Smarter Cars

Latest Episodes:

Sam Baker - Wunder Mobility Jan 27, 2020

Show notes

In the final episode of Season 4, we interview Sam Baker, co-founder and COO of Wunder Mobility, a company which provides technology to build and scale shared mobility services worldwide. We discuss Wunder Mobility’s business in Europe, its expansion to the US, the role of cities in encouraging multi-modal transport and how Wunder is like the AWS of mobility, providing solutions out of the box for companies looking to digitize assets and provide shared mobility services from car sharing to ride sharing to micromobility.

Colin Roche - Swiftmile Jan 14, 2020

Show notes

In this episode, we interview Colin Roche, co-founder and CEO of Swiftmile. Swiftmile is a company that makes and deploys charging stations in cities for micromobility devices such as electric scooters and bikes. We discuss how Swiftmile deploys in cities on public and private land, its partnerships with hotels and scooter companies to provide mobility hubs, how their unattended solar-powered charge systems for shared light electric vehicles work, future developments for autonomous scooters, and the company’s goal to reduce car traffic and city congestion in our daily lives. We also discuss Swiftmile’s new charging stations with screens for transit info, PSAs and ads unveiled this year at CES. You can find more about Swiftmile at https://swiftmile.com/about.html#team

Jeffrey Tumlin - SFMTA, Director of Transportation Jan 02, 2020

Show notes

Today we talk with Jeffrey Tumlin, the new head of San Francisco's transportation agency, the SFMTA, about the challenges of managing city transportation needs as the city grows and the streets don't get any bigger. We discuss managing the streets for the public good, reducing traffic with better road geometry, how to improve public transit for riders, ways to increase safety with better infrastructure for micromobility and active modes, uses of the curb and the declining role of street parking, and how to use policy levers to promote equity.

Michael Granoff - A VC Perspective - Maniv Mobility Dec 19, 2019

Show notes

In this episode, we talk with Michael Granoff, Managing Partner at Maniv Mobility, for a year-end wrap on the transportation landscape from a venture capital perspective. We discuss his firm’s investments and focus, the future of transportation in cities, the iteration of micromobility form factors and the need for cities to include all modes in their planning, from public transit to ride hail to micromobility solutions.

Jake Sion - COO of Transit Dec 10, 2019

Show notes

In this episode, we interview Jake Sion, the Chief Operating Officer of Transit. We discuss Transit’s business, the challenges of gathering real time data in cities and how cities can encourage multi-modal transportation in lieu of private car trips. Transit is an app that allows you to locate, book, and pay for public transit, car share, ride share and micromobility trips all in one app. Transit is live in over 200 cities, primarily in North America. You can find more information about Transit here: https://transitapp.com/

Drew Gray - Voyage Nov 20, 2019

Show notes

Today we're talking with Drew Gray, CTO at Voyage, to do a deep dive on the state of deep learning in autonomous vehicle development and to discuss Deepdrive, a new Voyage project to advance research into the use of reinforcement and end to end learning for AVs.

Jordan Coleman - Kodiak Robotics Nov 14, 2019

Show notes

In this episode, we interview Jordan Coleman, General Counsel of Kodiak Robotics, about Kodiak’s autonomous trucking business, the key issues around safety and autonomy, and policy/regulatory challenges the industry faces. Kodiak believes long-haul trucking is primed for autonomous technology. Highway driving is more structured and predictable than urban driving. This means there are fewer decisions for drivers to make and a better fit for autonomous vehicles. Kodiak is building an autonomous trucking business and began road testing and making commercial deliveries in Texas in 2019.

Giovanni Circella - UC Davis - Director, Three Revolutions of Future Mobility Program Oct 30, 2019

Show notes

Today we talk with Giovanni Circella, Director of the Three Revolutions Future of Mobility Program at UC Davis. We discuss his research on adoption of shared mobility services, like Uber/Lyft and micromobility, in California and their impact on car ownership and public transit use. We discuss his recent Panel Study with the National Center for Sustainable Transportation and further research to be completed soon. You can find more information about the study here: https://ncst.ucdavis.edu/research-product/panel-study-emerging-transportation-technologies-and-trends-california-phase-2

Robin Chase - Founder and former CEO of Zipcar - On the State of New Mobility Oct 22, 2019

Show notes

In this episode, we talk with transportation entrepreneur Robin Chase, the co-founder and former CEO of Zipcar. We have a wide-ranging discussion on the state of transportation in cities today, the impact of new mobility services and the policies cities should adopt to encourage a multi-modal future. You can learn more about Robin’s work here: www.robinchase.orgFor more on the Shared Mobility Principles for Livable Cities, please visit: https://www.sharedmobilityprinciples.org/

SF Supervisor Matt Haney Jul 15, 2019

Show notes

Today we interview SF Supervisor Matt Haney. He is a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, representing District 6 (Tenderloin, Civic Center, Mid-Market, SOMA, Yerba Buena, Rincon Hill, South Beach, Mission Bay, Treasure Island). Supervisor Haney is a past Commissioner and past President and Vice President of the San Francisco Board of Education.

We have a wide-ranging discussion about transportation issues facing cities, including the challenges of incorporating new mobility services and making room on our streets for multi-modal transportation. We talk about allocation of space for street parking versus other curb uses such as drop off and pick up zones, the creation of new protected lanes for micromobility, the scooter permit program and the need for greater numbers of bikes and scooters in the city, and San Francisco’s transit system. Supervisor Haney is a thought leader in the transportation space and his district is ground zero for managing the challenges and benefits of new mobility services in cities.

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