Sept 20 (Reuters) – Chip giant Nvidia Corp (NVDA.O) on Tuesday unveiled its new computing platform called DRIVE Thor that would centralize autonomous and assisted driving as well as other digital functions including in-car entertainment. Danny Shapiro, head of Nvidia's automotive business, said DRIVE Thor would be able to replace numerous chips and cables in the car and bring down the overall system cost, although he did not give specific numbers on savings. Some automakers have begun work on designing their own chips to gain more control and cut costs. General Motor's (GM.N) autonomous driving unit Cruise last week said it had developed its own chips to be deployed by 2025. "There's a lot of companies doing great work, doing things that will benefit mankind and we want to support them," Shapiro said.

With retail stalwart Macy's announcing significant store closures across the United States, it's clear that the reign of the brick and mortar kings has long since passed. Every business in operation today has either embraced digital transformation, is no longer operating, or has been purchased by an e-commerce giant. From local dealerships and neighborhood service centers to the largest suppliers of automotive vehicles and products, going digital is now mandatory. In fact, "traditional stores are closing down at a faster pace than ever before, with around 12,000 stores closing by the end of 2019, and the ones remaining are struggling to understand how to adapt to the new shopping paradigms." Alternatively, "over 40% of ecommerce sales being done on a mobile device."

Advances in artificial intelligence are changing the way automakers and their suppliers think about autonomous technology. Boosts in brainpower are not only accelerating the timeframe to bring self-driving technology to the marketplace, they're also broadening the scope of companies' ambition. "We're not just talking about autonomous cars," said Stefan Sommer, CEO of ZF Group. "We are talking about autonomous everything." At the CES technology show in Las Vegas, Sommer unveiled his company's newest product, an electronic control unit that contains artificial-intelligence software tailored for self-driving vehicles, including not only cars but also trains, buses, forklifts, trucks, tractors, and mining equipment.