Several years ago, I started referring to artificial intelligence (AI) as the technology that’s everywhere yet nowhere.
Nowadays, it’s literally everywhere. You can’t go 24 hours without reading an eye-catching headline about the incredible future of the technology.
AI touches nearly every aspect of our lives and will have ripple effects in almost every corner of every industry in the market. I believe it could be one of the largest and most impactful megatrends in decades.
But AI’s influence in one multi-trillion-dollar industry is flying under the radar of most investors. And it could lead many to miss out on one of the best investment opportunities of the coming decade.
I’m talking about transportation…
The average U.S. commuter spends 216 hour per year in a vehicle travelling to and from work. That’s the equivalent of 27 additional eight-hour workdays on top of a person’s already busy schedule.
Imagine what someone could do with all that extra time.
It’s only a matter of time before those hours lost to commuting are in the past. And it’s all thanks to the next technological innovation coming out of the transportation industry…
The transportation industry is undergoing a massive transformation – one the likes of which hasn’t been seen in decades. Since the passenger vehicle was invented nearly 150 years ago, cars have run on gasoline. Most travelers still fuel up at gas stations today. But that has finally begun to change.
The transportation industry is being electrified. Cars can be powered solely by electricity and still provide drivers with more than 200 miles of range at an affordable price.
And that’s not the last stop in this transformation…
The next great technological breakthrough in the transportation industry will be self-driving cars – more commonly known as autonomous vehicles (AVs).
Car manufacturers – specifically Tesla and its founder, Elon Musk – have had grandiose ideas about the future of AVs for years. Now, they’re finally becoming a reality. And it’s all thanks to AI. Without the technology’s computing power, driverless cars zipping around public roadways would be nothing more than a pipedream.
This is one of many examples of breakthrough technologies converging to unleash even greater innovations.
Now, I realize that the thought of getting into a vehicle with no human driver – or steering wheel, for that matter – seems like science-fiction to many of you. According to a 2022 survey conducted by Pew Research Center, only 37% of Americans would get into an AV if given the chance.
But I’m a futurist. That means I often think outside the realms of today and look ahead at what the world will look like over the next five to 20 years. And I don’t think it’s a question that there will be far more AVs on our roads in the near future.
Believe it or not, AVs are already out there today…
Tesla may be best known for bringing electric vehicles (EVs) to the masses. But it’s also working diligently to make AVs more accessible. The majority of the firm’s cars are currently semi-autonomous – which means they boast features like automatic emergency braking, lane assist, and automatic parallel parking.
But Tesla also offers a Full Self-Driving subscription. The system is still in beta, so it’s not yet ready for commercial use. But it highlights what an autonomous Tesla will soon be able to do. For now, it simply requires an alert human in the driver seat as backup.
Meanwhile, Waymo – a self-driving car spinoff of Alphabet – is operating an autonomous rideshare service called Waymo One in Phoenix.
I got to use it when I visited the area a few months ago. When the sleek Jaguar crossover that I’d ordered using an app on my phone picked me up outside my hotel, I was pleasantly surprised when the door opened and there was no other human inside.
I won’t lie and claim that my first time in the backseat of a self-driving vehicle was pure excitement. I was nervous – as any person who has only ever taken a ride with a human in control would be. But after that first experience, I felt much more confident. And I look forward to riding in AVs again in the future.
So, whether you’re like me and fully trusting of AV technology or hesitant to experience it just yet, there’s no denying what’s ahead. This is an investment potential that you can’t afford to ignore.
The Benefits of Robotaxis
I believe that one of the greatest use cases for self-driving vehicles will be something called “robotaxis.” These are essentially fleets of AVs that operate as taxis or ridesharing services – just like Waymo One.
Travelers won’t need to own an AV themselves. They’ll simply need to login to an app on their phone and order one to take them from Point A to Point B. It will be no different than ordering a ride from Uber or Lyft today.
Investment firm ARK Invest predicts that the robotaxi market will generate $28 trillion in enterprise value over the next five to 10 years. In other words, it will have a widespread impact on life as we know it and one day become the norm.
The two biggest factors powering this shift are cost and safety.
In the late 19th century, the cost per mile of a personally owned vehicle – in this case, a horse and carriage – was $1.70. That cost fell to $0.70 per mile by the mid-1930s as gas-powered vehicles became more mainstream. But that number has stayed stagnant ever since.
The introduction and adoption of AVs and robotaxis will finally change that.
By the end of this decade, the cost per mile of a personally owned vehicle is expected to fall to just $0.25.
Then there’s the safety aspect of AVs – which I believe is the most important.
Now, a lot of people believe that AVs will increase the risks associated with travelling because they have to put their trust in a computer instead of a human. But in reality, humans increase the risk of car crashes.
Did you know that truck driving ranks among the top 10 most dangerous jobs in the country?
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than 42,500 people died in motor vehicle crashes in the U.S. in 2022. There was a total of 5.9 million crashes and 2.4 million related injuries. The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that these crashes result in an annual economic cost of $340 billion.
Worldwide, approximately 3,700 people die on motorways every day – resulting in 1.35 car-related deaths per year. That makes car crashes the leading cause of death among people ages five to 29 and the 8th overall cause of death globally.
Approximately 90% of car crashes occur at the fault of human drivers. For example, 84% of crashes include a driver who never hit the brake. This is often the result of some kind of impairment – such as alcohol consumption or being distracted by a device.
AVs will eliminate 99.9% of the crashes currently being caused by human error.
Of course, they won’t be perfect. But when you consider that some type of outside factor is responsible for most car crashes and related deaths, there’s no question that AVs will save many lives every year.
The safety aspect of AVs alone is enough for me to get onboard with this technological innovation. And that makes their other benefits – such as cost and an increase in productivity time – simply a bonus.
The Investment Opportunity
There are several ways to gain exposure to the opportunity created by the introduction of AVs and robotaxi fleets in an investment portfolio.
You could invest in the automakers manufacturing the new generation of electric AVs, the firms behind EV charging stations popping up across the globe, or those involved in the software and hardware that’s used to control these vehicles. There is also investment potential in the semiconductors powering AVs’ artificial intelligence software, next-generation auto parts companies, and even the commodities used to electrify the growing fleet.
The possibilities are endless.
And my goal is help you find the best opportunities out there.
If you’ve invested with me before or read anything I’ve written over my 20-plus years in the stock market, you know that I believe education is the key to successful investing. You can never research, read, or learn too much. But you must also know how to apply that knowledge to your investment strategy.
That’s where I come in. And I’m more than happy to point you in the right direction of the companies currently at the forefront of the AV megatrend…
In the future, all AVs and robotaxis will run on battery power. They won’t be fueled by gasoline like today’s vehicles. Instead, they’ll be EVs. So, we can look to the current leaders in the EV space for potential investments.
In 2023, Tesla (TSLA) and Chinese auto manufacturer BYD (BYDDY) accounted for 37% of global EV sales. The only other non-Chinese company with greater than 4% market share was German firm Volkswagen (VWAGY).
Of course, these EVs must be charged. Tesla again dominates the U.S. market with more than 63% of all direct-current fast-charging ports. ChargePoint (CHPT) is another major player in U.S. EV charging ports but lags in the fast-charging category. The California-based firm made its market debut during the 2019 special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) boom and has struggled as a public entity since.
I expect the current leaders in urban mobility – Uber Technologies (UBER) and Lyft (LYFT) – will also be major players in the world of self-driving taxis. Both businesses have established customer bases that could easily become the first group to embrace robotaxis.
But we also must consider the “picks and shovels” of the broader AV industry. These are the companies that will benefit no matter which auto manufacturer comes out on top because they supply the pieces that make up the new technological innovation.
This includes semiconductor companies like NVIDIA (NVDA), Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), NXP Semiconductors (NXPI), ON Semiconductor (ON), and STMicroelectronics (STM) thatprovide the chips necessary for the next generation of vehicles.
Honestly, I could go on and on about the endless potential within the future of the transportation industry – what I call Transportation 2.0. That’s one of the greatest things about investing in trends with such massive long-term potential.
But all of those possibilities make it difficult to ensure that your money is at work in the best opportunities out there.
That’s why on June 13th, I’m holding a special live event where I’ll reveal what I believe could be the next 1,000% play in this sector.
Those of you who have been following me know that I’ve been pounding the table about a radical project I uncovered – what I call Elon Musk’s “Project X.”
I’ve been telling everyone what the media keeps getting wrong about Musk and Tesla…
That Tesla is NOT just a car company…
That selling EVs is just Tesla’s first move…
And that people who can be open minded enough to see what I see could have a rare shot to cash in on Musk’s genius.
If you’ve been following my Project X prediction, you know that I’ve been talking about Musk pivoting Tesla to revolutionize the massive multi-trillion-dollar energy industry…
And I’ve been giving my followers urgent opportunities to take advantage of this trend – and of the electrification of America and the world.
Demand for electricity across the planet is about to explode in the next year or two…
Doubling almost entirely because of AI.
And right now, we’re on the precipice of a huge development that I believe could revolutionize the entire AI and energy landscape.
That’s why on June 13th, I’m holding a special live event where I’ll reveal this unique and rare opportunity – as well as how to position yourself to take full advantage of this massive shift.
So, keep an eye on your inbox over the coming days. I’ll be sharing plenty more details about this special live event. And I strongly urge you to join me.
Here’s to the future,
Matt McCallEditor, Matt McCall’s Market Insights
The post Pioneering Autonomy: Companies Driving the AV Movement appeared first on Centurion Publishing.
