Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. Sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! I kicked off my week at UP.Summit , an invite-only event that was held this year in Bentonville, Arkansas, to meet up with founders and investors focused on the future of transportation.
UP.Summit has always celebrated U.S.
innovation and this year was no different, but there was more of an urgent and existential undertone this year. And with it an even bigger embrace of dual-use technology — meaning tech like software, autonomous vehicles, and aviation used for both civilian and military purposes. Defense tech is hot these days, and conversations (both on and off the stage) at the UP.
Summit reflected this broader trend. Oh, before I forget, if you want to follow my work but are more of a listener than a reader, may I suggest the Equity Podcast or The Autonocast ? I’m on both! And this week, I popped over to TechCrunch’s Found podcast to talk to the co-founder of Motorway , a startup that connects car owners with dealers looking to buy and resell their vehicles. A little bird Remember all of the deals and partnerships a few years ago surrounding electric semitrucks? Major corporations like PepsiCo , which operates its own fleet, and Coca-Cola bottlers were keen to try out and eventually bring electric semitrucks manufactured by Tesla, Daimler’s Freightliner eCascadia, Nikola, and Kenworth into their t.
