GM Says AI Can Cut Vehicle Development Time in Half. The Silverado Is the Test Case.
GM's new AI-powered design platform already helped cut prototype costs 20% on the 2027 Silverado while hitting performance targets in a third of the usual time. The company believes this could shrink development cycles from five years to two.
A Quarter of Shoppers Would Ditch Their Favorite Brand for Better Tech. Here's How to Actually Use That.
A new McKinsey survey shows tech features, not brand loyalty, are increasingly what wins or loses a sale, especially among buyers under 45. Premium brands have the most to lose.
Waymo's Robotaxis Are Great at Driving. Parking Is a Different Story.
Waymo has racked up 83 parking citations totaling over $9,000 in Austin alone, a small but genuinely funny reminder that even a technology proven statistically safer than human drivers can still trip over something as basic as reading a sign.
Ford Is Doing the Opposite of GM. Here's Why That Might Be the Smarter Bet.
Ford's upcoming $30,000 Universal EV Platform will embed Apple Maps directly into the vehicle display, a deliberate middle path between GM's move away from CarPlay entirely and Lucid's full embrace of smartphone mirroring.
Independent Shops Are Losing the Tech Race. Dealers Shouldn't Get Too Comfortable About It.
Rising diagnostic subscription costs and expensive calibration equipment are pushing independent repair shops toward retirement or closure. Don't read that as a permanent win for dealership service departments.
A Robotaxi Drove Into an Active Fire Scene. Here's What the Recall Actually Fixes.
Zoox is recalling all 105 of its robotaxis after one drove into a smoke-obscured fire scene in June. It's part of a pattern regulators say autonomous vehicle developers still haven't solved.
Hyundai Just Bought Full Control of Its Robot Future. Its Own Union Isn't Thrilled.
Hyundai is taking full ownership of Boston Dynamics and plans to deploy humanoid robots on its factory floor by 2028. Its own union is ramping up strikes over exactly that kind of automation.
Siri Got Smarter. Here's Why That's Worth Watching, Not Acting On Yet.
Apple's Siri overhaul finally arrived in the iOS 27 public beta, and early impressions are genuinely good. Whether it matters for your dealership depends entirely on something that hasn't happened yet.
Judge Sidesteps the Real Question About AI and Customer Calls
A federal judge dismissed a privacy lawsuit against AutoNation over AI call recording, but the ruling was about jurisdiction, not about whether recording calls without consent is actually okay.
For decades, Detroit exported its engineering to China. Now GM, Volkswagen, and Renault are increasingly sending the hardest problems there first, and letting the answers flow back.
Toyota's latest partnership won't change tomorrow's showroom traffic, but it offers a glimpse of how the world's largest automakers are thinking about transportation well beyond the driver's seat.
AI is becoming more capable by the week, but I think most dealerships are overlooking a foundational issue. Before AI can communicate, recommend, automate, or improve operations, it needs context. The dealerships documenting how they operate today will be in a much stronger position tomorrow.
Wayve Wants to Be the AI Driver for Everyone Not Named Tesla
If autonomous driving becomes an off-the-shelf supplier product, legacy brands may get a faster path to compete, and dealers may get a new customer education challenge.
Polestar's U.S. Exit Is About More Than One EV Brand
The Connected Vehicles Rule is no longer theoretical. It's beginning to reshape which automakers can compete in the U.S., and it signals a new chapter for global automotive retail.
Amazon-owned Zoox unveiled a redesigned version of its purpose-built robotaxi as it prepares to move from prototype to production. Unlike many autonomous vehicles, the Zoox is built from the ground up for ride-hailing, meaning there's no steering wheel or driver's seat.
California's Connected-Car Law Is About More Than Vehicle Sales
The law requires manufacturers to revoke remote vehicle access when presented with qualifying documentation and eventually give drivers the ability to disable location tracking directly from inside the vehicle.
Consumers Are Using AI Search More. They're Trusting It Less.
AI is becoming a major part of how shoppers discover dealerships, but consumers are increasingly rewarding brands that pair technology with authentic human connection.
AI's Chip Boom Is Becoming the Auto Industry's Problem
As AI companies consume more of the world's memory chips, vehicle technology costs are rising and dealers should expect the effects to show up in pricing, inventory, and customer buying decisions.
What Lyteflo's EV Battery Study Could Mean for Appraisals, Pricing, and Customer Trust
Understanding EV battery health is no longer a “we’ll figure it out later” problem for dealers. It shows up when you appraise the vehicle, when you decide how to price it, and when a customer asks why they should trust what you’re telling them about range, degradation, and long-term ownership.
A 27-Year-Old Founder Just Did Something the U.S. Nuclear Industry Hasn't Done in Decades
Instead of spending years refining presentations, models, and theoretical designs, Valar focused on building. Earlier this year, the company airlifted reactor components from California to Utah aboard military cargo aircraft, assembled the reactor onsite, and is now targeting power generation before July 4.
AI is moving from hype to dealership workflow. Here are the tools, tactics, and use cases dealers can use today to improve sales, service, marketing, and training.
