Emerging Technology

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these hyperlinks are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored.

Defining Emerging Technology

The words “Emerging Technology” suggests that it would mean technology recently coming out. This is partially true, as it usually does refer to a new technology, but it can also refer to the continuing development of an existing technology. The electric vehicle sector is a fine example of this. Though many would think of electric cars as luxurious, plush, and ultra modern, the first electric car debuted back in 1832. Though it was a very rough and impractical vehicle, it was still a real electric vehicle. Fast forward to the 21st century, the technology becomes immensely popular during the late 2010s, with the 2020s causing major legacy brands to drastically increase their electrification strategies. There are many technologies and ideas that can be explored, but the following shall be the focus for this write-up:

• Biometrics
• Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment
• Lyme Disease Vaccine
• 3D Printed Houses
• Air Fryer
• Plastic-eating Organisms
• Solid State Batteries
• Recycling Car Batteries 
• All-electric Aircraft
• 5G
• Linux Smartphones
• Solar-powered Smartphones

Biometrics

Fingerprint scanning, eye scanning, hand ID, and voice unlock all have something in common: they are all biometrics. For a long time, passwords or keys have generally been the way of safeguarding accounts, smartphones, and other confidential properties. Biometrics are biological characteristics that can be used to identify individuals. These can be biological biometrics such as blood or DNA; Morphological biometrics like fingerprints, eyes, and the shape of a person’s face; or behavioral biometrics like how a person may speak, walk, or type. Authentication by biometric verification is becoming increasingly common in corporate and public security systems, consumer electronics, and point-of-sale applications. In addition to security, another major reason for the use of biometric verification has been convenience, since there are no passwords to remember or security tokens to carry.

Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment

Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that destroys brain cells, causing thinking ability and memory to deteriorate over time. This in turn affects thinking, behaviour, and the ability to carry out tasks. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia, accounting for 60 to 80% of all diagnoses. However, this does not mean that if a person has dementia, that they have Alzheimer’s. Dementia is an umbrella term for a set of symptoms caused by physical disorders affecting the brain. Though Alzheimer’s has been in existence for a while, it has only been the last 20 years that science is finally making serious discoveries towards dealing with the disease. In 2021, two notable drugs are being examined: A vaccine involving Protollin and Aducanumab.

On November 17, 2021, researchers at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital have been given permission to launch clinical trials into a nasal vaccine for Alzheimer’s disease. The new vaccine uses Protollin, which activates the immune system, and is being created to prevent and slow the disease progression. Made of proteins drawn from bacteria, Protollin activates white blood cells in the lymph nodes in the neck, and sends them to the brain to clear beta-amyloid plaques. The single ascending dose (SAD) trial will involve 16 subjects aged between 60 and 85 years with early symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease.

On June 07, 2021, The US Food and Drug Administration announced the approval of Aducanumab (Aduhelm). The drug was approved under the Accelerated Approval pathway, one of the alternative drug approval pathways. However, this drug is controversial given that not all Dementia experts agreed on its unproven benefits. The accelerated process allows Biogen to sell the drug, but must agree to design and carry out a study to prove that there is a clinical benefit. The federal agency’s decision was based on the biomarker changes showing that the monoclonal antibody reduced amyloid-beta from the brain. It could take years to accumulate concrete data, and if it does not have a clinical benefit, the FDA can withdraw approval of the drug.

Lyme Disease Vaccine

On December 21, 1998, the FDA approved LYMErix, a vaccine created to help prevent Lyme Disease: an inflammatory disease characterized at first by a rash, headache, fever, chills, and later by possible arthritis and neurological and cardiac disorders, caused by bacteria that are transmitted by ticks. Unfortunately, the vaccine had 5 major problems:

1. The vaccine efficacy of <80% meant that 20% of fully vaccinated individuals could still get Lyme Disease
2. Achieving full protection required three vaccine doses given at the time of the initial dose, and 1 month and 12 months after the initial dose.
3. The vaccine safety and efficacy database lacked tests in young children, a population at high risk of developing Lyme Disease.
4. The vaccine was only effective against the predominant North American Borrelia strain without necessarily conferring protection against international subspecies.
5. Within a year of licensure, reports of adverse reactions occurring after vaccination started to appear. This continued for the next few years and involved numerous high-profile complaints.

On July 09, 2003 the pharmaceutical giant settled the class action suits with Sheller, Ludwig & Bailey as well as several other smaller law firms. The Lyme Disease vaccine was then pulled off the market. 

 In April 2020 Valneva and Pfizer entered into a collaboration agreement to co-develop the multivalent protein subunit candidate VLA15. The program had earlier been granted Fast Track designation by the US FDA in July 2017.The vaccine covers six serotypes that are prevalent in North America and Europe. It attacks the outer surface protein A (OspA) of Borrelia, an established mechanism of action for a Lyme disease vaccine. OspA is one of the most dominant surface proteins expressed by the bacteria when present in a tick. Valneva and Pfizer say that VLA15 has demonstrated ‘strong immunogenicity and safety data in pre-clinical and clinical studies so far,’.

3D Printed Houses

The concept of 3D printing has been thought of since the 1970’s. It was not until 1981 that the first experiments began. Since then, there has been hundreds of different objects that have been 3D printed including cups, tools, instruments, and more. One particular area that is still very young with the potential of immense benefits is 3D construction. The great benefits of 3D printing houses can be particularly seen in developing countries, where transporting expensive materials may be cost-prohibitive. With 3D printing, it can allow them the build houses using locally sourced materials to reduce the impact of shipping, handling, and other logistical issues. It is not only developing countries interested, however. Countries like Canada and the United States have been interested, too. The United States has even gone as far as to announce that it will be building the world’s largest 3D-printed neighborhood in Austin, Texas in 2022.

While it may sound exciting to some, there a still caveats involved like the fact that there are several parts of the house that cannot be 3D printed: Windows, toilets and fixtures, are some of several. Then there is also the issue of structural stability and durability of the 3D printed components, hence why 3D printed houses may face legal issues in areas with strict building codes.

Air Fryer

An air fryer is a small countertop convection oven designed to simulate deep frying without submerging the food in oil. A fan circulates hot air at high speed, then produces a crispy layer. The reason the popularity of these types of ovens is surging is because of the health benefits and claims they bring: the flavour of fried foods without all the calories and fats of found in deep fried food. While the amount of fat and calories reduced will vary from food to food, it has been consistently proven that they do noticeably reduce fat and calories. While air fryers may have taken off greatly since their creation in 2010, they have a few main drawbacks: costlier, smaller, and thus require more space to prepare larger quantities of food. It should be also noted that air fried foods do not taste exactly the same as deep fried foods. Some people will even go as far to say that if flavour is top priority, that air fryers may not be the best choice. Despite these setbacks, they remain a growing popularity.

Plastic-eating Organisms

There are bacteria and fungi that can break down plastic. The problem is which species? Which types of plastic? And how fast can these organisms dissolve voluminous amounts of plastic? Not all plastics are made equal as some are tougher to break down, due their more industrialized compositions that are not found in nature. Ideonella sakaiensis, is only able to eat a particular kind of plastic called PET. Pestalotiopsis microspora and other fungi species are capable of breaking down polyurethane plastic. As concerns for the environment and waste reduction have grown immensely in recent years, the research for the best plastic-eating organisms has, too. Given that there are numerous organisms in nature that have been proven to be able to break down numerous plastics, it would be safer for scientist to go stick with the route of using existing species as opposed to trying to re-engineer bacteria with unintended consequences. This is a concern some have expressed, but even that too, needs to proven if it is true that the excessive use of re-engineered bacteria to eat plastics would truly cause problematic resistant bacteria to occur.

Solid State Batteries

The batteries present in most electronics and automobiles today are lithium-ion batteries. Unlike the lead-acid and nickel-metal hydride batteries of the past, lithium-ion batteries are made with a liquid electrolyte to control the flow of energy between the cathode and anode. The advantages of a lithium-ion battery include longer battery life, greater performance in varying temperatures, recyclable components, and higher energy density. Despite the many benefits, there are drawbacks to lithium-ion batteries. Though lighter than older battery technologies, the liquid inside still make lithium-ions rather heavy. They also perform better when in stackable packs, which adds more bulk and weight. The electrolytes are also flammable, can be unstable in extreme temperatures, and lead to explosions or fires if damaged or improperly charged.

Solid State Batteries are the hot pursuit in battery technology for the 2020s. This is because Solid State Batteries use solid electrolyte, have higher energy density than a Li-ion batteries, faster charging, no fire or explosion risks, all while being smaller and more compact by default. With all the immense benefits that SSB offer, why then has it not found its way across smartphones and electric cars, yet? The answer is cost. Scaling up production to the level needed for usage in electric vehicles and other devices is presently extremely expensive. Despite the challenge, many companies including Ford, Volkswagen, Samsung and others have announced plans for the investment and development of this game-changing technology.

Recycling Car Batteries 

For some reason, some critics insist that electric vehicle batteries cannot be properly recycled and re-used. This is false. Tesla, Volkswagen, Nissan as well as several other third parties, have successfully managed to both recycle or extract components from batteries. As the race for electrification surges in the 2020s, there has been understandable concerns of what will happen to all the batteries from millions, eventually billions of vehicles across the world. Manufacturers are certainly aware of this, and are working to do their part to ensure that old batteries will not become useless, problematic pieces of waste.

All-electric Aircraft

Land vehicles are not the only machines going all-electric. Aircrafts are also heavy polluters, hence why there is a lot of effort also going towards making aircrafts zero-emission vehicles. While the automotive industry is moving faster, the aviation industry has not been asleep in regards to electrification. On September 15, 2021, Rolls-Royce announced through a Tweet about their all-electric airplane, Spirit Of Innovation, taking its first flight. 2 years before this, the world’s first commercial all-electric plane, the six-seater Harbour Air ePlane, performed a 15-minute trial flight in Richmond, British Columbia, on December 10, 2019. The development and production of zero-emission aircrafts is continuing strong.

5G

5G Ultra Wideband began rolling out on April 3, 2019. Though the technology to use it is available in many handsets released then and now, it has still yet to reach many places around the world to the extent that 4G currently has. 5G has been deployed in 60+ countries and counting, though not all cities in these countries have it, yet. What exactly is 5G and what makes it much more special than 4G? 5G is the 5th generation mobile network. It is a new global wireless standard after 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G networks. 5G enables a new kind of network that is designed to connect nearly everyone and everything together including machines, objects, and devices. The benefits?

• 5G is significantly faster than 4G
• 5G has more capacity than 4G
• 5G has significantly lower latency than 4G
• 5G is a unified platform that is more capable than 4G
• 5G uses spectrum better than 4G

Linux Smartphones

At one point there were 4 major mobile operating systems: BlackBerry 10, Windows Phone, iOS, and Android. Microsoft halted active development of Windows 10 Mobile back in 2017, before entirely discontinuing it on January 14, 2020. Similarly, BlackBerry has not developed BlackBerry 10 since 2017, and will be ultimately decommissioning the BlackBerry OS network on January 04, 2022. Where does this lead consumers who want an offering outside of Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS? Linux. While the present major contenders do not have handsets suitable for hard-core daily use, they exist for basic use: PinePhone from Pine64, and Librem 5 from Purism.

The first PinePhone was released in July 2020, with pre-orders for the newest PinePhone Pro available October 15, 2021. The Librem 5 released November 18, 2020. What makes these two handsets exciting, and potentially game-changing for consumers is their emphasis on privacy and the speed at which their operating systems are developing. The handsets both have physical hardware for shuttering their microphones, cameras, and Wi-fi, while their operating systems are open-sourced. In addition to all of this, both handsets also have headphone jacks, MicroSD card slots, and removable batteries — 3 features that have disappeared alarmingly fast from Android handsets, whose makers used to previously include these features in their past handsets. The displays on the PinePhone and Librem 5 also do not have notches or holepunches; a trait that a number of consumers strongly dislike.

Solar-powered Smartphones

Fingerprint scanning, iris scanning, vein reading, wireless charging, zooming lenses, 8K recording, and rapid charging are just some of the many advancements smartphones have seen in the last 5 years. One notable advancement not widely seen yet would be a solar-powered smartphone. While the idea of solar-powered smartphone sounds intriguing on paper, its usefulness would be limited in reality for a number of reasons: cost, complexity, and fragility.

Solar panels are still not inexpensive yet, and applying them to millions of smartphones would be extremely expensive. Durability and reliability would be the next points to be concerned about. Because a smartphone is used very often, and oftentimes dropped, bumped, and scuffed, the solar panels would have to be sturdy enough to withstand daily abuse, which is a complex challenge in its own right. The solar-powered phone’s body and internal components would also have to have high heat-resistance to withstand sunrays in case a user wants to charge their device in direct sunlight for an extended period of time. For this reason alone, it would be far more sensible to wait until Solid State Batteries become mainstream in smartphones before making mass produced smartphones with solar panels. Certainly not all smartphone should, nor do they need to have solar panels. However, offering models that have them is a good offering for outdoor consumers that would love this feature.

Incipio 2021

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these hyperlinks are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored. Incipio has not sponsored nor has it sent any free cases for this write-up.

Notice!

As of February 27, 2023 Incipio has decided to deactivate their affiliate program on Ascend. This means that creators who have used their links in write-ups such as this, will no longer get a commission if you shop from. Therefore, please do not purchase anything from within these links. 

What Is Incipio?

Incipio is an online website that sells products in the following categories:

• Screen Protection
• Wireless Charging
• Charging Cables
• Power
• Auto Accessories

History

In 1999, Incipio was founded in an Orange County, Californian garage with only $500 USD. At the time, the need to protect mobile phones was a new idea, but was only just the beginning of what would expand to something much greater. Some time after, Incipio created a case for the first iPhone and made their way into major wireless carrier retail stores. 20 years later and counting, the company remains as a globally recognized smartphone accessories vendor.

Cases

Cases are available for models as old as the Samsung Galaxy S8+ and newer models such as the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra.

DualPro for Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

Take the extra step to protect your Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra from accidental bumps and drops with the DualPro. The DualPro case is built with two layers of military-grade protection that will help your device survive drops from up to 3 metres. No need to fret about bulk, because the DualPro was designed to be slim while maintaining a sleek, stylish look.

Features

• 2x layers of defense provides military-grade drop protection
• Layer 1: scratch-resistant rigid polycarbonate outer shell
• Layer 2: shock-absorbing inner core protects from bumps and drops
• Full access to ports and buttons
• Wireless charging-compatible

Organicore for Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

The plant-based Organicore case is 100% biodegradable in a compostable environment. No need to worry about adding to the landfill when your case returns back to its natural origins. 

Features

• Eco-friendly protection
• Made from plants
• 1.8 metres drop protection
• Wireless-charging compatible

DualPro for Samsung Galaxy S9+

Your Samsung Galaxy S9+ has a lot of things going for it, so you find yourself using it a lot. However, the more you use it, the more you will eventually have it fumble out of your pocket or slip out of your hands. When that glass breaks, it will not be pleasant. Lessen the risk of damage despair with the DualPro case. Its two layers of military-grade protection will help your Samsung Galaxy S9+ survive up to 3 metres drops. Despite being a two-layer case, the DualPro is not bulky.

Features

• 2x layers of defense provides military-grade drop protection
• Layer 1: Scratch-resistant rigid polycarbonate outer shell
• Layer 2: Shock-absorbing inner core protects from bumps and drops
• 3 metres drop-tested protection

NGP for Samsung Galaxy S8+

The NVP provides your Samsung Galaxy S8+ with top tier shock absorption. The NVP is soft, flexible, slim, and slides easily into your pocket.

Features

• 91cm drop test certified

Holographic Prisms for Samsung Galaxy Note8

Guard your Samsung Galaxy Note 8 in style with the Holographic Prism case. The translucent design accented with impressive metallic foil adds a stylish look to your Samsung Galaxy Note 8, while keeping it safe from daily wear and tear. Specially coated in a premium scratch-resistant finish for a perfect sheen and long-running durability, the Design Series cases are perfect for the fashion-forward trendsetter.

Features

• Metallic foil accented design for a glamorous shine
• Translucent materials allows phone to show through
• Co-molded style delivers enhanced protection in a lightweight and compact size
• Rigid hard shell is coated with scratch resistant finish for high quality durability

DualPro for Samsung Galaxy Note 9

Guard your Samsung Galaxy Note 9 with the ultra-protective Incipio DualPro. This case sports a flexible, shock-absorbing inner core and ultra-durable polycarbonate shell. Made with a lifted bezel to help prevent your screen from coming into direct contact with any surface, the DualPro Case also features a 3 metres drop test rating to keep your Samsung Galaxy Note 9 safe from accidental drops.

Features

• Drop tested 3 metres
• Premium, soft touch finish
• Proprietary shock-absorbing Plextonium^™ technology

Siliskin for Samsung Galaxy Note 9

Slim and sleek, the Siliskin Case for your Samsung Galaxy Note 9 provides lightweight protection without adding bulk. Siliskin is made from silky soft silicone with interior padding that molds into the curves of your device, deterring dust or debris from damaging your premium Samsung Galaxy Note 9.

Features

• Raised bezel prevents direct surface contact
• Ultra-smooth silicone construction
• Slim, lightweight and low profile travels well
• Drop tested 1.21 metres

DualPro for Samsung Galaxy Note10+ / Note10+ 5G

You paid dearly for that Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G of yours. Take the extra step to protect your expensive device from accidental bumps and drops with the DualPro. The DualPro is built with 2 layers of military-grade protection that is capable of surviving up to 3 metre drops. Worried about bulk? The DualPro was designed to be slim and sleek to match and slim and sleek phone.

Features

• 2x layers of defense provides military-grade drop protection
• Layer 1: scratch-resistant rigid polycarbonate outer shell
• Layer 2: shock-absorbing inner core protects from bumps and drops
• Full access to ports and buttons

DualPro for Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra & Note20 Ultra 5G

Do you love your Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G? Of course you do! Take the extra step to protect your premium device from accidental bumps and drops with the DualPro. The DualPro Case is built with two layers of military-grade protection that will help your phone survive drops up to 3 metres high. Slim, sleek, and attractive! 

Features

• 2x layers of defense provides military-grade drop protection
• Layer 1: Rigid, scratch-resistant polycarbonate outer shell
• Layer 2: Shock-absorbing inner core
• Full access to ports and buttons

Duo for iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone 7 Plus & iPhone 6s/6 Plus

The Duo Case proves that two is better than one with its minimalistic, yet highly protective design. This two-piece protective case offers precisely what you would expect from experts in dual-layer technology; slim, easy-handling design with proven protection to defend against irritating bumps and drops. The innovative Impact Struts Technology elevates drop protection to 3.65 metres, and a special antimicrobial treatment prevents 99.9% of surface bacteria. 

Features

• 3.65 metres drop protection
• Impact Struts protection tech reduces impact force
• Raised-edge bezel protects screen
• Soft-touch finish
• Scratch & discoloration resistant
• Antimicrobial protection eliminates 99.9% of surface bacteria
• Works with MagSafe charger and wireless charging
• 5G compatible
• Lifetime guarantee

Reprieve[SPORT] for iPhone X

Your iPhone X is an everyday essential, so it deserves a proper, protective case: The Reprieve Sport. No matter how careful you try to be with your iPhone X, accidental drops still happen. The Reprieve Sport was designed with a slim and impact-resistant build. Its military-grade durability offers protections of falls for up to 3.65 metres.

 

Features

• See-through shell shows off your iPhone X
• Durable polycarbonate material is resistant to impact and scratches
• Reinforced corners provide excellent shock-absorption
• Grooves along sides provide added grip
• 3.65 metres drop-tested protection

Cranberry Sparkler for iPhone Xs Max

Add more style to your iPhone Xs Max with the Cranberry Sparkler Case. It is artistic, translucent, gradient, and sure to please your eyes. This attractive case will keep your device protected from daily wear and tear.

Features

• Metallic foil accented design for a glamorous shine
• Translucent materials lets your device show through
• Rigid hard shell is coated with scratch resistant finish for high quality durability
• Protective button coverings safeguard essential functions
• Total access to all ports and speakers

Aerolite for iPhone 11 Pro Max

The Aerolite is the result of smart material and smart design. The fusion of a flexible, durable outer shell of Incipio’s exclusive FortiCore material allows the Aerolite to be an extremely protective, flexible, lightweight case. A case that expertly protects your iPhone 11 Pro Max from impact, including 3.35 metre drops. Upon impact, the outside of the phone case disperses the shock, while on the inside, FortiCore’s intelligent rippled design displaces the shock, absorbing it back into the molecules of the case all while cushioning the iPhone.

Features

• Engineered with FortiCore, proven to increase drop height protection by 40% compared to traditional case materials
• Interior ribbing disperses shock and provides cushioning
• Reinforced shock-absorbing corners
• Super-lightweight, flexible shell with smooth exterior

Stashback for iPhone 12 Pro Max

 

The Stashback Case takes versatility a step farther with a concealed storage compartment built to hold up to three credit cards, or your driver’s license, ID, hotel room key, cash, other flat things. You can access your essentials from the front, without turning the iPhone over. Meanwhile you also get a full 4.26 metres of drop protection and a raised-edge bezel to safeguard your screen.

Features

• Secure front-facing easy-access storage compartment holds up to 3 cards
• 4.26 metres drop protection
• Raised-edge bezel protects screen
• Scratch resistant
• Antimicrobial protection eliminates 99.9% of surface bacteria
• Not compatible with wireless charging or MagSafe
• 5G compatible
• Lifetime guarantee

DualPro for for LG V40 ThinQ

The Incipio DualPro Case offers multi-layered LG V40 protection wrapped in a premium finish. Its interior shell interlocks with the shock-absorbing Plextonium frame to effectively defend your LG V40 against random drops and bumps. Easy to apply, the highly-acclaimed DualPro provides military-grade durability in a slim, attractive case.

Features

• Scratch resistant rigid polycarbonate outer shell
• Two layers of defense provides military grade drop protection
• Shock absorbing inner core keeps device safe from bumps and drops

DualPro for LG V60 ThinQ 5G

You love your LG V60, so take an additional step to protect your audiophile-of-a-phone from accidental bumps and drops with the DualPro. The DualPro case is built with two layers of military-grade protection that will help your LG V60 survive up to drops from 3 metres high. Despite being a dual layered case, the DualPro is not bulky. It is slim and sleek. 

Features

• 2x layers of defense provides military-grade drop protection
• Layer 1: scratch-resistant rigid polycarbonate outer shell
• Layer 2: shock-absorbing inner core protects from bumps and drops
• Full access to ports and buttons
•  Wireless charging-compatible

Carnaby for Sony Xperia XZ Premium

Upgrade your style with the Carnaby For Sony XZ Premium Case. Expertly crafted for reliable protection and durability, the Carnaby Case features a sleek co-molded design comprised of a sturdy hard shell, and shock absorbing polymer material. 

DualPro for Google Pixel 4 XL

You love your Google Pixel 4 XL, so take the extra step to protect it from random bumps and drops with the DualPro. The DualPro is built with two layers of military-grade protection that will help your Google Pixel 4 XL survive up to 3 meter drops. Despite being a dual layered case, the DualPro is sleek, slim and stylish.

Features

• 2x layers of defense provides military-grade drop protection
• Layer 1: scratch-resistant rigid polycarbonate outer shell
• Layer 2: shock-absorbing inner core protects from bumps and drops
• Full access to ports and buttons

Inspiration Behind These Posts: July 2019 – December 2019

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these links are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored.

Continuation

The previous compilation post covered writings that were posted between March 15, 2018 to May 03, 2019. It also touched on why the “Inspiration Behind This Post” section has since disappeared. As you can tell from the title, this compilation will cover the posts that were uploaded between July 2019 – December 2019. For the 2020 posts, I will either wait until it is close to the 2021 New Year, or shortly after that date.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Are Record Labels Necessary?

When I received a message of details about a position on music, particularly the record industry, I decided to create my own article on it. Much of my previous works on music had to do with musical instruments, so I thought this would be a nice thing to have in my portfolio. It still revolves around music, but in a different way. I did not get any responses back, but if I must be completely honest, I did not expect to. Not because the article was substandard, but because the music record world, is clearly not my area of expertise.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Corning Gorilla Glass

I wrote this article for the same reason why I wrote Are Record Labels Necessary?: to have more content in my portfolio related to a potential client’s needs. Because smartphones and similar technology is something I already naturally write about, this write-up was more natural and enjoyable to do. Still, I did not end up hearing anything back, because the client’s needed someone that was specifically an expert on glass manufacturing and the like. After completing Are Record Labels Necessary? and Corning Gorilla Glass, I stopped writing articles solely for the purpose of trying to get hired with a client. After all, the purpose of Millennium Creek is to write about things I enjoy writing about. Not to impress. Not to chase. Not to sensationalize.

Inspiration Behind This Article: 2019 Battery Electric Vehicles Canada

If neither my Tweets or previous write-ups are obvious enough, I love battery electric vehicles! Legacy automakers really need to stop with the excuses and heel-dragging, and go full-electric already! I know that cannot just happen in a day, but you know what I mean. For this article specifically, I was inspired to do it because I wanted to focus on Canada’s infrastructure for electric cars, incentives that have arrived, disappeared, or remained the same, battery electric vehicles coming that year, and more. I am admittedly uncertain about the 2020 version, due the whole slowdown with COVID-19. Time will tell.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Exploring 2019 Massacres: What Is The Solution?

The frequent mass shootings that took place in the United States Of America, inspired me to create this article. 2019 in general, saw a lot of massacres in the developed world. For that reason, I decided to go into details about the problem, and type what I believe is the solution. Hint: it is not a one-size-fits-all fix.

Inspiration Behind This Article: National Flex Day

Were you aware that such a day existed? Neither was I. Because I am really into remote living, it was only natural that I dedicated an article to that day. As you can expect, it discusses the day and nature of remote work.

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: Support Millennium Creek

Out of every single write-up I have done on this website, this one by far was the most personal and awkward to do. As noted in the blog post itself, I did not want anybody to see it as weak, and desperate. At the same time, I really felt the need to come out with the truth about how it has been going with the financial state of the website. My inspiration for this post came after I failed to get a single client to buy my services, even after weeks and months passed. Definitely recommend reading the post, and supporting my website while you are at it.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Mobile Device Restriction In Ontarian Classrooms

While I was in school, teachers were always annoyed with mobile devices in the classroom. As such, they would take them away or order students to put them away. So when I saw an official law come into place for restricting them, it made me very curious as to how different it would be from policies already in place. I honestly cannot blame officials for wanting to restrict mobile devices. They are often too distracting, and hinder the purpose of learning.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Electric Vehicle Startup Predictions (2019)

Probably one of the longest write-ups I have written in 2019. I felt inspired to write this article when it was getting fairly close to the Tesla Cybertruck unveiling. There are so many all-electric startups that have emerged, who are trying to challenge Tesla. Will they succeed? The only way to find out was to pick 7 of the ones who I thought are most relevant, then research them, their goals, and such.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Tesla Cybertruck

My inspiration behind this article is none other than the Unveiling of the Tesla Cybertruck which happened on November 22, 2019. Now with a vehicle like this from such an internationally recognized company, the Internet was flooded with journalists discussing the same thing. With this in mind, I went into areas that others either did not touch, or covered poorly.

Feeling Inspired?

Which of the write-ups listed within this time frame did you like the most? If you enjoyed reading my stories behind the inspiration for those writings, I encourage you to read and leave engaging comments on them. Think other people might like them, too? Responsibly share the links to the write-ups that they are interested in.

Electric Vehicle Startup Predictions (2019)

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these links are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored.

Introduction

When the cold weather comes, you know it is time to put on winter gear. Flip a coin, and it will land on either side. Drop glass on concrete, and it will break. Such scenarios are obvious and highly predictable. This is the polar opposite when it come onto predicting the success of electric vehicle startups. As proven during the past months of 2019, there are a lot of ups and downs in the automotive landscape. Factors like poor funding, lack of consumer interest, and poor relations with suppliers can easily make or brake a startup.

Success?

What do I define as success? For this write-up, success means bringing a prototype to production, and remaining afloat for at least a decade and beyond. Before proceeding further, it is very important that I mention I am by no means a professional expert in determining the outcome of  businesses. To predict the success of the electric startups I am discussing, I will be focusing on the following:

• Leaders
• Product
• Finances
• Factories

The Startups

• Havelaar Canada
• Lucid Motors
• Rivian Automotive
• Faraday Future
• Atlis Motor Vehicles
• NIO
• Bollinger

Havelaar Canada

By far, this Toronto-based company is the most enigmatic on this list. The last time the public has seen, or heard from Havelaar was all the way back in 2017. The Bison E-Pickup truck was unveiled at that time. Since then, there has been no public sightings, or any media reports for the matter. This had led me to think that they must have cancelled it. At least, that is what I thought. Upon visiting the website a couple days ago, I discovered that the look of the website has changed significantly since the last time I did a critique on it back in 2018. There is no longer any mention of the E-Pickup anywhere.

Leaders

Under the team page of the website, I can see that there are two men listed: Tony Han, founder and CTO, and Russell Pullan, CEO. Both have impressive credentials from the Ontarian universities they studied at. Both also happen to speak no less than 3 languages! It does not mention their fluency, but nevertheless, having a conversational command of multiple languages is not only impressive, but motivating for those doubting the purpose of learning another language or two. Linguistics aside, Havelaar mentions that Tony led the development of the Bison — the first pickup truck designed and prototyped in Canada.

Leadership Conclusion

The leaders seem to be credible people, and I have not found any shady reports on them to date.

Product

In 2017, the product was the Bison E-pickup. They even built a prototype of it, too. What I see now is the Havelaar powertrain. The powertrain consist of a motor, battery, and an inverter which converts battery energy from DC to AC for the motor, controls motor speed and captures energy from regenerative braking to recharge the battery. They also proudly mention that the system does not use an on-board charger for the following reasons quoted directly from the website:

• Less weight leads to better driving performance
• Fewer parts for greater reliability
• Lower cost is critical for the mass-market
• More space for design flexibility

Under the sustainability page, Havelaar states that the powertrain is capable of charging directly from the grid, renewable sources such as solar panels, and existing charging stations. Havelaar says it is unique intellectual property that existing electric powertrains currently do not have.

Product Conclusion 

which vehicles have they implemented these powertrains within? How come nobody has talked about how innovating this technology is? For this reason, I will say that it sounds promising on paper, but remain uncertain about how good it truly is.

Finances

Because Havelaar Canada is so mysterious and under-reported, their financial information and funders are not widely talked about. Nevertheless, the University of Toronto news section (November 10, 2017) mentioned that the University of Toronto Electric Vehicle Research Centre (UTEV) secured a major investment to support collaborative research into next-generation electric vehicle (EV) technologies with its founding partner Havelaar Canada. How much? No exact number givens.

Financial Conclusion 

The financial state is unknown, but based on how much they may have been testing their powertrain or even pickup truck under the quiet, their financial state could very well be excellent.

Factories

Invest In Ontario says that vehicles are being built now at Havelaar’s prototype facility in Toronto. The website went on to further mention that Ontario government site selectors are helping Tony find a location for a full-scale manufacturing facility. The goal initially was to begin commercially selling the E-Pickup in 2019. With it being November 2019 at the time I write these predictions, Havelaar are nowhere to be seen in Ontario. Nor are they remotely mentioned by anyone. No journalists, automotive photographers, nothing. Perhaps the timetable was a bit too aggressive and they have decided to take their time more? Building an electric vehicle is challenging, so I do hope they take their time to make Canada’s first electric truck right.

Manufacturing Conclusion

Havelaar currently does not have a full-scale factory. Given that they appear to be serious and proud of their powertrain, they are likely still actively looking for a good site.

Success: Unknown

As a Canadian myself, I would really love to see the Bison E-Pickup became a reality. Could Tony and his team become the Elon Musk of Canada? I am not too sure about them reaching international levels of appeal. However, they do appear to be interested in keeping their technology affordable. How much? I do not know. Being designed and built in Canada will be a major selling point for Canadians. Other countries that highly respect Canada, will find that attractive, too. Mind you, they did not mention anything about selling it abroad. In case they do, the capability of charging directly from the grid will be on of Havelaar’s best selling points. That is if, someone does not master it by the time their trucks launch, if they ever end up launching it.

Lucid Motors

Is Lucid Motors just another one of those California startups that is all talk and no action? Some people might say so, but it appears that this is not truth. While it might not end up being a “Tesla Killer” you will learn why it is more than just a flashy luxury competitor below. In fact, it is apparently not even being targeted at Tesla.

Leaders

There are a lot of team leaders over at Lucid. I will be focusing solely on the chief executive officer, who also happens to be the chief technology officer: Peter Rawlinson. Before Peter took over his role, the company was led by their former CEO and co-founder Sam Weng. Is Peter Rawlinson a good leader? I tried searching around to see if he was scandalous or ill-natured in anyway. Luckily for him, I did not find any reports on that. In fact, what I did find was that he was Vice President of Vehicle Engineering at Tesla and Chief Engineer of the Model S. Yes, that is right: former chief engineer of the Tesla Model S. This is a huge deal, because Tesla is considered the golden standard for electric vehicles.

Or at least you think so? Perhaps not? Based on what Peter said earlier in 2019 at the Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) he has a different opinion:

“Today there isn’t a luxury EV available for anyone to buy anywhere in the world. I’m not hammering Tesla unduly here, I’m just an observer, I’m being analytical. I think they’re beautifully engineered, super products, but not true luxury.”

So who exactly are his competitors then? Mercedes, Audi and BMW are his main competitors.

Leadership Conclusion

Lucid Motors has fantastic leaders that know what they are doing.

Product

Lucid’s flagship product is presently the Lucid Air. This is a full-sized, all-electric, luxury sedan. According to the website, the Lucid air will have 643km of range, do 0 to 100 km/h in under 2.5 seconds, and have a top speed of over 321 km/h. I have no idea how close those numbers will be under real world testing. I remain highly skeptical of getting anywhere near 600km of range during a long, cold Canadian winter. The interior? Yes, in my honest opinion, both the interior and exterior proudly displays luxury. The exterior particularly looks like a blend of Bugatti Chiron, 2015 Dodge Charger, and 2019 Lincoln MKZ. Based on the existence of test drives seen on YouTube, Lucid has clearly managed to build working prototypes.

Product Conclusion

 I am not into sedans, but even I cannot deny that this vehicle looks very luxurious and sporty. I believe that it will have its audience, if marketed correctly.

Finances

Lucid Motors announced a $1 billion deal with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund back in September 2018. They confirmed it completed later.

Financial Conclusion

Lucid received a generous fund, which now leads to the next point: factories.

Factories

On November 06, 2019, Lucid Tweeted that construction is underway in Casa Grande, Arizona to begin production of the all-electric Lucid Air luxury sedan in late 2020. 7 days later, Lucid even released a video to YouTube titled “Lucid Air Beta Prototype Body Structures”

Manufacturing Conclusion

Lucid is getting real with making the Lucid Air a legitimate all-electric true-luxury offering.

Success: Quite Likely

So long as Lucid Motors does not irresponsibly plough through its budget, or run into some unexpected complication, they will likely succeed as a company. However, their rivals BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz are also electrifying, too. All of which have far more resources, especially Audi. None of those competitors will offer a full-size luxury sedan by 2020 however, so this could give Lucid a chance to get into customers hands first.

Rivian Automotive

Of all the startups I am discussing within this predictive post, this one by far is the one that has been making most headlines. The company has a rather interesting history in that it was founded in 2009, with the focus to build an electric sports coupé. This prototype was partially revealed in 2011, but then scrapped entirely. Fast forward to November 2018, and two products were revealed.

Leaders

Robert (also called RJ) Scaringe is both the CEO and founder of Rivian. He has also become very recognizable and has made plenty of media appearances, too. His official profile states that he earned his MS and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he was a member of the research team in the Sloan Automotive Laboratory. So far, there has not been any controversies and scandals he has been involved with.

Leadership Conclusion

Rivian is in good hands. The investments, media coverage, and interest proves this further. 

Products

Rivian is releasing two products for 2020: Rivian R1T and Rivian R1S, a pickup truck and SUV respectively. Both of which also have functional prototypes. Why is this creating such intense hype and interest from legacy automakers? Traditionally, pickup trucks are known for being gas-guzzling monsters. North America and other parts of the world are deeply in love with pickup trucks. Electric vehicles are also quickly capturing consumer interest. Pickup + all-electric powertrain = intense interest. So much so, that even a legacy automaker announced a strategic investment.

Product Conclusion

Finances

Rivian has received a healthy amount of investment from various groups. The original three were the Saudi Arabian Abdul Latif Jameel, Japan’s Sumimoto Corporation, and  London’s Standard Chartered Bank. Amazon invested $700 million in February 2019. Ford Motor Company invested $500 million in April 2019, as part of a strategic partnership to build an all-new battery electric vehicle using Rivian’s flexible skateboard platform.

Financial Conclusion 

Rivian has solid finances. Investors clearly see Rivian as a worthy startup, based on all the investments they have been receiving. As of September 2019, they managed to secure $1.5 Billion.

Factories

When it comes onto manufacturing, Rivian has clearly done their homework. They were focused on their electric vehicle technology and manufacturing during their planning stages. It was not until when they officially took over an abandoned Mitsubishi in Normal, Illinois, that they decided it was time to unveil themselves to the world.  On March 24, 2019, Rivian Tweeted a photograph of the factory stating that there is a lot going on inside.

Manufacturing Conclusion

Rivian is on track for launching full-scale production in 2020.

Success: Highly Likely

Unlike a lot of other startups that have been too ambitious about what they are offering without getting their finances, technology, and facilities sorted out, Rivian has done the polar opposite: kept silent for nearly a decade till they met what needed to be done. This stealth mode has done wonders for them. With investors, consumers, and commercial industries all highly interested in what they have to offer, I strongly believe that they will be successful. However, this can change drastically if the company falls short on reliability, servicing, customer service, or gets into a severe scandal to name a few.

Faraday Future

Similarly to Tesla and Lucid, Faraday Future is also based in California. Unfortunately, Faraday Future’s name has become associated with “vaporware” and being a joke-of-a-company as other people would put it. So what went wrong? Are these accusations justified?

Leaders

The founder and former CEO, Jia Yueting, is largely why Faraday Future has been, and still is in much uncertainty and financial trouble. This is the same man who fled from his native land, China, to escape billions of dollars of debt, left LeEco crippled, only to end up declaring bankruptcy in the United States last month, October 2019. Given his past leadership and role with Faraday Future, it is no wonder investors have been spooked to pour their resources into this company. After acknowledging that his presence as CEO and debts were dragging the company, Faraday Future appointed Carsten Breitfeld as CEO on September 03, 2019. This is the same person who led the development of the BMW i8. In addition to this, Carsten co-founded Byton, and once served as the CEO for Iconiq Motors. He is confident about reigniting hope and trust for the future of Faraday. Jia Yueting is still involved with the company as chief product officer. Many concerns with this company are still present, including the financial status.

Leadership Conclusion

Despite Carsten’s clean reputation, it remains to be seen how much of an improvement will be made under his rule.

Product

Despite all the negative press about Faraday Future, and how financially weak they are, they do have functional prototypes. Both YouTube and Facebook videos prove this. As for the product itself, it is called the Faraday FF91. It is an ultra-luxury, high performance crossover. A very good-looking, futuristic one, too. With a price tag ranging between $150,000 – $200,000, the company made it very clear that it was meant to go after Bentley and Rolls Royce. Likely the Bentley Bentayga and Rolls Royce Cullinan respectively. They did not say which models precisely, but this assumption makes a lot of sense. Beyond the FF91, Faraday also mentioned plans for a mid-sized crossover called the Faraday FF81, and then the Faraday FF71, which they plan to use as the volume seller.

Product Conclusion

Faraday has interesting, ambitious plans. However, they are struggling miserably to get the Faraday FF91 into production, making it seem highly unlikely they will even get the higher volume models on the road anytime soon or ever.

Finances

Faraday’s finances is the major reason why the company is struggling so badly. So much so, that the company has lost key people such as Nick Sampson, Peter Savagian, and many other employees over the years. Speaking of that, Faraday put many employees on unpaid leave last year, only to confirm that they could not actually return March 1st 2019 as planned. This too, is another notorious thing that has caused distrust and disappointment, as ex-employees had just moved on and did not bother to wait it out. Who can blame them?

The biggest financial battle took place during the dispute with their partner, Evergrande back in October 2018. What happened was that Evergrande agreed to spend up to $2 billion to finance Faraday Future and get the FF91 to market. However, Faraday spent $800 million of that investment by mid-2018 without building a single salable vehicle. This resulted in a prolonged dispute that nearly put Faraday out of business. By December 1st 2018, Faraday Future publicly Tweeted  they have entered into a newly agreed upon restructuring agreement. This agreement would allow them to open up to other investors.

Financial Conclusion

Faraday Future’s financial state is highly unstable.

Factories

Faraday Future initially planned to build a $1 billion factory in Nevada to produce the Faraday FF91. Those plans were cancelled in 2017 for an existing factory in Hanford, California, where tire company Pirelli used to operate. As I mentioned above, Faraday has managed to produce prototypes of the FF91, but nothing salable due much hardships.

Manufacturing Conclusion

Faraday Future has a factory, but has not been able to put it to good use.

Success: Highly Unlikely

I would like to see Faraday Future successfully produce salable vehicles. Their design language is unique, fresh, and futuristic. Unfortunately, their financial situation and lack of investor interest make it highly unlikely that they will succeed. Especially, when you consider that other rival startups have managed to secure far better funding, and remain in the minds of interested consumers.

Atlis Motor Vehicles

This startup was founded in 2016. No, not in California or Michigan, but in Mesa, Arizona. I like the looks of the Atlis XT quite a bit, but there are a number of questions: will it successfully make it to production? What about the company? Will they be successful as whole? If there is one thing really great about the company’s website, is that they actually have an FAQ page that addresses a lot of these questions: their future, the audience, and such.

Leaders

Mark Hanchett is the main leader behind Atlis Motor Vehicles. He has served as Founder, Director, and CEO of Atlis Motor Vehicles since inception in 2016. His profile mentions that he has over ten years of product development experience with 16 successful electromechanical and software product launches. Which exactly? That is not specified. At least not on the Atlis biography. It does mention that before starting Atlis, he served as a director at Axon Enterprise Incorporate from 2012 to 2017. Before that, he served as senior mechanical engineer and project manager. Ross Compton, Lead Vehicle Desinger (LVD) also appears to be a notable figure withing company, as he has even been interviewed about the company back in July.

Leadership Conclusion

Based on what I have read about the leaders, they are no doubt experienced people that understand pickup trucks and electronics. Hopefully, they will execute this successfully. The lack of a prototype at this point in late 2019 has many people skeptical about Atlis.

Product

Atlis Motor Vehicles’ sole product at the moment is the Atlis XT; a 100% battery-electric full-size pickup truck. Now you might be wandering, “How is this small company that has no prototype at this point, supposed to be taken seriously?” According to Atlis, they plan to have the first batch of trucks hopefully delivered sometime in 2020. And yes, that is the same year where the Rivian R1T will also be debuting. Based on what I have read in the Atlis FAQ, it turns out that this company has done its research. They fully acknowledge the existence Bollinger, Tesla, Rivian, and the traditional pickup trucks under Ford, General Motors, and Fiat Chrysler. For Rivian specifically, Atlis pointed out that Rivian is offering mid-sized luxury trucks geared towards the adventurous crowd.

Atlis makes it clear that they are differentiating themselves by offering full-size work-focused trucks for consumer and work related customers. Seeing that the option for a flatbed, service body and dually exists for potential customers proves this. But, what about when the legacy automakers start doing this, who have far more servicing stations and infrastructure available? This, too, was addressed by Atlis simply stating that they welcome competition, and believe that there is room for everyone to play with pickup trucks in America.

Instead of offering different models through dealerships, Atlis will sell its trucks directly to consumers, akin to Tesla. Unlike Rivian’s R1T and Tesla’s Cybertruck, the Atlis XT will appeal far more to people who want a truck with conservative styling.

Product Conclusion

Pickup trucks are indeed extremely popular vehicles in North America. However, Atlis will need to prove that their trucks will be as reliable as they say they will be, and charge as fast as they say they will. If this is met, they will have an amazing, highly customizable product. And above all, Atlis needs to get a factory to produce the vehicles.

Finances

The Start Engine page of Atlis Motor Vehicles provides tons of information. Everything from the CEO, the company, why they are doing what they are doing, how they plan to succeed, and more. From what I have read, their current priorities are to raise funding and complete the prototype of an Atlis XT pickup truck within 12 months of the close date of the financing round. I do not know how long that financing round is. Atlis also mentioned that they do not have any large investors.

Financial Conclusion 

Atlis has only managed to build the platform of the truck. They have a long way to go with production and creating real results.

Factories

I have not seen any mentions of where their factory is, or where they even plan to build their pickup trucks. The only thing they promised is that they will be American-made and American-built. I assume that they will almost certainly build the trucks locally within Arizona.

Manufacturing Conclusion

They will be American, but the exact location is entirely unknown at this point.

Success: Unlikely

As much as I love the looks of the Atlis XT, I remain skeptical about Atlis Motor Vehicles being successful. They do not have a factory, money or even one working prototype. Even money-stricken Faraday Future has been able to make functional prototypes, and land a factory. Atlis XT does have an advantage over the Bollinger B2 for being far cheaper. It also subjectively has a styling advantage over the polarizing Rivian R1T and even more polarizing Tesla Cybertruck. By the time Ford and General Motors drop their traditional-styled all-electric trucks between 2021-2022, Atlis is going to be in for a very savage battle. However, if Atlis does manage to deliver its first 100 trucks in 2020 and get people and the media to fall in love with them, they could stand a chance. Who knows. It is better they take their time, rather than rush to be first. Maybe Atlis might somehow survive even with Ford, General Motors, and all the other automakers in place.

NIO

Despite seeing this name a fair bit in the media, this is the startup I know the least about on this list of startups I am making predictions for. Researching it and sharing my predictions will certainly be interesting for this very reason. Let us start with the fact that its Chinese name is Weilai, meaning Blue Sky Coming. This is apparently represented in their symbol. The top is about the sky, openness, vision, and the future. The bottom part is about the earth, direction, action and forward momentum. This is their directional philosophy and stands for their commitment to a brighter future. Highly interesting that they mention future, given that this is exactly what I am doing with them in this write-up: predicting their future success.

Leaders

William Li (李斌, Bin Li in Chinese) is the CEO and founder of NIO. He is also apparently dubbed as the “Elon Musk of China” due to his presence and ambitions with NIO. That said, NIO does not quite have the international fame that Tesla does. This is due to the fact they do not sell vehicles outside of Asia, despite having offices in Germany, the United States, and the United Kingdom. I do not even know if they sell vehicles outside of China for the matter. As for William himself, he holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Peking University where he minored in law. This interestingly contrasts with a number of the other Leaders I have looked at here, who have mechanical and electrical degrees.

In 1996, William co-founded Beijing Antarctic Technology Development Corporate Limited. This is a pioneer web hosting service provider in China. He served as the director and general manager between 1996 to 2000. In 2000, he started his second company, Bitauto. It was an automobile Internet content and marketing services provider. He served as the CEO and chairman for 13 year, before selling it in 2013. In 2014, NIO was founded.

Leadership Conclusion

William Li had humble, lowly beginnings, yet pushed to be successful and productive. He sounds like a good leader, but will this be enough to keep NIO afloat?

Product

NIO has not one, not two, but three production vehicles: NIO ES6, NIO ES8, and the hyper-limited NIO EP9. The NIO ES6 and ES8 are both all-electric crossovers, the latter of which can be had in a 7-seat configuration, akin to that of the Tesla Model X. It does not have falcon doors, unlike the Tesla Model X, which would have been really cool. Aside from these three models, NIO plans to release a compact sedan, mid-size sedan, minivan, and subcompact crossover post 2020.

Product Conclusion

 NIO has a lot of interesting products in their portfolio. None of these are offered outside of Asia, though.

Finances

At this point, you will know why I believe this company will not succeed: the financial situation is disastrous. Despite NIO being able to raise over $1 billion from investors in 2016, the company has totalled $5 billion in losses in 2019. Cost overruns, weak sales, and dangerous recalls have led NIO to dive 74% since its market value hit a record $11.9 billion about approximately a year ago. NIO’s reversal of success explains why concerns are growing that China created an electric vehicle bubble that may soon become destroyed. I personally have not looked into the finances of other Chinese electric vehicle startups, so I do not know how exaggerated this may or may not be. Despite the financial struggles, William said that investors need to understand that making new cars costs money, from an interview back in June 2019.

Financial Conclusion

The way NIO has laid off thousands this year, and bled through billions is not something exclusive to NIO. At the same time, something needs to be done soon, or it will become defunct.

Factories

NIO does not make its own cars. The company had plans to build a factory in Shanghai for 2020, where Tesla is currently constructing its third Gigafactory. They cancelled the idea back in March this year, and will instead continue using their current contract manufacturer, state-owned automaker JAC Motors. The advantage this has is that it allowed NIO to put its cars on the road sooner, as opposed to waiting years until it gets its own factory. However, this also comes at cost. NIO has to pay JAC motors a fee for every vehicle that comes off the line. On top of this, NIO also has to compensate JAC Motors for any operating losses during the first three years of the deal.

Manufacturing Conclusion

 NIO may have been better off waiting in order to secure things, rather than rushing production by getting involved with a 3rd party.

Success: Not Unlikely

“NIO didn’t position itself in the right place. I’m not optimistic about its future in the long run.”  -Yale Zhang

Yale, based on my personal research, I would certainly agree with you. I may not be a foresight expert, but you do not need to be such when dealing with predictions after researching this company. Quite sad to day this, as this is a company whose name literally translates to Blue Sky Coming, reflecting their sunny, clear ambitions. NIO was, and is determined to become the “Chinese Tesla”. Perhaps too determined, that they have not spent enough time securing funds, calculating losses, securing their own factory, and dealing with quality issues. Being a startup is not easy, as even Tesla and other had their challenges. But, when the losses and problems are too big, too early, this spells trouble.

Bollinger Motors

The final startup I will be making predictions for in this write-up. Similarly to Ford, General Motors, and Rivan, Bollinger is also headquartered in Michigan. It was originally New York, till they moved there. Why that state? Michigan and California are popular founding states for automakers due to their history. Bollinger appears to want to be seen as an old-school, yet modern automaker by setting up shop in Michigan. Do I think they will succeed? We shall find out below.

Leaders

When looking at the team of Bollinger leaders, there is one thing that notably stood out to me: Paco! “Who is that?” You must be asking. A dog. His is the ergonomics engineer, and love to play with tennis balls. While not something to be taken seriously, this does show that the small team at this startup knows how to have fun, despite the immense amount of work they have been putting into the Bollinger B1 and B2. The CEO and founder of Bollinger Motors is Robert Bollinger.

Robert’s history is fairly interesting. He studied at Carnegie Mellon, earned an industrial degree, went to New York City and worked his way to becoming a creative director, used those skills to help a friend with a hair care company, then moved north to the Catskill Mountains to co-start a grass-fed cattle farm. It was there, where Robert discovered the faults of present pickup trucks. It reignited his automotive passion, and drove him to create Bollinger Motors.

Leadership Conclusion

In good company. Sounds familiar? That is the tagline of their team page, and after reading their stories and the amount of work the Bollinger workers put into the vehicles, this is accurate.

Product

Bollinger Motors plans to offer two trucks: the Bollinger B1 SUV and Bollinger B2 pickup truck. They have managed to build working prototypes. As evidenced from the exterior and interior styling of these trucks, they are focused on utility, and not luxury. Think Jeep and Hummer, but only with an all-electric powertrain. When a person looks at their asking price of $125,000 they would immediately think that they will not stand a chance. Seeing as though numerous automakers also plan to produce all-electric pickup trucks post 2020.

For Bollinger, their main selling points are their very high ground clearance (38cm) at stock, excellent traction due to the presence of a large battery placement, and unique features such as the pass-through mid-gate storage that allows owners to place materials through the middle of the vehicle. If my knowledge serves me correct, no other vehicle presently has the capability of allowing very long objects to be carried straight through their bodies.

Financial Conclusion

The rudimentary, yet modern all-electric powertrain will be highly attractive to customers that want something highly capable, without all the extra bells and whistles found in something like a Tesla. The high asking price is not for many, however.

Finances

I tried searching for the answer as to who is funding or investing in Bollinger Motors. I could not find any information. As it turns out, it is because they do not have any investors. I soon found this:

” The Bollinger Motors team is the foundation our trucks are built on. Years of family office, private equity, investment banking, and capital markets experience.”

While I was searching around further for the financial information, a source made it very clear that they intend to be a low-volume, ready-to-work truck company, who is not chasing Rivian. Within that interview, I found my answer:

“Yeah, we’re solely self-funded right now” – Robert Bollinger

Now that officially makes sense and justifies the $125,000 USD price tag. If this translates directly to CAD, that would be $166,000. There will likely be some adjustments by the time Bollingers sells its vehicles to Canadian customers.

Manufacturing Conclusion

Making electric vehicles is very difficult and extremely expensive. Bollinger Motors wants to make vehicles that can last, but at the same time must be able to make a profit to stay afloat. They are a small team without major investors, hence the steep price on its proposed offerings.

Factories

Bollinger Motors currently has a facility in Ferndale, Michigan. If things go as planned, the company will be producing their vehicles in a Detroit factory — something not done since 1925 when Chrysler was founded.

Manufacturing Conclusion

This will be America’s forth company from the Detroit area. I can imagine the official opening of that factory being a great day of pride and nostalgia for Americans.

Success: Quite Likely

I cannot count the number of comments this company has been getting on Instagram about the vehicles being too expensive, they are going to fail, and how the Cybertruck’s price is far better. Not all comments have been moans, complaints,  or comparisons though. Some Instagram users have even reminded the complainers that this is a startup that does not have investors, and must be able to sell them at a profit to stay afloat. While I suspected the price was for a reason, I admittedly wondered if they were going to fail, too.

By actually doing my own research on the company, learning about how and why the CEO started, and who they are trying to compete with, this totally changed my view on the company. Bollinger Motors mission is to create a low-volume, reliable, simple, rugged truck. They do not care about what Tesla, Rivian, and the others are doing.

That said, it does make me curious as to how they will compete when General Motors revives Hummer as an all-electric brand in 2021-2022? Then again, this does not even seem to be 100% confirmed at the moment. Even if it is, Bollinger has acknowledged the existence of current and future truck makers, and is not afraid of the competition. They know who they are, and believe that they can have a presence in the market.

Summary Of Success

As stressed in the beginning, I am not a forecast expert. I also do not wish any horror upon any of these companies, including the ones I predict will not be successful. In an ideal world, it would be fantastic to see all of these electric vehicle become successful. Seeing Havelaar Bisons, Lucid Airs, Rivian R1Ts, Faraday FF91s, Atlis XTs, NIO ES8s, and Bollinger B2s would be extremely refreshing to see on Canadian streets. Sadly, money is the driving issue behind startups failing or struggling. Let us also not forget that sometimes it is other things as well such as poor planning, or even leaders with a shady history.

Mobile Device Restriction In Ontarian Classrooms

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Restricted, Not Banned

During the Monday of this week, the Provincial Code of Conduct set out the restriction, not banning, of cellphones in Ontarian classrooms. The specifics and nature of this move shall be discussed in this write-up.

Official Enforcement

While a lot of schools already enforced their own rules in regards to distracting electronics within the classroom, this official Ontarian restriction has a province-wide effect. The rule went into effect Monday, November 04, 2019. To make sure that students focus on learning, the Provincial Code of Conduct has been revised to address the use of cellphones and other personal mobile devices during instructional time. School boards, school authorities, provincial, and demonstration schools have to establish a code of conduct that is consistent with the Provincial Code of Conduct effective November 04, 2019.

Which Devices Are Restricted?

Aside from cellphones, the provincial restriction applies to all personal mobile devices. Any personal electronic device that can be used to communicate or access the Internet, falls under the restriction. Tablets, portable video game consoles, cellphones, and laptops are common examples. The reason cellphones are being singled out is because of their increased presence in more students hands than ever. Their portability, and computer-like functions in a compact form factor makes them highly attractive. These same attributes make them easier to use discreetly, than a laptop or tablet.

No One Above The Rules

The restriction applies to everyone in schools including school teachers, principal, other staff members, parents, and even visitors.

Permitted Circumstances

Usage of personal mobile devices is allowed during instructional time under the following circumstances:

• For educational reasons, as directed by the educator in the classroom
• For health and medical reasons
• To support special educational needs

Educational Purposes

Since there are many different subjects, that are further divided by specific topics, the usage of smartphones will vary. One example may be where a teacher may be trying to explain how to use a certain platform. The teacher would allow students to use their cellphones to follow along, so that they get a more immersive look at how to use the platform the teacher is explaining. Educational purposes can be fun, too. An uncommon, but good example of this would be where an art teacher would ask their students to look at the paintings of ABC artist for 2 minutes. The teacher would then tell the students to share the emotions that came up while looking at such an artist’s works.

Health & Medical Reasons

Health and medical reasons can be complex. Staff and students may need to use cellphones to communicate with a healthcare professional for appointments. Another reason for health & medical usage would include the usage of an application to monitor certain health conditions.

Special Needs

Students that have behavioral, communicational, intellectual, physical, or multiple exceptionalities may require special education programs and/or services to benefit fully from their educational experience. Their needs and conditions often vary from individual to individual. Personal mobile devices can be set up in a way to make the education more accessible. Text-to-speech, on-screen braille, dictation, font adjustment, communication applications, text zoom, and colour adjustment are some of many tools for accessibility. School boards are responsible for accommodating students with special education needs.

Why Was This Done?

Parents and staff have been complaining about the usage of cellphones in schools for years. Some students, themselves, have even admitted that they are distracting as well. The results of these feelings were reflected very clearly in the Ontario consultation on education. During the provincial consultation on education reform in autumn 2018, 97% of parents, students, and educators who participated said that cellphone use should be restricted in some way. The consultation garnered more than 72,000 responses across three different consultation channels: an open submission form, online survey, and telephone town halls held in every region of Ontario. This made it the largest public consultation on education in the province’s history.

When Does The Restriction Apply?

The restriction applies to instructional time at school, aside from the three exceptions discussed earlier. The Provincial Code of Conduct does not restrict personal mobile devices during non-instructional times such as recess or lunch.

How Did It Come Down To This?

There are four major reasons why Ontario decided to move forwards with a province-wide restriction of personal mobile device:

1. Too distracting and interruptive
2. Increased cyberbullying
3. Cheating
4. Loss of face-to-face interactions and antisocial issues

Too Distracting And Interruptive

When it used to be primarily feature phones, the issue was mainly texts and calls. Enter the smartphone era, where social media websites such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube exist, phones are now more distracting than their more rudimentary counterparts. This has resulted in annoyed teachers frequently telling their students to turn their phones off, or put them away. Many also just resort to confiscating them, which itself interrupts learning.

Increased Cyberbullying

Cruel text messages are already as bad as they are. With social media having immense influence over people’s lives today, it is even easier for bullies to attack victims from all sorts of platforms. A lot of bullies also attack anonymously, making it difficult to figure out who precisely is doing the bullying. This in turn leads to numerous complications: anxiety, stress, fear, poorer grades, and beyond.

Cheating

Cheating would certainly be one of the top reasons why some teachers insist on cellphones being banned entirely within the classroom. This is why many teachers will order their students to place their cellphones upfront, or in a box away from the desks whenever a test is about to be done. This is especially true for major tests such as exams. Even in the event where a teacher does not order all personal mobile devices to be placed far away, cheating leads to students having poorer knowledge and understanding of a topic. It is also highly unfair to students who studied hard for a test.

Antisocial Issues

While the usage of electronics in the classroom can be a great, modern way of learning, it causes disconnection from face-to-face activities. As evidenced with the public consultation in Ontario, many Ontarians agreed that personal electronics are too distracting in the classroom. They want learning to be more engaging and socially interactive. This is understandable given that the popularity of social media has ironically increased antisocial behaviour.

Was Restricting The Right Way To Go?

Before the Provincial Code of Conduct issued the restriction, some educators wanted an outright ban. This caused critics to become divided. Those that were not in favour of a complete ban stated that it is important to teach children when it is time, and when it is not time to use a cellphone. The point that electronics were already restricted, was also brought up, and that officializing things was a waste of time and resources. As it turned out with the results, many ultimately ended up agreeing that restricting, not banning, was the right way to move forward.