Elon has a simple solution for Tesla spy cameras in China

Elon Musk has a simple solution for Tesla cars equipped with spy-capable cameras: Just do not turn them on! It’s that simple. All that and more in it The morning shift before April 7, 2021.

First Gear: I wish America was free in a fun way for everyone in automotive engineering

Jalopnik’s friend John Voelcker points out on Twitter that America is in fact free when it comes to new era automotive technology, compared to China, which is dropping the hammer Tesla’s in-car cameras

We have problems with these cameras here in America, but the voice of dissent in our case is Consumer Reports. The news from China is that the military itself is angry, as Reuters reports:

Cameras in Tesla cars will not be activated outside of North America, the US automaker said on its Chinese social media page on Wednesday, in an effort to address safety concerns in the world’s largest car market.

Tesla is under scrutiny in China, where the military banned Tesla cars from accessing its complexes in March, citing concerns about the safety of cameras in its vehicles, sources told Reuters.

[…]

At a virtual forum in Beijing in March, not long after reports of the ban surfaced, Tesla founder Elon Musk highlighted the company’s business motivations to protect users’ privacy.

“There is a very strong incentive for us to be very confidential with all information,” said Musk.

“If Tesla were to use cars to spy in China or anywhere, we will be shut down.”

Elon made more comments that are very similar to Amazon’s recent defense of “You don’t really believe in peeing in bottles, do you?As Bloomberg reports:

Musk said virtually at a conference that if Tesla ever used its cars to spy in China or anywhere, the company would be “ shut down everywhere. ”

“If a commercial company engaged in espionage, the negative effects on that company would be extremely bad,” he said last month at the China Development Forum, a meeting organized by a unit of the country’s State Council.

America is being denied cool self-dipping laser headlights, but don’t we have a problem with this?

2nd gear: rebuilding the EPA sounds like a time

The news here is the new EPA chief wants to set tougher exhaust emission standards that have been rolled back under Trump. What interests me is this discussion about rebuilding one administration that was stripped by Trump, as Bloomberg reports:

[EPA Administrator Michael Regan’s] The first task is to rebuild the agency, which shed an estimated 700 scientists during Trump’s tenure. He also needs to rebuild morale among EPA employees who have stayed, including many who said they were belittled under Trump and are still suspicious of managers who go along with the old regime.

“The secret sauce here returns to the agency’s original mission of protecting people and natural resources, and creating a welcoming environment focused and centered around scientific integrity, ethics and values,” said Regan. “We believe we will attract some of the talent that left the agency during the previous administration, but we also believe we will be really attractive to new scientists, new engineers and new legal minds.”

Regan is seeking to bolster scientific integrity at the agency, which public health and environmental advocates say has declined over the past four years. In one of his first major acts last week, Regan ordered the removal of dozens of members of two scientific advisory committees leading the work of the EPA – a move intended to reduce the industry’s influence and create a clean slate for rebuilding. of the panels.

If any of you are reading this is there any of the 700 scientists ousted by Trump, email us for tips at jalopnik dot com.

3rd Gear: GM very serious about side businesses that may or may not Includes flying cars

Nothing tells you that a car company is anything more serious than a statement about a tech who never got past the Jetsons. That’s why I cast a suspicious eye for GM’s new promotion of its side activities, reported in Reuters

The veteran GM engineer’s Global Innovation team is looking for new ventures to expand the automaker’s revenue streams well beyond auto sales, developing businesses from commercial delivery services to auto insurance to address future markets with an estimated value of $ 1.3 trillion. That’s not true of flying cars, a market sector that could be worth $ 1.3 trillion alone, Fletcher told Reuters.

During a recent video chat, Fletcher silently counted before answering how many companies her team is tending. “Just under 20,” she said.

Reuters mentioned several of these different companies in a separate article, and they include extending OnStar through apps and offering SuperCruise as a subscription service.

4th gear: America watches while Europe gets a cool hybrid jeep

Europe has strict rules that put pressure on car companies to build EVs and hybrids, much more stringent than the rules we have in America. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Europe is getting hybrid jeeps before we are. We’ve already been through this with the Apostate, is now the revised compass, such as the Freep reports:

An update to the Jeep Compass compact SUV, unveiled in Europe on Tuesday, will add a ton of technology, including 4xe plug-in hybrid and new Android-based entertainment and connectivity systems.

The updated compass is expected to debut in Europe later this year, with US sales in the first half of 2022.

The Compass also gets a wider grille and slimmed LED headlights to create a face that matches bigger upcoming Jeeps like the Grand Wagoneer and Grand Cherokee L.

This report is based on the European model. Not all functions carry over to US models. The compass is somewhat of a premium model in Europe. It’s a core part of Jeep’s identity there, where compact vehicles are often sold at higher prices and offer more luxurious features and materials than in the US.

Sad to see America as a second-tier market for efficient jeeps!

5th gear: Nissan sales in China up 70 percent compared Until this time last year

I’m not sure if this is a case where Nissan has the Chinese market in order, or just a sign of how deeply depressed things were at the start of the pandemic. Anyway, this is a big leap, like Reuters reports

Nissan Motor Co’s passenger and light vehicle business in China has increased unit sales by 70.6% year-on-year in the first three months of 2021 in the first three months of 2021, the company said in a statement Wednesday.

Reverse: Whoops!