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Welcome to the week before Christmas, where Amazon shipping is everyone’s best friend! Today we welcome the ASOTU crew to Nashville, but we have to talk about some news. Elon may be stepping down as head honcho at Twitter, driverless cars are getting more popular in China, and we recap one of the greatest World Cup finals of all time.

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• At least 58% of Elon Musk’s Twitter tribe want him to step down from his current role as CEO according to the poll he, himself posted yesterday with the caption, “Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll.”

  • Over 17.5 M vote split 58/42
  • Tesla shares are up 5% on the news although are at a 52 week low and half of what they were a year ago
  • This move could have big implications for Tesla as many large investors and strategists say the company has effectively been operating without a working CEO since Musk finalized the deal with Twitter and took over as active CEO
• Baidu Inc.’s Apollo program, which allows customers to hail and ride a fully autonomous robotaxi, has racked up more than 1.4 million public journeys
  • Rides on the promotional program start at about 65 cents for a 10 mile drive.
  • Currently vehicles with steering wheels are being used in combination with a LIDAR technology bolted on, giving drivers a somewhat unnerving feeling as the wheel moves.
  • The passenger also sees a rendering of the camera views from the car with animated pedestrians and road elements
• Some saying the World Cup final yesterday was the best of the last century
  • 3-3 Final saw Mbappe and Messi battling it out through extra time when Argentina won on penalties
  • Messi, one of the top players of all time, cements his legacy by leading Argentina to the World Cup win
  • After much controversy leading up to the cup, Qatar has proven to be a powerful holding ground for this year’s competition

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.

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