The Robot Trucks Are Coming
This week, we talk about how we are getting closer to seeing electric and driverless trucks on the road.
Welcome to our weekly chat about the environmental and social issues that influence the way we work, spend our money and live our lives. We're your hosts, Maitane Sardon and Dieter Holger. Want to get our newsletter every Wednesday? Hit the subscribe button in the upper right corner and please share with your friends!
Hi Dieter. We are getting closer to seeing driverless trucks on our highways. Ike, a startup that builds automation technology, teamed up with big transporters Ryder System, NFI Industries and the U.S. arm of Germany’s Deutsche Post to put robot trucks on American roads.
The contest is fierce. Some companies are building out their own prototype fleets and others, like Ike, are planning to offer the driverless software through subscriptions. NFI, a New Jersey-based logistics provider, said self-driving trucks could compete well against regular haulers since they could run almost 24/7.
But the future of driverless trucks is still hazy. Startup Starsky Robotics, which ran its own fleet, shut down in March after four years, saying that “investors really didn’t like the business model of being the operator.” Ike also says widespread adoption of autonomous long-haul trucks is still years away.
Cars and trucks are some of the biggest contributors to climate change. How could this tech be good for the planet, Maitane?
Jonathan Waghorn, a fund manager who looks after investments in smart-transportation, told me electric vehicles can save a lot of emissions and autonomous vehicles can reduce traffic accidents by 70%. He also said combining these with ride-sharing services could lower transportation costs by 80%. Publicly traded Nikola is another company making electric and fuel-cell trucks. Earlier this month, it won an order for 2,500 electric garbage trucks.
Speaking of electric cars, it got cheaper to buy shares in Tesla and Apple thanks to recent stock splits that went down on Monday. That helped shares of both companies soar. Stock splits can sound confusing, but the idea is simple. In Apple’s case, its 4-1 split meant that someone with one share got three extra shares. It also means the price of the original share divides by four, so a $400 share split by 4-1 trades at $100. (Tesla did a 5-1 split.) Stock splits are pretty rare these days and investors already have other ways to buy cheaply into companies. Brokers like Charles Schwab let you buy a fraction of a share for as little as $5.
What am I looking at? The chart above shows how Apple and Tesla stock went up until Aug. 31 after their stock splits were announced, compared with the New York Stock Exchange FANG+ index that averages out the performance of a host of tech stocks, including Amazon, Facebook and Netflix.
Maybe more companies will follow Apple and Tesla since this move was such a boost to their stock. Apple’s market value surpassed $2 trillion after it said it would do the split. Although we will probably only see more of these splits from companies with very high valuations and stock prices. Anything else on your mind, Dieter?
Airlines are getting rid of change fees to sell more tickets after the pandemic wrecked travel. It all started when United Airlines said it wouldn’t charge the fees for flights in the U.S. The next day, American Airlines and Delta did the same. American also dropped international change fees for flights to and from Canada, the Caribbean and Mexico.
It will be interesting to see if this spills over into other countries. Lufthansa already says it won’t charge rebooking fees for flights world-wide until December. Now let’s open it up to our readers: Do you think it’s a good thing for driverless trucks to hit the road?
Share your thoughts below, email us or catch us on Twitter. Your words could appear in our next edition! Have a great week and remember to wash your hands. 👋
Meet the team:
Elevate the Conversation is produced by the editorial teams of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. Here's a little bit more about us, along with our contact information. We'd love to hear from you.
Dieter Holger, Reporter: I have a knack for uncovering values-based investing trends and I’m obsessed with spreadsheets and charts. I really enjoy ‘80s music, skateboarding and yoga (but I’m bad at both). dieter.holger@wsj.com @dieterholger
Maitane Sardon, Reporter: I have a passion for amplifying the voices of those at the center of stories. I love running on Barcelona’s beaches and binging on chocolate ice-cream to compensate (it’s all about balance). maitane.sardon@wsj.com @sardomaitane
Catherine Lindsay, Editor: I like breaking down complex ideas and explaining them. On the weekend, you’ll find me wandering the city with my film camera at the ready. catherine.lindsay@wsj.com @CathsLindsay
Tammy Lian, Designer: As a visual producer, I'm always excited by the challenge of creative problem solving. In my spare time, you can usually find me taking care of my ever-growing collection of plants and drinking tea. tammy.lian@wsj.com @violian.tammy