Distributor Toyota Motor Thailand Co Ltd (TMT) announced in a Friday press release the official pricing of the C-HR as follows: 1.8 Entry Bt979,000, 1.8 Mid Bt1,039,000, HV Mid Bt1,069,000 and HV Hi Bt1,159,000.

Toyota expects the C-HR will help it enter the subcompact crossover market and compete against the Honda HR-V, Mazda CX-3, Ford Ecosport and Nissan Juke.

Toyota said that at the recent Motor Expo more than 3,000 customers signed up to purchase the C-HR. But since the official pricing was not made public, no fees were collected.

With 3,000 customers signing up, Toyota will be thinking to revise its modest C-HR sales target of 2,000 units per year.

TMT senior vice president Vudhigorn Suriyachantananont said customers who signed up will have their vehicles delivered starting in March.

The company is offering a custom nameplate for customers placing orders before February 28, as well as extending the warranty to 5-years/150,000km and 10 years for the battery in hybrid models, which boast a fuel economy of 24km/litre.

The concept electric motorcycle, called ‘Motoroid,’ then balanced in position, holding its place even when Asamura tried gently to push it over.

Nearby, a robot that might seem suited for a futuristic action film was astride a production model Yamaha super-bike that it had ridden at speeds topping 200 kilometers per hour on a test track.

“The motor bike is the recent past, and the Motoroid is the future,” Yamaha spokesman John Boreland told AFP as he glanced from one two-wheeled creation to the other.

“The object is to see what lessons can be learned to connect machine to human more effectively.”

The robot-ridden Yamaha motorcycle, called ‘Motobot,’ is fast but blind, relying on pre-programmed routes, according to Yamaha.

Lessons learned so far from the research model include that “human beings react a hell of a lot quicker,” according to Boreland,

Flesh-and-blood riders have also proven better at grasping the courter-intuitive notion of counter-steering and leaning through turns, he added.

The Motoroid model boasted autonomous features such as balancing on its own, recognizing riders, and being summoned with a wave.

Wings on the back of the seat were designed with the help of a psychologist to gently squeeze a rider’s lower back in a sort of reassuring caress at potentially perilous high speeds, Boreland said.

“Somewhere along the line, this will all meld together so you’ll be part of the bike and it will figure things out for you,” Boreland said of insights and advances resulting from the concept motorcycles, which are not for sale.

The Japanese auto giant’s president Akio Toyoda unveiled the new initiative at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, seeking to get ahead of rivals offering single-use autonomous transporters.

The “e-Palette” vehicle platform features a boxy electric-powered minibus designed to handle deliveries or even bring retail services to consumers, but can also be used for ridesharing and other purposes.

“It is a flexible platform that can be adapted to a range of services,” Toyoda said, including ridesharing, retail, medical services or entertainment.

The media demonstration showed how the vehicle could deliver packages or even enable consumers to try on shoes or apparel.

The new initiative is part of an effort to transform Toyota from an automaker to a multifaceted “mobility” company, Toyoda said.

Partners in the project, which is set to be deployed “in the early 2020s,” include Amazon, Uber, Pizza Hut and China-based Didi. Rival Japanese automaker Mazda will also participate in development.

The company said it hopes to showcase the technology at the 2020 Olympics in Japan.

Held between January 9 to 12, CES 2018 is a global stage for innovative consumer technologies and breakthrough inventions.

B2V fits in perfectly into this category, as it interprets signals from the driver’s brain to assist with driving and to help the vehicle’s autonomous and manual systems learn from the driver. The technology promises shorter reaction times and systems that adapt to maximise driving pleasure.

“When most people think about autonomous driving, they have a very impersonal vision of the future, where humans relinquish control to the machines. Yet, B2V technology does the opposite, by using signals from their own brain to make the drive even more exciting and enjoyable,” Daniele Schillaci, Nissan executive vice president, said ahead of the CES 2018.

This breakthrough from Nissan is the result of research into using brain decoding technology to predict a driver’s actions and detect discomfort. It constitutes the latest development in Nissan Intelligent Mobility.

B2V, for example, can catch signs that the driver’s brain is about to initiate a movement such as turning the steering wheel or pushing the accelerator pedal. As a result, the driver assist technologies can begin the action more quickly. This can improve reaction times and enhance manual driving.

By detecting and evaluating driver discomfort, artificial intelligence can change the driving configuration or driving style when in autonomous mode.

Nissan’s B2V is the world’s first system of its kind. The driver wears a device that measures brain wave activity, which is then analysed by autonomous systems. By anticipating intended movement, the systems can take actions such as turning the steering wheel or slowing the car – 0.2 to 0.5 seconds faster than the driver, while remaining largely imperceptible.

The South Korean manufacturer used the 201 Consumer Electronics Show to debut its Nexo, a sport utility vehicle that uses voice commands, artificial intelligence and can be transformed into an autonomous car.

“We call this the next future utility vehicles,” said Hyundai vice president Ki-Sang Lee.

Hyundai said it plans to sell the Nexo in California later this year, in a bet on hydrogen even as many rivals turn to battery power.

The company said it resolved a number of issues in developing the Nexo, including starts in extreme cold weather and extending the range to nearly 600 kilometers (375 miles).

While a handful of companies have showcased fuel cell technology, obstacles include the lack of hydrogen stations and a low ratio of energy efficiency in producing fuel.

“We all understand that technological challenges and innovations are a never-ending process that will continue until we realize a mobile society of maximum convenience, zero accidents and no emissions,” vice chairman Woong-chul Yang.

To promote its efforts in self-driving technology, Hyundai has formed a partnership with Silicon Valley startup Aurora Innovation, headed by former Google car executive Chris Urmson, who appeared at the media event.

From Silicon Valley to Tel Aviv and Seoul, South Korean auto giant Hyundai Motor Group plans to establish five innovation hubs in cities spanning the globe and link them as one sharing platform to drive dynamic growth.

The carmaker opened Hyundai Cradle in Silicon Valley in November to support startups and discover future mobility technology. And it plans to open four more such centers, in Seoul, Tel Aviv, Berlin and Beijing within this year. “Cradle” stands for Center for Robotic-Augmented Design in Living Experiences.

John Suh, vice president of Hyundai Cradle, said that the open innovation project is aimed at surviving in a market where seeking innovative ideas from outside has become a common idea. The carmaker, which develops, designs and even manufactures automotive steel needed for car manufacturing, should let go of its business model of do-everything-by-itself, he added.

“The plan is to secure global talents and strategic and technological experiments,” Suh explained in a meeting with South Korean reporters visiting Hyundai USA’s headquarters on Saturday. “Each office provides a unique window into business opportunities and technological development.”

Suh has been leading Hyundai Ventures, the predecessor of Hyundai Cradle, to support startups and discover future mobility technology. The list of US startup includes SoundHounds that provides voice recognition and driving assistance system using artificial intelligence platform, as well as WaiveCar, which rents electric and ad-laden cars for the first time in the world.

Cradle is not just to support budding enterprises with talents, but is “open” to mergers and acquisitions opportunities, he said. The vice president, however, declined to comment on the budget of Hyundai’s open innovation project.

While Hyundai Cradle is looking into the areas of artificial intelligence, mobility, self-driving, smart cities and robots, other innovation centers in the four other cities will focus on different areas for synergy.

The planned centre in Beijing will seek business opportunities with major information and communication technology companies there, while one in Berlin will look into new technological advances in smart cities and mobility solutions.

Hyundai’s Seoul office will lead the offices’ open innovation activities and plans to hold a mobility forum in Seoul this year to bring creative ideas together, the company added.

The electric-powered concept car shown by Byton at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is touted as a computing device on wheels, equipped with a “digital” lounge featuring a panoramic display acting as a hub for navigation, entertainment and even monitoring the health of its occupants.

Backed by more than $200 million from investors including Chinese tech giant Tencent, Byton — whose name was chosen to suggest “bytes on wheels” — is among the latest entrants to a crowded field of startups and established players looking to emulate Tesla in the race for a new kind of vehicle which can be adapted for autonomous driving.

“This is a product which is tailor-made for the future, which is autonomous and shared,” said Daniel Kirchert, president and co-founder of the Nanjing-based startup.

Byton, led by former executives from Tesla, BMW, Apple and Google, said it expects to launch in China by 2019 and in the United States and Europe by 2020.

“This will be the most advanced vehicle in the market as of 2019,” said chairman and chief executive Carsten Breitfeld, a former BMW executive, at a presentation in one of the first media events at the huge electronics show.

The Byton car will use facial recognition to unlock and adapt to the driver and offer a range of other ways to interact including voice control with Amazon Alexa, touch and gesture.

It will include 5G connectivity to the internet cloud and improve its functions with artificial intelligence.

“It will improve your experience the more it knows you,” said Kirchert.

While other concept electric cars have been promoted at prices of $100,000 or more, the new Byton will face competition from the Tesla Model 3 and offerings from major automakers.

Byton said the car will have a range of more than 500 kilometers (300 miles) before needing a recharge and will be able to “top up” its battery in 15 to 30 minutes.

It will be offered with “level 3” autonomy which enables some functions without a driver and be capable of “level 4” for near-autonomous function from 2020, according to the company.

The company has been recognised as the first Thailand-based company to successfully implement a vocational education program at that level in the country.

All 29 graduates achieved a Level B vocational certificate in automotive mechatronics under the German-Thai Dual Excellence Education Program (GTDEE).

In addition, the students are the first group of Thai vocational students to receive a higher vocational certificate issued by Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) in Germany.

Presiding over the ceremony were Michael Grewe, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz (Thailand) Ltd, Dr Roland Wein, executive director of the German-Thai Chamber of Commerce and Karl Adam, third secretary of economic and commercial at the German Embassy in Bangkok.

The Automotive Mechatronics Technician Dual Training Program is a two-year higher vocational education course offered by Mercedes-Benz under a partnership of the German-Thai Chamber of Commerce, Samutprakan Technical College, Eastern College of Technology, and Don Bosco Technological College.

In addition to the first-hand opportunity for immersive practice on actual Mercedes-Benz vehicles, students also gained insights on latest breakthroughs in automotive innovations such as safety systems, hybrid engine technology, and groundbreaking electronic systems for vehicles.

All students accepted into the program will be awarded scholarship from Mercedes-Benz authorised dealers and will automatically be hired to work at the after-sales workshops at Mercedes-Benz dealers upon graduation.

The electric carmaker said it now expects to hit a Model 3 production level of 5,000 per week by the end of the second quarter instead of at the end of the first quarter.

The first-quarter target was itself a prolongation of an earlier plan to reach this output by the end of 2017.

“During Q4, we made major progress addressing Model 3 production bottlenecks, with our production rate increasing significantly towards the end of the quarter,” the company said in a securities filing.

“In the last seven working days of the quarter, we made 793 Model 3’s, and in the last few days, we hit a production rate on each of our manufacturing lines that extrapolates to over 1,000 Model 3’s per week,” the company added.

“We expect to have a slightly more gradual ramp through Q1, likely ending the quarter at a weekly rate of about 2,500 Model 3 vehicles. We intend to achieve the 5,000 per week milestone by the end of Q2.”

Tesla, which is led by Elon Musk, said its overall vehicles came in at 29,870 in the fourth quarter and included all-time peaks for the Model S and Model X deliveries.

However, Tesla has been under pressure to ramp up production of the Model 3, which at $35,000 could appeal to a broad market and is around half the cost of its other cars.

Tesla shares fell 2.3 percent in after-hours trading to $31.10.