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I'm a journalist and editor who specializes in the business of tech, including autonomous…
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Kirsten Korosec reposted thisKirsten Korosec reposted thisNEW: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA is investigating George Hotz's hands-free driver assistance tech comma.ai after five reported crashes, two of them fatal. The probe involves some crashes where the drivers were apparently using forked versions of Comma's "openpilot" software. Breaking story here on TechCrunch, will update with more info: https://lnkd.in/eMZDTemXComma's hands-off driving tech under investigation after 2 fatal crashes | TechCrunchComma's hands-off driving tech under investigation after 2 fatal crashes | TechCrunch
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Kirsten Korosec shared thisCheck out Sean O'Kane latest data-driven story on test driver injuries. The important item to note here (and one that Sean also made) is that there is certainly more injuries occurring at other companies as well, but they are not being reported for a number of reasons. His story covers why. Check it out!Kirsten Korosec shared thisNew investigation from me: Waymo and Zoox test drivers were injured dozens of times across 2024/2025 as a result of harsh braking -- often for no apparent reason -- or erratic movement by the autonomous vehicles, a review of OSHA data shows. 2026 data won't be available until next year, so put a pin in that for now, though I was able to speak to five Zoox contractors who told me the harsh braking (known internally as "brake jabs") were still happening regularly this summer and that workers were still getting injured. I'll leave the rest of the details in my story on TechCrunch because I hope you'll read it, but a few notes. This figure is likely an undercount of total injuries for a few reasons. These injury reports only get made public at locations with more than 100 employees, meaning smaller ones that haven't scaled yet aren't covered. These reports are also only public because of the NAICS code Zoox and Transdev (Waymo's test driver vendor) use w/ OSHA. If other AV companies (or maybe even other locations!) classify themselves as, say, R&D and not taxi/limo, there's not as much disclosure. Also, Zoox issued a recall last year related to harsh braking that resolved a federal investigation. Four of the injuries in the OSHA data came after that, though Zoox told me the recall addressed an extremely narrow braking behavior and said the later incidents — and any resulting injuries — are unrelated to the software fix. Thank you to the contractors who spoke to me for this story, and if you have something to share about this issue, or anything else in the world of robotaxis, get ahold of me on Signal: okane.01 https://lnkd.in/etbD7_VHSprains, pain, and whiplash: Waymo and Zoox test drivers are getting hurt as robotaxis scale | TechCrunchSprains, pain, and whiplash: Waymo and Zoox test drivers are getting hurt as robotaxis scale | TechCrunch
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Kirsten Korosec shared thisNew story for me about a startup I first wrote about waaay back in 2019. Tl;dr: autonomous vehicle startup Gatik raised $200M, its largest to date. When the company first debuted, I thought it was an interesting idea (using box trucks for short haul deliveries) mostly because no one else was really focused on this slice of the AV world. And it seems to be paying off; the company is operating commercially in multiple markets and hopes to have 100 driverless trucks operating commercially by the end of the year. Link below: https://lnkd.in/g7Gb_WA4Self-driving truck startup Gatik raises $200M following PepsiCo deal | TechCrunchSelf-driving truck startup Gatik raises $200M following PepsiCo deal | TechCrunch
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Kirsten Korosec reposted thisKirsten Korosec reposted thisNew from me: A U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) lab has spent the last few months performing a security review of Chinese lidar, in an attempt to discover any vulnerabilities. The twist? It's being privately funded, I'm told, by a company -- possibly a few -- in the electric and/or autonomous vehicle industries, suggesting they're looking for a clean bill of health in the face of multiple attempts from lawmakers to outright ban the use of Chinese lidar. Some of the most obvious candidates like Rivian, General Motors, Ford Motor Company, and Uber / Lucid Motors / Nuro told me they weren't aware of the review. Others like NVIDIA, Aurora, and Zoox did not respond to my requests for comment. Thanks to Innoviz Technologies' Omer David Keilaf for talking to me about what the menu of security concerns might be. If YOU 🫵 know more about this review, give me a shout on Signal: okane.01 More on TechCrunch: https://lnkd.in/eMeDKSBCExclusive: US government lab is probing Chinese-made lidar for security vulnerabilities | TechCrunchExclusive: US government lab is probing Chinese-made lidar for security vulnerabilities | TechCrunch
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Kirsten Korosec shared thisNHTSA has given Zoox a temporary exemption that will allow it to finally charge for rides in it custom-built robotaxi. You might remember that the company received an exemption from certain federal motor vehicle safety standards last year. But that only allowed Zoox to "demonstrate" the vehicle. Now, it can charge for rides, and it looks like it will soon, starting in Las Vegas. California? Well that's a bit more complicated. My story covers that, plus other NHTSA announcements made today that are related to AVs. https://lnkd.in/gpyBXC3EZoox clears final federal hurdle to launch paid robotaxi service | TechCrunchZoox clears final federal hurdle to launch paid robotaxi service | TechCrunch
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Kirsten Korosec reposted thisKirsten Korosec reposted thisNEW and first on TechCrunch: Rivian has sued the US government in a bid to recoup the money it lost to Trump's unconstitutional tariffs, which CFO Claire McDonough had said could be in the "tens of millions of dollars" The company joins a long line of others who've sued, as the CBP appears to be slow to approve and release some of the funds following February's Supreme Court decision. https://lnkd.in/etjxyQnKRivian sues the US government for 'full refund' of Trump tariffs | TechCrunchRivian sues the US government for 'full refund' of Trump tariffs | TechCrunch
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Kirsten Korosec shared thisAbout 16 months ago, I watched Uber and Waymo employees — grasping mugs of prickly pear margaritas and plates of Terry Black’s barbecue — celebrate the launch of Waymo robotaxis on the Uber app in Austin at a private party during SXSW. Today, execs at these two companies find themselves in opposing camps as they weigh in on a proposed bill in Washington DC. The debate around this bill doesn't just highlight tension between Waymo and Uber, which are still business partners in Austin and Atlanta. It's also a test case for Uber’s broader and emerging robotaxi strategy and its lobbying effort to require robotaxis to operate on a ride-hailing network that also uses human drivers. My story: https://lnkd.in/geAngbgY And this hearing is going to be streamed all day! Check it here. https://lnkd.in/gCFCwNTj
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Kirsten Korosec shared thisWondering what folks think of this directive? (And yes, we have reached out to Waymo and expect to update the article with the company's response). The edge cases comment is certainly direct. And yet, besides a warning this letter lacks details on what happens if a company doesn't comply or offer up "solutions" that the agency deems acceptable. https://lnkd.in/gptbyp9HFeds demand autonomous vehicle companies stop interfering with first responders | TechCrunchFeds demand autonomous vehicle companies stop interfering with first responders | TechCrunch
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Kirsten Korosec posted thisBack from a week-long vacation, what did I miss in the AV world? Probably nothing major, right? ;D
Kirsten Korosec commented on a post
3d
Kirsten Korosec commented on a post
2w
If you recall Dana, if folks wanted a test ride in the Roadster that night (which was like a two minute ride) they had to supposedly pony up the steep reservation fee for the Roadster.
Kirsten Korosec commented on a post
1mo
Congrats! Your instinct is right that it will take some time to flush out how the trip has changed you. I had my own big multi-month adventure back in 2008 - but it was thru hiking, not cycling.
I didn't become a different person, but the experience did shift my thinking, including how I saw the world and my place in it. It set a new bar for what is hard and uncomfortable. It really helped me as a journalist too, but not in the way most might think. Plus, I met some amazing, weird, and fun people! Enjoy the post-adventure brain rewiring. ;D
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisFound my beloved 1957 Porsche. Now, how to get it over to America?
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisBuilding a career on instinct is one thing. Building institutional-grade investing discipline on top of it is another. That's the theme of a special fireside chat we're hosting at Disrupt 2026 that features Mark Wahlberg (yes, that Wahlberg!), who’s attending as the co-founder of MUNICIPAL CO.. He’ll be joining Bruce K Lee, founder & CEO of Keebeck Wealth Management, who's helped guide Wahlberg's evolution as an investor. They'll get into deal flow, access, healthcare and wellness as investment opportunities, and where high-profile operators tend to make the wrong calls. And that’s just one of hundreds of sessions throughout Disrupt this year, join us October 13-15 in San Francisco by registering today: http://spr.ly/6007BGqKMd
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisDon't miss Kevin Peterson at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. Bedrock's Co-Founder and CTO joins Adrian Macneil, Co-Founder and CEO of Foxglove for a conversation led by Kirsten Korosec on the journey for robotics founders from prototype to product to scaling production for real-world commercial settings. If you’ll be at Disrupt this year, don't miss the session: From Prototype to Production: Can It Scale in Reality Weds Oct 14th | Moscone West | San Francisco 1:55pm — Real World AI Stage #TechCrunchDisrupt #Disrupt2026
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisOnce a year, we host a love letter to SF: our TechCrunch Disrupt afterparty, featuring live dance music from a 200M-stream artist. Comment for an invite DM as we had 4K RSVPs last year, so giving early access to friends!
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisRobots are fine and all, but get a load of this dog. Robot.com
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisI’m officially a boomerang. I’m excited to be back at Gazetteer, this time as a managing editor helping with editorial strategy and processes for both digital and print. A good amount of my work will be behind the scenes but you shouldn’t be surprised if and when you see my byline. I won’t have a beat, per se, but it’s safe to say you’ll see me writing about the Valkyries and professional women’s sports in the Bay (SF Firebells, anyone?). Very excited to be back. Let’s get it. https://lnkd.in/gP4YVHVr
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisHuge props to The New Stack's amazing team today. They killed it covering the news from Anthropic, OpenAI, and Jetbrains. Love this team of writers. If you're looking for the news that matters to AI-native developers, you need to follow these people. Nick L., Frederic Lardinois, Paul S., Meredith Shubel, Jessica Wachtel, Amanda Caswell, Adrian Bridgwater
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Kirsten Korosec liked thisKirsten Korosec liked thisThe #1 podcast in transportation. The #1 mobility party of the year. The Autonocast CES Party is on. Sponsorship packages are available. DM me.
Experience & Education
Volunteer Experience
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President of Board of Directors
Old Fort Lowell Live-at-Home Program
- 7 years 1 month
Social Services
This non-profit provides free services such as transportation to the elderly in the greater Old Fort Lowell Neighborhood in Tucson to help reduce isolation, increase independence, and ultimately keep these folks in their homes longer.
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Board Member
OLD FORT LOWELL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION INC
- Present 2 years 5 months
Publications
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http://fortune.com/author/kirsten-korosec/
Fortune
See publicationMy work at Fortune: more than 700 articles on autos, tech, business, and energy.
Honors & Awards
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Kappa Tau Alpha Honor Society
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