Heat Map for UAW Strike, Lithia’s Newest Adventure, Disney’s Blunder in AI Imagery

Shoot us a Text.

We’re coming in HOT on Tuesday as Automotive News releases an interactive heat map showing the UAW strike across the US. Lithia Motors shows progress and intends to not start a bidding war for possible Pendragon acquisition. In the ever expanding gray area of generative AI, Disney may have crossed a line by using AI generated images within a promo for their Disney+ series ‘Loki.’

• Thanks to Automotive News, we now can see how the UAW strike is impacting different areas of the US and what plants and supplies are being impacted with both striking workers and layoffs.
  • There are only a few plants that currently have over 1000 workers striking, with most facilities seeing less than 100 workers striking.
  • Offer updates show the gap between UAW demands and the OEM proposals, including generous PTO and holiday inclusions.
  • Stark difference in hourly labor costs between the big 3 and Tesla ($63-$67/hour currently compared to $45-50/hour at Tesla currently)
  • Seemingly direct correlation between combined market share and hourly labor costs since 1999

• Lithia Motors Inc. has raised its offer to acquire Pendragon's dealership and fleet businesses to $482 million, amid a competitive bidding environment involving multiple auto retailers.
  • Lithia Motors' initial offer for Pendragon was $350 million, which has now increased to $482 million.
  • Pendragon previously received a $544 million acquisition proposal from AutoNation Inc.
  • As part of the Lithia deal, Pendragon's DMS Pinewood will morph into Pinewood Technologies, with Lithia owning about a sixth of it.
  • Lithia already operates around 40 dealerships in the U.K. and anticipates rolling out the Pinewood DMS to other major retailers there.
  • David Whiston, analyst with Morningstar, noted, "There could be a lot more value long term for Pendragon shareholders by going with the Lithia deal versus the immediate cash payout to selling to AutoNation."

• AI may be making it into large creative company operations in an unwanted fashion as the jury is still out on whether Disney crossed the line with generative AI to create a ‘Loki’ poster.
  • Characteristics like randomly placed squiggly lines and awkward human shapes have led people to believe that generative AI has been used.
  • The most concerning piece is the background image, that looks to be taken from shutterstock from a user who seems to be uploading only AI imagery.
  • Though the background image is not flagged by Shutterstock as AI generated, many are pointing to a lack of good form by Disney on spotting the issue.

Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

Get the Daily Push Back email at https://www.asotu.com/

JOIN the conversation on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/asotu/