2011

Tucson, Ariz.--Sean Parker, a big reason for Facebook's success (remember Justin Timberlake) and a now a partner with Founders Fund, thinks Silicon Valley is in big trouble. His beef: Too many angel investors are throwing way too much money--albeit in little drips--at aspiring entrepreneurs who aren't up to the task of building a company.

The subject came up during a panel Parker was on at Techonomy 2011, a conference that took place this week in Tucson, Ariz. It's a hot-button issue -every young coder in the Valley, it seems, is either doing a startup or toying … Read more

LOS ANGELES--If you've ever criticized Hyundai for derivative design, you'll want to have your torches and pitchforks at the ready for this one.

The first thing I thought when Hyundai pulled the wraps off of its new 2012 Azera here at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show was that it looked just like a Toyota Camry. Perhaps that's not totally fair, because as the large sedan spun slowly on its turntable, I also saw hints of Mazda6, Nissan Altima, and BMW 6-Series. For a brand like Hyundai that's been building a ton of steam over the … Read more

LOS ANGELES--Volkswagen is keeping the specifications of the Beetle R concept a secret, but the production Golf R, coming out next year, should give some clues.

Letters like GTI and GLI used to spell performance in Volkswagen terminology, but the German carmaker is introducing a new letter, R. The company now has an entire performance division tuning up existing Volkswagen models and slapping an R badge on them. The first effort hitting production is the Golf R, and now Volkswagen is showing off a concept version of a Beetle R.

Based on the 2012 Beetle, the Beetle R concept has … Read more

LOS ANGELES--Cadillac killed two old birds with one stone today.

The old birds in question are the aging DTS and STS luxury sedan that will likely both be replaced by the new 2013 Cadillac XTS sedan unveiled here at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show this morning.

The XTS gets a healthy dose of Cadillac's Art and Science design language, so it's no surprise that the sedan ends up looking quite a bit like a larger, more upright version of the automaker's popular CTS sedan. The XTS also shares the 3.6-liter, direct-injection V-6 engine that lurks … Read more

Ford is partnering with Azure Dynamics on a five-seater station wagon version of its Transit Connect all-electric vans.

Both companies announced the project Wednesday in time for the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show.

The Ford Transit Connect Electric Wagon will be available in North America immediately, with plans to eventually sell it in Europe as well.

The Transit Connect vans, which went into production in 2010, are already in the fleets of AT&T, DHL, FedEx, and Post Norway, to name a few. The vehicle won the 2010 North American Truck of the Year award, to the surprise of … Read more

LOS ANGELES--Using a rigid aluminum structure and a Ford-sourced engine, the MXT looks good and should feature excellent handling.

The MXT should go a long way toward changing perceptions in the U.S. about Mexican craftsmanship. This little sports car, the brainchild of Daniel Mastretta, uses a rigid, lightweight chassis made from aluminum and a short wheelbase, which should give it excellent handling.

… Read more

TUCSON, Ariz.--Sean Parker, a co-founder of Napster and Facebook's first president, said the key thing that worries him about the growth of Facebook and the use of social networks essentially boils down to one word: wackos.

Parker's remarks came up during a conversation at Techonomy here about trade-offs between privacy and empowerment people throughout the world now make, due to the likes of Facebook, Twitter, and technology in general.

"The tools can be used for good [or] for evil, and you sort of have to bet that better angels will prevail and will offset mischief," … Read more

This week kicks off the Los Angeles Auto Show, where automakers show off their latest models and concepts in the city known for its car culture. CNET will be at the show during press preview days this week, getting a first-hand look. Here are some of the cars we are looking forward to seeing at the show: … Read more

Autonomy CEO Mike Lynch took to the stage of at Techonomy 2011 and gave a glimpse of some amazing stuff that phones and tablet cameras will soon be able to do.

Autonomy, which Hewlett Packard just acquired for almost $12 billion, bills itself as a leader in "meaning based computing," a tagline that's easy to dismiss. Then Lynch brought out an iPad to demonstrate Autonomy's technology, and he wowed the audience. And this was a jaded crowd, folks.

Lynch had an assistant hold up poster-size images--an ad for a Harry Potter move, a front page of … Read more