FedEx confirms death of founder and former CEO Frederick Smith
NEW YORK, June 22 — FedEx Corp's founder and former CEO, Frederick Smith, has died, the logistics giant said yesterday. — Reuters
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Malay Mail
6 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Volkswagen challenges Waymo with launch of electric ID. Buzz autonomous robotaxi fleet in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES, June 22 — Volkswagen, through its subsidiary MOIA, is preparing to roll out its first ID. Buzz AD autonomous vehicles in Los Angeles in 2026, in collaboration with Uber. This initiative is part of a strategic partnership with the goal of deploying several thousand electric robotaxis in the United States over the next 10 years. MOIA is a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group that focuses on developing shared transportation services, particularly on-demand shuttles. It has announced the upcoming launch of a robotaxi service consisting of a fleet of ID. Buzz AD vehicles. The ID. Buzz AD is an electric van equipped with Mobileye technology, which includes cameras, radars and LiDAR sensors. The vehicle thus has precise 360-degree vision for up to 400 meters. Volkswagen promises level 4 autonomous driving capabilities, meaning that no human intervention is required. The first vehicles are set to enter the testing phase in Los Angeles at the end of 2025, with at least one safety operator on board. A commercial launch is planned for 2026. A roll-out in Europe is also planned, probably in Germany to start with. With the goal of deploying thousands of robotaxis in major US cities, Volkswagen is stepping on Waymo's toes, taking advantage of legislation favourable to the commercial operation of fully autonomous fleets. Waymo currently operates around 1,500 autonomous taxis in the United States, spread across San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Austin. The company plans to add 2,000 more by the end of 2026, notably by expanding its service to cities such as Atlanta, Miami and New York. — ETX Studio
Malay Mail
6 hours ago
- Malay Mail
What now for Iran after US strikes? — Ng Chien Chern
JUNE 22 — Today marks the United States' entry into war against Iran after two weeks of fighting between Israel and the latter. Donald Trump has floated the idea of using the United States' proprietary bunker-busting bomb to destroy Iran's underground uranium-enrichment facilities at Fordow. Saturday's strike dispelled any remaining doubts about whether Trump, who had always portrayed himself as an anti-war president, would employ such a drastic move and risk dragging the US into another 'forever war'. With its back against the wall, Iran now faces only a handful of options in response to the latest development. For some time, Iran has warned against US involvement in its conflict with Israel or risked a regional conflagration. However, it has few cards to play following the assassination of many top brass military personnel on June 13 and the debilitating attack on its missile infrastructure by Israel. While Iran is believed to have massive stockpiles of ballistic missiles, a protracted war of attrition is unlikely to end in the regime's favour — especially when its proxies such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and Hamas in Gaza have been severely weakened, rendering it alone in the region. Nevertheless, Iran still wields some leverage against the United States; in particular, it sits in a strategic location to enact a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, which would result in soaring oil prices. Roughly 20 per cent of the world's petroleum passes through this narrow strait. Countries like China, India and Japan, which are reliant on the oil flowing out of the Persian Gulf, are particularly sensitive to such a price shock. Similarly, the US is not immune to the spike in oil prices, as it can stoke domestic inflation. A protester with a US dollar note taped over her mouth participates in a demonstration in support of Iran and Palestinians in Gaza, and against the actions of Israel and the United States in Sydney on June 22, 2025. — AFP pic On the other hand, sealing off the strait would almost certainly alienate Iran from whatever diplomatic goodwill remains. This would bolster not only the United States' but Israel's justification that Iran indeed poses a threat to the region and should be pressured into full surrender. However, when push comes to shove, Iran may still do the unthinkable to put the United States under international pressure to scale back its attack. Iran may also opt for a more calibrated retaliation against the United States by attacking its military installations in the region. A limited attack may demonstrate to international audiences that Iran does not yield to foreign aggression, which in turn signals to Israel that it retains sufficient capability and capacity to continue the fight. But every act of retaliation risks provoking further escalation with severe casualties, as Trump warned, 'any retaliation will be met with force far greater than what was witnessed tonight'. That brings us to Iran's final, starkest option: capitulation and de-escalation to preserve the survival of its current regime. Faced with the very real prospect of regime collapse, the Ayatollah regime could forswear its nuclear enrichment programme in exchange for a ceasefire. While this would leave hardliners furious and undermine Iran's narrative of resistance, it might be the only way to preserve the Islamic Republic. If the bunker-busting bomb dropped by the US has indeed obliterated the facilities and set back the development of its nuclear weapons for years, further defiance would serve no purpose in the interest of regime survival. Iran is at a crossroads now. Its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is allegedly sheltering in a bunker and has picked his successor in the event of his assassination. Its proxies are weakened. Although the current Israeli attack has also riled up deep-seated patriotism among Iranians, the regime remains deeply unpopular at home. Tehran may yet attempt a Hail Mary to slay the Goliath that is the US — but the odds are stacked against it. Its next move will no doubt shape the future of Iran. * This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
Malay Mail
11 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Driverless dreams: Elon Musk's long-awaited robotaxi vision rolls out — cautiously — in Texas pilot
SAN FRANCISCO, June 22 — Elon Musk's vision of Tesla's future is set for a public test today, when a dozen or so self-driving cars in Austin, Texas start a limited, paid robotaxi service. Though Tesla is dispensing with a webcast product launch event helmed by Musk, fans will be scouring the internet for videos and reports from the coterie of invited riders that will be allowed to hail the small stable of Model Y SUVs for trips within a limited area of the city, accompanied by a Tesla safety monitor in the front passenger seat. The driver's seat will be empty. 'Wow. We are going to ride in driverless Teslas in just a few days. On public roads,' posted Omar Qazi, an user with 635,200 followers who writes often about Tesla using the handle @WholeMarsBlog and received an invite. The service in Austin will have other restrictions as well. Tesla plans to avoid bad weather, difficult intersections, and won't take anyone below the age of 18. Musk has said he is ready to delay the start for safety reasons, if needed. Tesla is worth more than most of its biggest rivals combined, and Musk has said that is supported by the company's future ability to create robotaxis and humanoid robots. For years, he has promised self-driving cars were just around the corner. Commercialising autonomous vehicles has been risky and expensive. GM's Cruise was shut down after a fatal accident and regulators are closely watching Tesla and its rivals, Alphabet's Waymo, which runs a paid robotaxi service in several US cities, and Amazon's Zoox. Tesla is also bucking the young industry's standard practice of relying on multiple technologies to read the road, using only cameras. That, says Musk, will be safe and much less expensive than lidar and radar systems added by rivals. Nonetheless, Musk says he is being 'super paranoid about safety' with the rollout. 'So far, this launch lags significantly behind the company's promise and what competitors have already delivered,' said technology researcher Forrester's principal analyst Paul Miller. Fans have welcomed the caution and the long-awaited arrival. Qazi said on X, Tesla was launching 'extremely cautiously, which is good.' — Reuters
