In this episode of Stuck@Om, my dear friend Reilly Brennan — lead partner of Trucks Venture Capital — joins me to talk about the future of the transportation industry. We have a very philosophical conversation about how the Coronavirus pandemic has taken away our basic level of societal trust. Will we think twice before climbing in an Uber ride? What about public transportation? We wonder if rideshare services will start monitoring the health of their drivers and whether or not their vehicles are frequently disinfected.
Reilly’s venture capital firm invests in auto industry startups in their earliest stages, so he has unique insight into the autonomous vehicle industry and the strides they’re making. We talk about delivery robotics and the increased need for autonomous vehicles to deliver necessities like groceries. We question how the auto industry will survive as dealerships across America are being shut-down.
It is now becoming apparent that we — as a society — need to redefine what is essential and our treatment of essential workers. Delivery drivers are risking their lives to deliver goods to provide for their families. Families now quarantined at home and teaching their children are realizing just how much work teachers carry on their shoulders. We have an immense need for more healthcare workers who are now on the front-line of the battle. These people need to be treated as essential outside of pandemics and war-time.
Reilly and I discuss the auto industry in-depth and toss around what the future landscape of the industry could look like. Perhaps people will gravitate towards purchasing new vehicles versus ridesharing or public transportation. The truth is — we don’t know. Please, give our conversation a listen.
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Outline of This Episode
- Reilly Brennan joins me in this episode
- The creation and launching of delivery robotics
- We must redefine what we define as ‘essential’
- Do we need to rethink capitalism?
- How will the automobile sector survive a prolonged shutdown?
- The difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting
- The projected future of electric vehicles
- How the micro-mobility landscape will change