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⚡ WHAT'S AT STAKE TODAY ⚡

1. 🚗🤖 Motional puts AI at center of robotaxi reboot as it targets 2026 for driverless service
2. 🔍⚕️ Google removes AI Overviews for certain medical queries
3. 🔧📄 OpenAI is reportedly asking contractors to upload real work from past jobs
4. 🚫🌏 Indonesia and Malaysia block Grok over non-consensual, sexualized deepfakes
5. 💰⚠️ Grok AI is monetising abuse and government must act, Refuge warns
6. 🏛️📊 Yates Legislature to consider AI policy, labor agreement, and public hearing today
7. 💼📈 Infosys explains the gap between AI adoption and AI-first work in today's workplaces
8. 👥⚡ Human & AI Workforce Management: The New Staffing Crisis Nobody Knows They're In
9. 🛒🤖 Google announces a new protocol to facilitate commerce using AI agents

Motional pivots to AI-first approach for 2026 Las Vegas robotaxi launch

Motional puts AI at center of robotaxi reboot as it targets 2026 for driverless service

After facing significant challenges including missed deadlines, massive layoffs, and the loss of a key financial backer, autonomous vehicle company Motional has undergone a complete transformation. The joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv is now betting its future on an AI-first approach to self-driving technology.

Two years ago, Motional stood at a critical crossroads. The company had failed to meet its promised deadline for launching a driverless robotaxi service with partner Lyft. When Aptiv withdrew its financial support, Hyundai stepped in with an additional $1 billion investment to keep the company afloat. Multiple rounds of layoffs, including a devastating 40% workforce reduction in May 2024, shrunk the team from 1,400 employees to fewer than 600.

Rather than continuing on a failing path, Motional made the bold decision to pause operations and completely reimagine its approach. The company has now emerged with a revamped strategy centered on artificial intelligence and a concrete timeline for commercial deployment.

"We saw that there was tremendous potential with all the advancements that were happening within AI," explained Motional CEO Laura Major. "While we had a safe, driverless system, there was a gap to getting to an affordable solution that could generalize and scale globally."

The transformation involved shifting from a traditional robotics approach to one built on AI foundation models. Previously, Motional's system relied on multiple individual machine learning models handling different functions like perception and tracking, combined with rules-based programming. This created a complex web of software that was difficult to scale and adapt to new environments.

The new architecture consolidates these smaller models into a single backbone system, similar to the transformer technology that powers ChatGPT. This end-to-end approach promises significant advantages for expansion and cost optimization.

"This is really critical for generalizing more easily to new cities, new environments, new scenarios," Major noted. "For example, the traffic lights might be different in the next city you go to, but you don't have to redevelop or re-analyze those. You just collect some data, train the model, and it's capable of operating safely in that new city."

Motional's roadmap for commercial deployment is aggressive but methodical. The company has already begun testing with employees using robotaxis equipped with human safety operators. Later this year, this service will expand to the public through a partnership with an unnamed ride-hailing company. By the end of 2026, the safety operators will be removed entirely, launching a fully autonomous commercial service in Las Vegas.

A test ride in Las Vegas demonstrated the system's improved capabilities. The Hyundai Ioniq 5 successfully navigated challenging scenarios that previously required human intervention, including the notoriously difficult pickup and drop-off areas at hotels like the Aria. The vehicle autonomously maneuvered around stopped taxis, unloading passengers, and various obstacles while changing lanes as needed.

While the system showed impressive progress, challenges remain. The vehicle took considerable time to navigate around a double-parked delivery van, and the passenger interface graphics are still under development. However, no safety operator interventions were required during the demonstration.

Major emphasized that Hyundai's long-term commitment provides stability for the ambitious timeline. The ultimate vision extends beyond robotaxis to integrating Level 4 autonomous driving capabilities into personal vehicles.

"Robotaxis, that's stop number one, and huge impact," Major said. "But ultimately, I think any OEM would love to also integrate that into their cars."

Motional's transformation represents a broader trend in the autonomous vehicle industry, where companies are increasingly leveraging advances in AI to overcome technical and economic barriers that have hindered widespread deployment of self-driving technology.

Google pulls AI summaries after health misinformation concerns raised

Google removes AI Overviews for certain medical queries

Google has removed AI Overviews from certain medical queries after investigation revealed misleading health information. The Guardian found AI summaries provided liver test ranges without considering factors like age, sex, or ethnicity, potentially causing misinterpretation of results.

While Google removed overviews for specific liver-related queries, variations still triggered AI-generated responses. A Google spokesperson stated their clinical team found much information was accurate and sourced from quality websites, but wouldn't comment on individual removals.

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