Chat With Junko and Bola
The Audacity of Tenstorrent
Podcast Guest: Keith Witek, chief operating officer at Tenstorrent
How could a semiconductor startup working in AI crack a competitive marketplace already lopsidedly locked in by Nvidia Corp., a giant with a $2.2 trillion market cap?
Cruise Crash Walkthrough Analysis
Podcast Guest: Phil Koopman, safety expert and professor at Carnegie Mellon University
Phil Koopman's stellar one-hour walkthrough of what happened at the Cruise Robotaxi crash on Oct. 2, 2023.
2024: Still Waiting for ‘Something Really Bad’
Podcast Guest: Phil Koopman, safety expert and professor at Carnegie Mellon University
The failures of some automakers were obvious. But haven’t regulators also failed us as much, or more? Why does it always take something really big to happen before regulators wake and take action?
Magna: ‘Let’s Start Saving Lives … Today’
Podcast Guests:
Chris Van Dan Elzen, vice president, radar at Magna International
Tom Herbert, director, product strategy at Magna International
“Saving people’s lives” shouldn’t be a marketing tagline saved for robotaxi companies. Human-driven vehicles are still best positioned today to save people’s lives — both inside (drivers and passengers) and outside their vehicles (pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicles sharing the road).
At Cruise, What’s Said Internally Counts a Lot
Podcast Guest: Jackie Erickson, communications and government affairs expert
The fate of Cruise hangs on many factors, including General Motors’ leadership, money and its commitment to safety. But the restoration of Cruise’s credibility must start inside, with its own employees.
Cruise's Survival Hangs in The Balance
Guest: Bryan Reimer, research scientist. MIT
On Thursday, several hours after we recorded a conversation with Bryan Reimer, during which he proposed that Cruise “stand down and reboot nationally,” the robotaxi company announced via X (formerly known as Twitter) that it has decided to pause driverless operations across all its fleets.
Can Laws Reverse Public Mistrust of AV?
Guests:
William H. Widen, Professor, University of Miami School of Law
Philip Koopman, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, Carnegie Mellon University
Robotaxi operations in San Francisco today present the complete disarray of politics, technology, regulation and business interests surrounding fully autonomous vehicles (AVs).
Cruise Should Stop, Reboot
Guest: Guest: Bryan Reimer, research scientist. MIT
While the robotaxi fiasco continued to unfold on the streets of San Francisco, we got together with Bryan Reimer, a research scientist at MIT. We asked: What needs to happen next for the Autonomous Vehicle (AV) industry and the public to establish confidence in robotaxis?
Podcast: Fallouts from Aborted Nvidia-Arm Deal Persist
Guest: Mike Feibus, president and principal analyst of FeibusTech
Nearly three years ago, Mike Feibus bluntly told the editors of the Ojo-Yoshida Report that Nvidia’s then planned $40 billion purchase of Arm Ltd., would not happen. The deal died as Feibus had predicted, squashed by “significant regulatory challenges.”
India’s Chips Journey Starts with Assembly, Test, Packaging
Guest: Arijit Raychowdhury, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering at Georgia Tech
At Semicon India last month, Arijit Raychowdhury, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, heard Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi mention Moore’s Law in his 15-minute keynote, talking about “what India must do.” Raychowdhury was amazed. He saw in this comment genuine sign of political will and a commitment of national energy to semiconductors.
Podcast: OceanGate's Submersible Design Was Deeply Flawed
Guest: Curt Newport
They likely died instantaneously, within milliseconds. The five passengers diving to the Titanic aboard OceanGate’s Titan submersible in June did not have to perish this way. Safety and certification protocols were dodged. And, it turns out, OceanGate CEO’s Stockton Rush’s carbon-fiber submersible design was deeply flawed.
Podcast: Ground Truth for Highly Automated Vehicles
Guest: Phil Magney
The tremendous progress in a host of technologies ranges from cameras, radars and lidars to the emergence of AI. But where, in this light, does our automotive infrastructure stand? Have we thought about how highly automated vehicles perceive our roads?
We talk to Phil Magney, founder and president of VSI Labs.
Podcast: Western EV Battery Strategy Starts with Final Assembly
Guest: Author Charles Murray
China’s lead in electric vehicle (EV) battery technology and production appears insurmountable. Is there any segment of the EV battery supply chain where U.S.-based competitors can catch up?
Podcast: What’s Next for Microchip’s Steve Sanghi?
Guest: Steve Sanghi, Executive chairman, Microchip Technology Inc.
As executive chairman of Microchip Technology Inc., Steve Sanghi still has a firm hand in shaping the direction of the chipmaker he began leading as CEO 32 years ago.
Nowadays, though, Sanghi goes into the office only three days a week. The rest of his time is spent mentoring folks inside and outside Microchip and assisting in charting the future of two technology companies where he currently serves as chairman of the board of directors
Podcast: Let’s Talk About AV Liability
Guests: William Widen, Professor of Law at the University of Miami
Phil Koopman, Associate Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University
Let’s cut to the chase. Who’s accountable when a highly automated vehicle gets into a crash? To such a seemingly simple question, there should be a straightforward answer. But today, there isn’t. With the absence of statutes that address this dilemma, the fundamental definition of who’s the driver in a self-driving car widely varies from state to state. It’s the computer, or it’s the owner, or it’s the person who turned on the "Go" button.
Podcast: What's China EV Inc.'s Next Move?
Guest: Tu Le, founder and managing director of Sino Auto Insights, a Beijing-based consultancy for transportation and mobility.
If you are wondering how automakers in the West – Volkswagen, GM, Ford and others – have ended up where they are today in the Chinese EV market, Tu Le, founder of Sino Auto Insights, is your guide.
Podcast: First the Gorging, Now the Hangover, plus other Problems
Guest: Dale Ford, Chief analyst, Electronics Components Industry Association
Electronics manufacturers can’t seem to get a break. 2023 began with quickly realized hopes for an end to the severe supply shortages that disrupted manufacturing for two years. But now the industry is facing a battery of other challenges that similarly pose significant financial problems for OEMs and chip vendors alike.
Podcast: No More Passing the Buck on IoT Cybersecurity
Guest: Colin Duggan, CEO and co-founder of BG Networks
For most of us, it isn’t easy to connect the dots between North Korea’s recent hack on 3CX, and the threats everyday IoT devices face today. How does a nation state’s attack on an enterprise phone software provider have to do with malfunctions in a smartwatch or pacemaker?
Podcast: How to Build a 'Human Centered Vehicle'
Guest: Bryan Reimer, a research scientist in the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics
Bryan Reimer is one of the key architects of the Advanced Vehicle Technology (AVT) Consortium, an academic-industry partnership. Since 2016, the AVT group has been collecting data on the typical driver’s naturalistic behavior behind the wheel.
Podcast: RISC-V Has Crossed the Chasm
Guest: Rupert Baines, CMO at Codasip
We caught up with Rupert Baines, CMO at Codasip, last month to prepare ourselves for the upcoming Embedded World, a trade fair scheduled in mid-March in Nuremburg, Germany.
Podcast: Missy Cummings Is No Debbie Downer
Guest: Missy Cummings, Professor in the George Mason University Mechanical Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Computer Science departments
Missy Cummings, director of George Mason University’s Center for Robotics, Autonomous Systems, and Translational AI. A naval officer and military pilot from 1988-1999, she became one of the Navy’s first female fighter pilots, flying an F/A-18 Hornet.
Chip Industry's Twists and Turns in 2023
Guest: Jean-Christophe Eloy, President and CEO, Yole Group
Geopolitical rifts and the decoupling of the world’s two largest economies, events that shook the global semiconductor industry over last year, will continue to play out throughout 2023.
We examine how the politics of semiconductor technology and global competition will unfold in the coming year with veteran industry watcher Jean-Christophe Eloy.
2023 Predictions of AV and Driver Assist
Phil Koopman, safety expert and associate professor with the Carnegie Mellon University
Among those chasing the dream of highly automated vehicles, Argo.ai dramatically dropped out of the race. Meanwhile, others like Cruise and Waymo are busy doubling down as they tout expanded footprints for their robotaxi operations.
Mike Noonen Goes to Swave, an Imec Spin-off
Guest: Mike Noonen, CEO, Swave Photonics
We crossed paths with serial entrepreneur Mike Noonen at the recent Electronica trade fair in Munich. Noonen’s latest venture is Swave Photonics, which seeks to advance holography developed by Imec, a renowned R&D institute in the fields of nanoelectronics and digital technologies (Leuven, Belgium).
Chip War -- Intimately Tied to U.S.-China Military Rivalry
Chris Miller, prof. at Tufts Univ., and author of a book -- "Chip War: The Flight for the World's Most Critical Technology."
The military and economic competition between the People’s Republic of China and the United States increasingly focuses on semiconductor technology. The U.S. and its Western allies control much of the technology China seeks or is striving to develop.
Long Hard Road: The Lithium-Ion Battery and the Electric Car
Guest: Charles J. Murray, the author of a book on the lithium-ion battery history, "Long Hard Road."
The initial reaction from the publishing world to Charles Murray’s proposed history of the lithium-ion battery was, well, low voltage. That changed in 2019 when John B. Goodenough, the German-born American physicist won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry (shared with M. Stanley Whittingham and Akiro Yoshino) for development of a lithium battery with a cobalt oxide cathode.
Let's Break Down Volkswagen-Horizon Deal in China
Tu Le, managing director of Sino Auto Insights, a Beijing-based consultancy.
When news broke that Volkswagen was making 2.4 billion euro investment in China’s Horizon Robotics, Tu Le, managing director of Beijing-based consultancy Sino Auto Insights, told us, “The German automaker has no way to compete with Tesla save by partnering with China.”
Who Is Seeing Machines?
Guest: Paul McGlone, CEO, Seeing Machines
Under an exclusive deal, Seeing Machines and Tier One Magna have emerged as co-owners and co-marketers of the hottest technology needed by every carmaker in the world: a driver and occupant monitoring system integrated into a rearview mirror.
How Safe Is Safe Enough?
Guest: Phil Koopman, safety expert on autonomous vehicles and associate professor with the Carnegie Mellon University
We invited to our latest postcast Phil Koopman, a safety expert and associate porfessor of Carnegie Mellon University, to discuss his latest book, How Safe Is Safe Enough?, just dropped over the Labor Day weekend.
Intel Should Focus on Fabrication
Guest: Dan Breznitz, Professor, Global Affairs & Public Policy and Political Science, University of Toronto
If, as he asserts, “innovation is hope,” then political economist Dan Breznitz remains hopeful we can again find ways to make the things we need rather than relying on tenuous overseas supply lines.
How to Spend CHIPS Act $52B
Arijit Raychowdhury, Professor- Computer Engineering at Georgia Tech
After two years of legislative maneuvering, the U.S. Congress at last acted in late July to strengthen American technology supply chains with passage of the $280 billion Chips and Science Act.
RISC-V: Should You Join Open Hardware Group?
Rick O'Connor, president of Open Hardware Group
Our podcast guest this week is Rick O’Connor, president of Open Hardware Group. As many readers may remember, O’Connor was founding executive director of the RISC-V Foundation, a predecessor to today’s RISC-V International.
What Does the Future Hold for RISC-V?
Guest: Calista Redmond, RISC-V International CEO
Redmond is a dynamic executive representing the nonprofit organization fostering the adoption of RISC-V cores. Asked about the industry group’s trajectory, she explained: “RISC-V had formatively gotten through the wrangles of startup mode and fully into operational state and explicit growth at the same time.”
Podcast: Qualcomm & Others: Why Buy a Stake in Arm?
Guest: Mike Feibus, president and principal analyst of FeibusTech
Our guest this week is Mike Feibus, president and principal analyst of Feibus Tech. Mike is also a member of the Ojo-Yoshida Report‘s editorial advisory board. We invited Mike back to discuss a proposed consortium of chip companies buying a stake in Arm. The idea was floated by Qualcomm CEO Christiano Amon in a recent interview with the Financial Times.
Podcast: China's EV/AV Markets on a Roll
Tu Le of Sino Auto Insights steers us through the nascent mobility sectors and considers potential potholes like future overcapacity.
Our guest on this episode is Tu Le, founder and managing director of Sino Auto Insights, a Beijing-based “innovation and management” consulting firm. Talk about unique perspectives! Tu Le’s family immigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam. Tu grew up in Detroit and worked at GM assembly plants. He also spent time in Silicon Valley before sensing the future was in China.
Podcast: History's Lessons for High-Tech Hubris
Peter Norton, associate professor of history in the Department of Engineering and Society at the University of Virginia
Our guest this episode is Peter Norton, associate professor of history in the Department of Engineering and Society at the University of Virginia. Norton is author the recently published “Autonorama: The Illusory Promise of High-Tech Driving.”
Podcast: Can AV Bill Do Right by People?
Phil Koopman, associate professor with the Carnegie Mellon University; Computer Engineering, and Bill Widen, professor at the University of Miami School of Law
We discuss the autonomous vehicle bill, just voted out of the Pennsylvania Senate’s Transportation Committee last week and is now heading to the Senate floor. What’s in the bill? What’s not in the bill?
Podcast: Road to 5-Star DMS Rating
Guest: Colin Barnden, lead analyst at Semicast Research.
Driver Monitoring Systems (DMS) will practically be mandated for any new car model launched on the European market by 2023. Euro NCAP recently released a 40-page protocol document detailing what it takes for carmakers to get a 5-star DMS rating. We asked Colin Barnden to break it down.
Podcast: Nvidia-Arm Deal Blatantly Infringes Antitrust Law
Guest: Mike Feibus, president and principal analyst of FeibusTech (Scottsdale, Arizona)
Will a minority stake in Arm be the most Nvidia is allowed? Or will Nvidia be allowed a chance to buy only a small portion of the IP licensor, such as the artificial intelligence part? And will that prompt Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to throw in the towel on his mega-merger aspiration?
Podcast: Testing Does Not Equal Safety
Guest: Phil Koopman, associate professor at Carnegie Mellon University
Will a minority stake in Arm be the most Nvidia is allowed? Or will Nvidia be allowed a chance to buy only a small portion of the IP licensor, such as the artificial intelligence part? And will that prompt Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to throw in the towel on his mega-merger aspiration?
Podcast: Apple Car Hurry-Up Targets Apps & Service Developers
Guest: Colin Barnden, principal analyst at Semicast Research
We asked Colin Barden: 1) what he envisions as a “wild card” Apple car’s Human-Machine Interface, 2) what sort of new services the Apple car platform might enable, and 3) if apps and services are the name of the game for Apple cars, how soon Apple might have to make its car platform available to developers.
Podcast: TSMC Adds 'Intellectual Supply Chain' With U.S. Fab
Guest: Arijit Raychowdhury, EE prof. at Georgia Tech
Does a premier U.S. engineering school like Georgia Tech need a TSMC chip fab in Arizona? Absolutely. Not for strengthening the physical supply chain but for creating an “intellectual supply chain,” says Arijit Raychowdhury, a Georgia Tech EE professor.
Peter Clarke's
Semiconductor Observer
Podcast: The European Chips Act is a political pipe dream, lacks focus
Podcast: What's the State of Phase-change Memory?
Podcast: Nvidia's Declining Prospects
Download Transcript in PDF