Most Read This Week: Eve Humanoid Robot’s New Abilities, Violent Crowd Destroys Waymo Self-Driving Taxi

Here are the most-read stories in IoT World Today this week:

Eve Humanoid Robot Demonstrates New Abilities

Humanoid robot startup 1X has released a new video update of its humanoid robot, Eve, showcasing its neural network capabilities as it cleans a room, opens doors and performs picking and packing tasks.

"The video contains no teleoperation," said 1X. "No computer graphics, no cuts, no video speedups, no scripted trajectory playback. It's all controlled via neural networks, all autonomous, all 1X speed."

The video is the latest in a series of updates released by the company as it works to accelerate its design to commercialization.

In January, 1X released a video update of Eve to announce its availability for domestic use cases, performing chores such as cooking, cleaning and even home security.

See Eve in action >>>

Flying Taxi Deal Signed for Dubai as Mideast Takes the Lead

Flying taxi company Joby Aviation and the Dubai Road and Transport Authority have agreed to launch an air taxi service in Dubai, the latest in a series of deals bringing electric aerial vehicles (EAV) to the Middle East.

While electric aerial vehicles are being developed around the world, the Middle East has emerged as the leading location globally for the initial growth of the advanced air mobility (AAM) industry.

Related:Most Read This Week: Humanoid Robot Startup Debuts Electric, Somersaulting Robot, Flying Vehicle Company Gets $50M More Funding

While the Joby deal gives the EAV maker exclusive rights to operate flying taxis in Dubai for six years, there are other Mideast ventures to bring other flying vehicles to the United Arab Emirates region.

For example, Archer Aviation and Air Chateau International recently signed a memorandum of understanding for the private aviation operator to purchase EAVs to be operated in the UAE.

That deal calls for Archer to sell 100 of its flying vehicles in a deal valued at $500 million.

Read more about the deal >>>

Waymo Self-Driving Taxi Destroyed by Violent Crowd

A self-driving Waymo taxi was attacked by a crowd and set on fire in San Francisco during the city’s Lunar New Year celebrations.

As the San Francisco Fire Department confirmed: “Waymo Vehicle surrounded and then graffiti’d, windows were broken and fireworks lit on fire inside the vehicle which ultimately caught the entire vehicle on fire.”

Waymo later confirmed that the vehicle was not carrying any riders and that no one was hurt in the incident.

The motive of the attack has not yet been established, but it comes as hostility toward self-driving taxis in the city is on the rise. Just days before, Waymo attracted a slew of negative headlines after one of its AVs was involved in a collision with a cyclist in the city.

Read more about the incident >>>

Bank of America Data Breach Impacts 57,000

Bank of America has warned customers of a data breach that compromised the personal data of 57,028 individuals.

The attack was due to its service provider, Infosys McCamish Systems (IMS), being hacked last November. 

The news was announced in a data breach notification filed in the state of Maine, which described the incident as an "external system breach (hacking)," with the information acquired revealed to be individuals’ names and other personal identifiers in combination with social security numbers.

A sample letter for impacted customers said that, to date, IMS has found “no evidence of continued threat actor access,” though it also added it is "unlikely” that the full nature and extent of the personal data compromised will be determined. 

Ransomware gang LockBit claimed responsibility for the original IMS attack, saying that its operators encrypted more than 2,000 systems.

Find out more about the attack >>>

Flying Taxi Company Expands in China; Sets Vehicle Price at $410K

Chinese eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) vehicle maker EHang Holdings has formed a strategic partnership to grow its flying vehicle business in China.

The partnership, with the Guangzhou Development District Administrative Committee and the Guangzhou Automobile Group, will focus on research and development, production and sales to expand in the advanced air mobility (AAM) industry.

EHang also set $410,000 as the suggested retail price of its EH216-S electric aerial vehicle in markets outside of China.

The EHang passenger-carrying unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is approved for flying passengers.

The new joint agreement is aimed at providing support to EHang for technology research and development, production and promotion for vehicle uses in Guangzhou.

Read more about the deal >>>