver behind the wheel, raising questions about the strength of the partnership and the company’s near-term trajectory.

Aurora’s recent stumbles come just as Waymo is re-evaluating a potential return to the autonomous trucking industry, as investors are closely monitoring how these shifting dynamics could reshape the market.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Autonomy Markets On The Road

1:12 Tesla Model Y

3:08 Tesla’s Upcoming Robotaxi Launch

9:02 Managing Vehicles on the Tesla Network 

10:57 Tesla’s Competitive Threat to Uber

14:35 Waymo: 10 Million Paid Rides and Counting 

16:01 Waymo at Google I/O

20:33 Waymo’s Multi-Deployment Strategy 

23:30 Licensing Tesla FSD

25:33 Nuro

27:45 Aurora Goes Back to Driver-In

34:08 Is Waymo Going Back into Trucking?

35:21 Is Waymo Feeling Pressure from Tesla?

37:31 China

40:21 National Autonomous Vehicle Framework 

42:07 Unforced Error of The Week / Next Week

Recorded on Friday, May 23, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ali Kashani, Co-Founder & Serve Robotics joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss how sidewalk delivery robots are transforming the economics and experience of last-mile delivery.

Ali shares the origin story of Serve Robotics, which was incubated within Postmates and later spun out of Uber into a publicly traded company. What began as a simple idea, delivering small items with small autonomous robots has grown into a rapidly scaling business operating in cities across the U.S., including Los Angeles, Miami, and Dallas.

As Serve Robotics continues to expand, the company is evolving into a full-fledged robotics platform with multiple revenue streams spanning advertising, delivery, licensing, and potentially something even bigger in the future.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Founding of Serve Robotics

2:07 Deliveries

4:26 Deploying Sidewalk Robots

9:53 Deployment Markets

15:11 A Robotics Company

19:37 Wing Partnership

21:20 Restaurant Deliveries & Packaging

27:53 Comparing Gen 2 to Gen 3 Robots

29:59 Testing Before Deploying

32:37 New Markets

33:49 Advertising Business

37:33 Growing Delivery Volume

39:37 The Evolution of Sidewalk Robots

42:07 Key Takeaways

Recorded on Wednesday, May 14, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Waymo’s recall, Tesla’s most recent NHTSA letter and Sterling Anderson’s surprise move to join GM as EVP & Chief Product Officer.

For the first time ever, Waymo had a fleet-wide recall after a series of minor collisions involving stationary objects, a recall that was fixed with a simple over-the-air update. As Waymo updated their vehicles, Tesla was once again under regulatory scrutiny, this time about their upcoming FSD Unsupervised launch in Austin.

Could NHTSA’s request for more information, give Elon Musk and Tesla an off-ramp as they work to further develop FSD prior to deploying fully autonomous robotaxis.

In an unexpected twist, former Aurora co-founder Sterling Anderson joined GM as EVP & Chief Product Officer. His move to GM signals a potential major strategic shift for GM, especially in the wake of its decision to shutdown Cruise.

With Mr. Anderson’s background in autonomy, software-defined vehicles, and hardware integration from his time at Tesla and Aurora, the hire suggests GM may be quietly rebuilding its autonomy strategy. Whether this positions him as a future CEO candidate or simply as the architect of GM’s next-generation vehicle roadmap, it’s a development that we will be following on Autonomy Markets.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Sterling Anderson Joins GM

3:34 The Impact of Sterling’s Departure on Aurora

5:53 Uber’s Autonomy Investments

7:16 Aurora, a Company in Crisis

13:04 Kodiak

15:30 Bot Auto

17:45 Wayve / Uber Partnership

21:58 WeRide’s Hong Kong IPO

22:46 Waymo’s Lingering Zeekr Problem

25:27 Waymo’s NHTSA Recall

27:18 Waymo Road Trips

28:47 Is Waymo Expanding Too Quickly?

30:10 Could NHTSA Delay Tesla’s June Robotaxi Launch?

33:38 Market Perception of Tesla FSD

36:29 Unforced Error of The Week

38:40 Next Week

Recorded on Thursday, May 15, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

David Welch, Detroit Bureau Chief, Bloomberg joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss Waymo’s growing competitive advantage in the market, Uber’s strategy and the many challenges facing Tesla.

Waymo continues to strengthen its market share in the robotaxi sector, recently announcing a strategic partnership with Magna to significantly expand autonomous vehicle manufacturing capabilities. While Uber leverages its robust marketplace platform to drive substantial demand for autonomous rides through key partnerships, Waymo has diversified manufacturing to meet demand.

Tesla, despite its ambitions with Full Self-Driving (FSD), faces ongoing technical challenges, including difficulties accurately identifying pedestrians, animals, and school zones, underscore the complexity in deploying fully autonomous vehicles at scale.

Simultaneously, the autonomous vehicle industry’s competitive landscape remains fluid, as traditional automakers struggle with limited autonomy programs and unclear strategies. With renewed investor interest, fresh funding rounds, and upcoming commercial deployments, the autonomous mobility market is entering a pivotal phase. Autonomy companies must now navigate strategic decisions concerning scale, partnerships, and profitability.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Scaling Waymo’s Operations

3:58 Tesla FSD

5:17 Tesla’s Upcoming Austin Robotaxi Launch

7:47 Did GM Pull the Plus on Cruise Too Early?

11:33 GM’s Continued Investments in EVs

14:48 Software

16:35 Licensing Autonomy & OEM Partnerships

20:41 Foxconn Contract Manufacturing AVs

25:53 Uber’s Autonomous Vehicle Fleet Strategy

28:50 Uber / Waymo Relationship

34:33 Zoox

35:31 Alphabet’s Commitment to Waymo

37:28 Merge Waymo One into Uber?

39:12 Car Rental Companies

40:32 Autonomy as a Business

44:52 Key Takeaways

Recorded on Thursday, May 8, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss the abrupt resignation of Aurora Co-Founder Sterling Anderson, why Waymo needs more vehicles and the continued fragmentation of the robotaxi market. 

Mr. Anderson’s sudden departure sent shockwaves through the industry, raising critical questions about his next move and the potential impact on Aurora’s partnership with Volvo, along with Uber’s reaction. Yet, curiously, none of these questions were raised by analysts on the company’s earnings call, leaving investors and industry insiders to speculate.

Meanwhile, Waymo appears to be scaling faster than its fleet can support. With 1,500 vehicles on the road today and another 2,000 expected by next year, the company has yet to activate highway operations, likely due to the increased wait times it would cause in already constrained markets.

As Uber doubles down on global autonomous vehicle partnerships, Waymo appears to have cooled on Lyft, potently leaving them at a competitive disadvantage. 

As Uber aggressively ramps up its global autonomous vehicle partnerships, Waymo appears to have cooled on Lyft, potentially putting Lyft at a growing competitive disadvantage in the evolving autonomy economy.

Episode Chapters

0:00 On The Road

2:03 Sterling Anderson Resigns from Aurora

7:55 Autonomous Trucking Revenue Metrics of Success

9:39 Waymo’s New Factory

12:38 How Many Cars Does Waymo Need in a Market?

15:41 Autonomy Markets On The Road in D.C.

20:30 Growth of Robotaxis on Uber & Lyft

25:48 Is Uber Accelerating the Growth of Chineses AVs in Europe?

30:13 What’s Going on at Zoox?

34:25 Rivian’s Autonomy Ambitions

37:42 Next Week

Recorded on Friday, May 9, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Earl Adams Jr., Vice President for Policy and Regulatory Affairs, Plus joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss how autonomous trucking is poised to transform local communities, economically, socially, and operationally. 

In Texas, Plus is actively working to deploy fully autonomous trucks in partnership with International by 2027. As part of the preparation for launch, Earl is meeting with community leaders, elected officials and community colleges in an effort to build transparency and trust with the local communities. 

When autonomous trucks are deployed, they will make our roads safer and they will have a positive economic benefit on society. The economic benefits of autonomous trucking will be felt in local communities as they will strengthening local businesses through increased spending in local communities.

Autonomous trucking isn’t just about moving freight, it’s about creating opportunity without debt, while revitalizing communities, one route at a time.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Autonomous Trucking Policy

4:20 Economic Impact of Autonomous Trucking

5:58 Public Trust

10:51 Community Colleges

12:28 Impact on Society

17:29 California DMV Autonomous Trucking Rulemaking 

22:48 Hours of Service 

27:57 Building & Maintaining Trust

35:21 Autonomous Trucking Industry 

40:35 Key Takeaways 

Recorded on Wednesday, April 30, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Waymo’s potential new partnership with Toyota, the launch of Aurora’s driver-out commercial operations and Uber’s continued effort to challenge the autonomy duopoly. 

On Tuesday, Waymo announced a potential partnership with Toyota to develop personally-owned autonomous vehicles, confirming a business pivot in an effort to counter Tesla’s upcoming robotaxi launch in Austin. Wile Waymo signals a shift in strategy, Aurora launched fully autonomous commercial operations in partnership with Uber Freight.

As Uber became Aurora’s first commercial customer, the rideshare side of their business continued to double-down on autonomy, as they further fragmented the autonomy market when they announced a strategic partnership with May Mobility to deploy AVs on the platform.

Recorded on Thursday, April 24, 2025

--------

About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.