Latest news with #AndrewMacdonald
The Herald Scotland
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
The Connery connections reviving Edinburgh's film festival
When the event returns next month, his presence will be felt across the festival thanks to his family's determination to honour his devotion to both the event and the city of his birth. Read more: They launched the Sean Connery Foundation, a new charity to support projects and initiatives in Scotland and the Bahamas, where he lived latterly, in 2022, two years after the screen star passed away at the age of 1990. The EIFF almost vanished from the industry calendar two years ago when the Centre for the Moving Image, the arts charity which ran both the event and the Filmhouse cinema, its main base in August, went into administration. Goldfinger will be among the classic James Bond films given a rare cinema screening at this year's Edinburgh International Film Festival. (Image: Agency) The event returned in reduced from in 2023 as part of the Edinburgh International Festival programme, before it was revived in a new organisation led by chairman Andrew Macdonald, one of Scotland's leading film producers, and Paul Ridd, the who led a full-scale reboot of the event last summer. Efforts to put the festival firmly back on the radar of filmmakers received a huge boost when it was announced that the Connery Foundation would be backing the EIFF's new feature film prize. Won by self-taught British filmmaker Jack King last year with his 'microbudget' debut feature The Ceremony, the Connery prize attracted more than 4500 submissions to the festival this year – almost double the number for the 2024 edition. The Connery family is also key to a major showcase of new Scottish filmmaking talent at the festival. The festival will showcase the first six projects to emerge from a new Sean Connery Talent Lab initiative, which the foundation launched last year with the National Film and Television School. Their short films focus on a young boy beginning to unearth a secret family trauma, an amateur basketball player under mounting pressure, a young woman who stands up to her employer at a grand ceilidh, the impact of addiction, a doctor forced to choose between medical protocol and her humanity, and a supermarket bargain hunt which turns deadly. Sir Sean's family will also be introducing the six classic James Bond films that the actor starred in between 1962 and 1971. The screenings, which will run at 11am at the Filmhouse during the festival, are a rare opportunity to see the actor's iconic performances on the big screen.
Malay Mail
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- Malay Mail
Steering into the future: Uber's driverless taxis hit London streets by 2026
LONDON, June 12 — Ride-hailing firm Uber will launch self-driving taxis in London next year when England trials new driverless services, the firm and the UK government said on Tuesday. Under the Uber pilot scheme, services will initially have a human in the driver's seat who can take control of the vehicle in an emergency, but the trials will eventually transition to being fully driverless. The government announcement will see companies including Uber allowed to trial commercial driverless services without a human presence for the first time in the UK. They will include taxis and 'bus-like' services. Uber CEO Andrew Macdonald described London's roads as 'one of the world's busiest and most complex urban environments'. 'Our vision is to make autonomy a safe and reliable option for riders everywhere, and this trial in London brings that future closer to reality,' he said. Members of the public will be able to book the transport via an app from spring 2026, ahead of a potential wider rollout when new legislation — the Automated Vehicles Act — becomes law from the second half of 2027, the Department for Transport added. The technology could create 38,000 jobs, add £42 billion (RM240.2 billion) to the UK economy by 2025, and make roads safer, it said. 'The future of transport is arriving. Self-driving cars could bring jobs, investment, and the opportunity for the UK to be among the world-leaders in new technology,' Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said. 'We can't afford to take a back seat on AI.... That's why we're bringing timelines forward today,' added Technology Secretary Peter Kyle. The wider rollout will also allow the sale and use of self-driving, private cars. Driverless vehicle trials have been underway in the UK since January 2015, with British companies Wayve and Oxa 'spearheading significant breakthroughs in the technology', the ministry said. 'These early pilots will help build public trust and unlock new jobs, services, and markets,' said Wayve CEO Alex Kendall. According to the government the forthcoming legislation will require self-driving vehicles to 'achieve a level of safety at least as high as competent and careful human drivers'. 'By having faster reaction times than humans, and by being trained on large numbers of driving scenarios, including learning from real-world incidents, self-driving vehicles can help reduce deaths and injuries,' it said. Driverless taxis with limited capacity are already on the roads in the United States and China, most notably in the central Chinese city of Wuhan where a fleet of over 500 can be hailed by app in designated areas. — AFP
Kuwait Times
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- Kuwait Times
Uber to launch driverless taxis in London next year
PARIS: This photograph shows screens displaying the logo of the US multinational transportation company Uber, in Toulouse, southern France, on January 15, 2025. - AFP LONDON: Ride-hailing firm Uber will launch self-driving taxis in London next year when England trials new driverless services, the firm and the UK government said on Tuesday. Under the Uber pilot scheme, services will initially have a human in the driver's seat who can take control of the vehicle in an emergency, but the trials will eventually transition to being fully driverless. The government announcement will see companies including Uber allowed to trial commercial driverless services without a human presence for the first time in the UK. They will include taxis and 'bus-like' services. Uber CEO Andrew Macdonald described London's roads as 'one of the world's busiest and most complex urban environments'. 'Our vision is to make autonomy a safe and reliable option for riders everywhere, and this trial in London brings that future closer to reality,' he said. Members of the public will be able to book the transport via an app from spring 2026, ahead of a potential wider rollout when new legislation—the Automated Vehicles Act—becomes law from the second half of 2027, the Department for Transport added. The technology could create 38,000 jobs, add £42 billion ($57 billion) to the UK economy by 2025, and make roads safer, it said. 'The future of transport is arriving. Self-driving cars could bring jobs, investment, and the opportunity for the UK to be among the world-leaders in new technology,' Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said. 'We can't afford to take a back seat on AI.... That's why we're bringing timelines forward today,' added Technology Secretary Peter Kyle. The wider rollout will also allow the sale and use of self-driving, private cars. Driverless vehicle trials have been underway in the UK since January 2015, with British companies Wayve and Oxa 'spearheading significant breakthroughs in the technology', the ministry said. 'These early pilots will help build public trust and unlock new jobs, services, and markets,' said Wayve CEO Alex Kendall. According to the government the forthcoming legislation will require self-driving vehicles to 'achieve a level of safety at least as high as competent and careful human drivers'. 'By having faster reaction times than humans, and by being trained on large numbers of driving scenarios, including learning from real-world incidents, self-driving vehicles can help reduce deaths and injuries,' it said. Driverless taxis with limited capacity are already on the roads in the United States and China, most notably in the central Chinese city of Wuhan where a fleet of over 500 can be hailed by app in designated areas.- AFP
Auto Express
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Express
Checkmate, Tesla Cybercab! Uber to trial driverless taxis in London
Uber is to begin trials of driverless taxis in London next year, ahead of the Tesla Cybercab, which is touted to make its debut in the US 'before 2027'. The ride-hailing platform has already been working with UK artificial intelligence firm Wayve to perfect its Level 4 autonomous driving technology in what Uber has described as 'complex driving environments'. This announcement comes shortly after the Government said it would begin implementing a fast-tracking framework to introduce autonomous 'taxi and bus-like' pilot services to UK roads; the previous Conservative administration originally intended to put in place legislation to see fully autonomous taxis on UK roads by 2026, but this has since been pushed back a year. Advertisement - Article continues below In a statement, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the UK's commitment to autonomous vehicles will 'drive growth, create 38,000 jobs and add £42 billion to our economy.' Uber has not confirmed whether its driverless taxi pilot scheme will be open to the general public or how it will be implemented; the firm says it will announce details in the coming months. Nevertheless, its chief operating officer, Andrew Macdonald, reiterated that: '[Uber's] vision is to make autonomy a safe and reliable option for riders everywhere, and this trial in London brings that future closer to reality.' Skip advert Advertisement - Article continues below Of course, there is still a long way to go before our streets are fully populated by autonomous vehicles; the Government's Automated Vehicles Act will require driverless cars to 'achieve a level of safety at least as high as competent and careful human drivers'. Liability in the event of an accident will be placed on the firm responsible for the taxi itself, with occupants blameless for anything that occurs. If there are controls mounted in the car, occupants will instead be referred to as 'users-in-charge', but they can still escape liability in some instances. While Uber looks poised to introduce its driverless services in a matter of months, many firms (including Tesla) have hit roadblocks along the way, with critics questioning the feasibility of implementing such schemes safely. The general secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers' Association, Steve McNamara, told the Guardian newspaper that the Government is 'living in fantasy land. We're probably going to have flying taxis before we have autonomous ones in London. 'Most people haven't got a robot hoover or a robot lawnmower even though they are absolutely fantastic,' McNamara remarked. 'Are people who don't trust a robot to cut their grass or clean their house going to trust one to take their kids to school or drive their elderly mum around? Come back to me in 2040.' Did you know you can sell your car through Auto Express ? We'll help you get a great price and find a great deal on a new car, too . Find a car with the experts Car Deal of the Day: A Volkswagen Golf R Estate for less than a GTI Car Deal of the Day: A Volkswagen Golf R Estate for less than a GTI The Golf R Estate is one of the best performance estates around – and right now it's criminally cheap. It's our Deal of the Day for 9 June. Should Citroen make a new 2CV? Some say oui, others say non Should Citroen make a new 2CV? Some say oui, others say non A new Citroen 2CV could be inbound, but would this be a French fancy or a financial flop? Car Deal of the Day: A fully-loaded Jeep Avenger for under £200 per month Car Deal of the Day: A fully-loaded Jeep Avenger for under £200 per month The petrol-powered version of Jeep's charming baby SUV is our Deal of the Day for 8 June
The Star
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Star
Uber to launch driverless taxis in London next year
LONDON: Ride-hailing firm Uber will launch self-driving taxis in London next year when England trials new driverless services, the firm and the UK government said on Tuesday. Under the Uber pilot scheme, services will initially have a human in the driver's seat who can take control of the vehicle in an emergency, but the trials will eventually transition to being fully driverless. The government announcement will see companies including Uber allowed to trial commercial driverless services without a human presence for the first time in the UK. They will include taxis and "bus-like" services. Uber CEO Andrew Macdonald described London's roads as "one of the world's busiest and most complex urban environments". "Our vision is to make autonomy a safe and reliable option for riders everywhere, and this trial in London brings that future closer to reality," he said. Members of the public will be able to book the transport via an app from spring 2026, ahead of a potential wider rollout when new legislation – the Automated Vehicles Act – becomes law from the second half of 2027, the Department for Transport added. The technology could create 38,000 jobs, add £42bil (RM239bil) to the UK economy by 2025, and make roads safer, it said. "The future of transport is arriving. Self-driving cars could bring jobs, investment, and the opportunity for the UK to be among the world-leaders in new technology," Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said. "We can't afford to take a back seat on AI.... That's why we're bringing timelines forward today," added Technology Secretary Peter Kyle. The wider rollout will also allow the sale and use of self-driving, private cars. Driverless vehicle trials have been underway in the UK since January 2015, with British companies Wayve and Oxa "spearheading significant breakthroughs in the technology", the ministry said. "These early pilots will help build public trust and unlock new jobs, services, and markets," said Wayve CEO Alex Kendall. According to the government the forthcoming legislation will require self-driving vehicles to "achieve a level of safety at least as high as competent and careful human drivers". "By having faster reaction times than humans, and by being trained on large numbers of driving scenarios, including learning from real-world incidents, self-driving vehicles can help reduce deaths and injuries," it said. Driverless taxis with limited capacity are already on the roads in the United States and China, most notably in the central Chinese city of Wuhan where a fleet of over 500 can be hailed by app in designated areas. – AFP
