Featured Interview:
How the pandemic shifted the way Generation Z approaches the workforce
Just how much has the pandemic affected Generation Z and what impact can we expect to see in the marketplace as businesses reopen? On today’s show, we welcome Jason Dorsey, President and Lead Generational Researcher at The Center for Generational Kinetics, Speaker, and Author, his latest book titled “Zconomy: How Gen Z Will Change the Future of Business- and What to do About it.” Watch the complete segment here.
Top Headlines:
Polestar will start production of its newest vehicle, the Polestar 3, in late 2022. The electric vehicle will be built in the same South Carolina Volvo plant as the S60 and XC90 sedans. The SUV is in competition with Tesla’s Model X. Polestar continues advancing product development, which includes raising $550 million from investors.
Lincoln is next in line to offer four all-electric vehicles by 2030. Although Lincoln will continue to sell some gas-powered vehicles, they expect that by 2026, half of all their sales will be of zero-emission vehicles. Lincoln plans to give their vehicles an electric makeover, making minor changes to the ins and outs of the vehicles. With one-third of their sales solely from online, the company also plans to create a new digital retail tool soon.
Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving technology company, has received a $2.5 billion investment. The funding will be used by more than two thousand staff members to help grow the team and continue the development of driving technology. The company also raised $2.25 billion in funding last year, in its quest to be the leader in self-driving vehicle technology.
General Motors has increased its investment plan to secure an all-EV future. With a target budget of $20 billion dollars announced in March 2020, GM’s investment has shot up by 75%, totaling $35 billion dollars in spending. This jump in spending is largely due to plans to increase the production of electric vehicles. GM plans to release a minimum of 20 new electric vehicles globally by 2023 and plans to go entirely electric by 2035. This investment plan may create a big boost to President Biden’s infrastructure plan as well.
News & Opinion:
Mixed bag of EV announcements leaves future of auto industry wide open
The past few days have been busy with news stories and announcements from within and about the auto industry. Although electrified models continue to be a hot topic, their news has been tempered by other government meetings and statements by carmakers that indicate the future may not be all about electric – at least, not as soon as it has looked. Read more
CDK Global announces launch of new payment platform, CDK OnePay
Technology solutions firm CDK Global has unveiled its new CDK OnePay, which will serve as a revolutionary payment platform for dealerships. CDK Global partnered with payment software developer Global Payments to create the new platform, which the company said was “designed to help dealers create a frictionless customer experience with end-to-end seamless payment technologies and expanded payment options.” The platform will lessen the stress of closing a sale in a dealership and the time needed to complete the process. Read more
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