Silicon Valley Tech News Roundup – August 22nd

The US investigates Tesla Autopilot – 8/17

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) started investigating Tesla’s “self-driving” Autopilot system. The investigation is the result of 11 Tesla crashes into emergency vehicles covering the period since 2018.

The primary focus of the investigation is the issue of Teslas not managing the problem of other vehicles stopped on the road, in this case, emergency vehicles at the scene of an incident.
In a statement, NHTSA said they would investigate: “the technologies and methods used to monitor, assist, and enforce the driver’s engagement” while the driver is using Autopilot. The technology assists drivers when accelerating, steering and braking. However, some argue that the investigation is misleading. The drivers have to maintain control of the vehicles at all times and remain alert.

NHTSA will investigate all of the current models: Model 3, Model Y, Model X, and Model S, and the scope of the investigation will include 765.000 cars made from 2014 onward.

California approves new energy codes to reduce fossil fuel emissions – 8/16

The California Energy Commission approved new energy codes to incentivize the use of efficient cooling and heating systems and electrical appliances to decrease the use of fossil fuels. The new energy codes apply to all new residential developments and businesses like retail and grocery stores, restaurants, medical offices, and motels.

The most notable difference in the codes is the inclusion of heat pumps. With this inclusion, they are now the standard for water and space heating. Heat pumps heat water, run on electricity, and provide cooling and heating for homes. Furthermore, the new codes require all new construction to be electric-ready. The developers have to install electric wiring (even if they install gas stoves) so that the owners can switch to electricity if they want to.

The problem, however, remains with older houses. The electric retrofit is often costly and too expensive for lower-income households.

Rural Texas – new crypto mining destination – 8/17

Argo Blockchain, a Canadian cryptocurrency mining company, is building a cryptocurrency mine in Dickens County, Texas. Cryptocurrency mining companies are moving to rural Texas because the electricity is cheap and the power grid is deregulated, which means the companies can choose providers that offer the best rates. Likewise, 20% of the state’s energy comes from wind power. When compared to China, where two-thirds of the crypto mining energy comes from coal, Texas is a greener alternative. BIT Mining, a Chinese company, invested $25 million to build a mining facility in Texas.

Two months ago, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed a law putting cryptocurrency under commercial law. That way, the cryptocurrency companies can more easily operate in the state.

So far, China was known as the global hub for crypto mining. However, in May, the government vowed to crack down on crypto mining and trading activities. The local energy bureau in the Sichuan province (the second biggest crypto mining province in China) ordered 26 suspected crypto mining projects to close.

Bezos’ Blue Origin sues NASA – 8/16

Last Friday, Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ space company, filed a complaint with the US Court of Federal Claims. The company claims NASA wrongly evaluated their lunar lander proposal. While the complaint is behind a protective order, Blue Origins lawyers claim in a separate filing they are challenging ” NASA’s unlawful and improper evaluation of proposals.”

Elon Musk’s SpaceX won the contract for the Artemis Moon Program with NASA deciding on their $2.9 billion Starship proposal. The contract is for two lunar landings – a test landing without humans and a human landing. According to the federal data, SpaceX already received $439 million. NASA claimed it would pick two companies for the project. In the end, they went with one.

Blue Origins’ spokesperson said about the lawsuit: “We firmly believe that the issues identified in this procurement and its outcomes must be addressed to restore fairness, create competition, and ensure a safe return to the Moon for America.”

The latest development could trigger another delay in the Artemis Moon Program. In April, Blue Origin filed a protest with the Government Accountability Office, and it delayed SpaceX’s contract for 95 days. Government Accountability Office found NASA’s decision fair and lawful.