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Jaguar Land Rover shows off AI-powered 'no-touch touchscreen' for cars
The AI system uses sensors and context to figure out which button you want to tap.
Waymo's Jaguar EV hits public roads for self-driving tests
Waymo is putting its Jaguar I-Pace EVs on the road for more public testing, only this time around it's been fully kitted out with self-driving tech. The company confirmed to TechCrunch it started testing the self-driving cars close to its Mountain View, California headquarters.
Jaguar tests self-driving cars that project their next move
Car makers have explored a number of ways to have self-driving vehicles signal where they're going, but they tend to rely on blinking lights or other codes that might not be easy to interpret in a hurry. Jaguar Land Rover might have something more intuitive: it has developed a system that projects an autonomous vehicle's direction of travel on the road ahead. The system casts a series of bars on the road to indicate when it's turning, setting off or stopping. The gap between the bars can expand or shrink to indicate changes in speed. You'll know if it's safe to cross the road without having to carefully watch a car's actions.
Jaguar's automatic door could make cars more accessible
Amputees and others with accessibility needs might soon have an easier time hopping into cars. Jaguar Land Rover has created a 'mobility door' that uses a mix of current keyless entry tech and motion sensors to automatically open when you approach. You might only have to swing in when you're ready to drive. You can press buttons both overhead and on the infotainment system to open or close doors, and there's radar to prevent the door from smacking another car or a lamp post.
Jaguar's next-gen Formula E race car packs more power
The next wave of Formula E cars is finally trickling out, and it's clear they're considerably more exciting this season. Panasonic Jaguar Racing has unveiled the next generation of its racer, the I-Type 3, and it's a dramatic improvement even compared to Jag's last outing. The new machine is 25 percent more powerful than its predecessor without a significant change of weight, producing as much as 250kW (330HP) with a 0-62MPH time of 2.8 seconds. That's important when the league is introducing an "attack mode" that boosts the power to 225kW when a driver just has to overtake a rival.
Waymo's first Jaguar I-Pace EVs hit Bay Area roads
At an event before the New York Auto Show back in March, Waymo unveiled the first luxury vehicle it's adding to its nascent self-driving service's fleet: The new I-Pace, Jaguar Land Rover's answer to Tesla's Model X. The Alphabet company finally got its first handful of prototypes of the electric SUVs, and is testing them on Bay Area streets to gauge their performance for hardware and software design requirements. Eventually, the company will integrate the I-Pace into its forthcoming self-driving service, which is set to debut in 2020.
Car makers used software to raise spare parts prices
Ever had the nagging suspicion that your car's manufacturer was charging outrageous prices for parts simply because it could? Software might be to blame. Reuters has obtained documents from a lawsuit indicating that Jaguar Land Rover, Peugeot, Renault and other automakers have been using Accenture software (Partneo) that recommended price increases for spare parts based on "perceived value." If a brand badge or other component looked expensive, Partneo would suggest raising the price up to a level that drivers would still be willing to pay. It would even distinguish parts based on whether or not there was "pricing supervision" over certain parts (say, from insurance companies or focused publications) to avoid sparking an outcry.
Waymo and Jaguar will test self-driving I-Pace SUVs later this year
Waymo is adding a luxury vehicle to its fleet of self-driving test vehicles, the upcoming I-Pace EV. At an event ahead of the New York Auto Show, the two companies announced that testing of the I-Pace outfitted with Waymo's autonomous technology will be on public roads later this year in Phoenix, Arizona.
Jaguar Land Rover tests autonomous parking on public roads
Plenty of cars will help you park, but the biggest challenge is frequently finding a spot in the first place -- it's no fun to circle the parking lot for 10 minutes. Fully autonomous cars can ultimately take care of this, but Jaguar Land Rover is demonstrating a feature that would help in the meantime. It recently expanded its public semi-autonomous testing in the UK to include a "self-driving valet" where vehicles both find open spaces and park themselves. The company pitches it as eliminating some of the drudgery of driving, letting you take the wheel when you'd genuinely enjoy it.
Jaguar plans a production EV racing series for 2018
To date, watching a full-fledged EV racing series has meant watching custom-built Formula E race cars. They're great to watch, but not exactly reflective of what you can drive on the road. Jaguar aims to fix that. It's launching the first production-based electric vehicle race series, the I-Pace eTrophy, as a support series for Formula E in late 2018. It'll run on the same tracks as Formula E, but it'll rely on (what else?) a track-optimized version of the upcoming I-Pace SUV. Up to 20 drivers will take part in each race in an "arrive and drive" package -- they'll need an international racing license, but Jaguar and the FIA will take care of vehicles and support.
Jaguar's steering wheel of the future revolves around AI
The steering wheel as we know it doesn't have a bright future -- in fact, it might disappear altogether as self-driving cars hit the road. Jaguar Land Rover, however, has an idea as to how it might survive. The British automaker has unveiled a concept steering wheel, Sayer, that's designed for an era where cars normally drive themselves and personal ownership is a thing of the past. The wheel would have its own AI system, and would follow you from car to car -- you'd just hook it in to bring your experience with you.
Jaguar makes first hire through Gorillaz mixed-reality app
In June, Jaguar Land Rover launched its code-breaking recruitment puzzle in the Gorillaz mixed-reality app in order to attract new talent to its team and fast-track successful players through the interview process. Today, the company has announced that it has made its first hire through the app and he'll be joining the company next month.
Jaguar thinks the Gorillaz app is a good way to find engineers
Jaguar Land Rover has teamed up with an unlikely partner to recruit its next wave of engineers -- the animated band Gorillaz. The auto company will be using the band's mixed reality app to challenge aspiring team members, fast-tracking the best performers through recruitment.
Lyft teams up with Jaguar to test autonomous cars
There's a lot of reasons for the folks at Lyft to be happy, and not all of them involve schadenfreude about what's going down across the street. The ride-sharing company recently scored a further $600 million in investment, $25 million of which came from Jaguar Land Rover. But it wasn't just cash that the automaker is supplying: it's also handing over a fleet of vehicles to help the pair test autonomous vehicles.
Jaguar follows Chevy with unlimited LTE for your car
In-car WiFi is only worth having if you've got enough mobile data to make use of it. Following Chevy's lead, Jaguar Land Rover will offer a pre-paid, unlimited AT&T data plan for $20 a month. The luxury automaker says that you can connect as many as eight devices to the LTE network via the InControl feature on certain models, including the Jaguar XE. If that car sounds familiar, that's because it's one of the few that you can make in-car, cashless gas payments from. Would you pony up for the mobile data service? Let us know in the comments.
Land Rover's Project Hero SUV launches a drone to aid rescue workers
It's no secret that drones are useful for surveying situations where it might be too dangerous for a human to tread. This includes tough terrain that search and rescue teams encounter and Jaguar Land Rover built a vehicle to lend a hand. The company's Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) unit designed and built a unique version of its Discovery SUV for use by the Austrian Red Cross. Officially called Project Hero, the vehicle features a roof-mounted drone landing system.
Jaguar Land Rover plans semi-autonomous car tests on UK roads
Fresh off of the announcement of its plan to take self-driving cars off paved roads, Jaguar Land Rover revealed that it's preparing to test autonomous and semi-autonomous tech, or what the company calls Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) technologies, on roads in the UK. First, the automaker is planning to amass a fleet of over 100 test vehicles over the next four years, the first of which will cruise a 41-mile test course around Coventry and Solihull this year. The company says the first stage of testing will involve semi-autonomous technology that allows cars to communicate with each other and with infrastructure like signs, traffic lights and more.
Jaguar Land Rover aims for self-driving cars on any terrain
As quickly as self-driving car technology is improving, it's still near-useless off-road. What good is an autonomous SUV if it can't drive to your camping site? Jaguar Land Rover hopes to fix that. It's showing off research into all-terrain self-driving tech that would adapt to different surfaces. A mix of cameras, lidar, radar and ultrasonic sound would give vehicles a sense of what they're driving on, and adapt accordingly -- say, going slow and steady on a dirt road. They would plot 3D paths that account for not just the ground, but low-hanging tree branches and other obstacles that could wreck your ride. You might not risk getting stuck in the mud simply because you didn't know how to tackle a challenging ravine.
Land Rover puts Tile's stuff-finding Bluetooth tech in an SUV
Tile's Bluetooth-connected trackers are made to keep you from misplacing all kinds of stuff -- keys, bags, phones, laptops, whatever. Now Land Rover is building the tech into a vehicle that makes it pretty much impossible to leave your important items behind. In the 2017 Discovery Sport Tile will be a part of its InControl apps setup, ready to alert the driver if tagged items aren't in the car. Maybe you've never shown up to the airport one bag short, but for the rest of us, it's one way to avoid an awkward situation.
Jaguar returns to racing with its first all-electric car
Jaguar hasn't been involved with motorsports since it offloaded its Formula 1 team to Red Bull, but it's about to come back in a big, big way. The automaker has announced that it's working on an all-electric car (its first) that will compete in Formula E's third season, which kicks off in fall 2016. Jaguar is saying precious little about what that racer will be capable of, but the entry is possible because the beleaguered Trulli team is backing out of the league, leaving room for a new entrant.
