Toyota has accelerated its ‘Green Wave Project’ commemorating this year’s environment month. It is aimed at enhancing its nature conservation activity in the community with the company distributing saplings to its employees, under its sixth challenge that is termed as ‘Establishing a Future Society in Harmony with Nature’ and looks to contribute to the Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050. 

While the eco campaign continues to drive active community involvement to promote greenery, through employee engagement, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) has successfully distributed over 7000 saplings to its employees, marking significant progress towards its 8,000-sapling target set under its plantation activity. 

With TKM employees encouraged to plant and nurture the distributed saplings within their neighbourhoods and submit periodic reports on plant growth, the it is noteworthy to mention about Toyota’s tree plantation activities that are strongly driven by adopting a unique concept namely the ‘Miyawaki Method of Afforestation’ since 2009, and TKM was the first corporate in India to implement such plantation methodology. TKM’s steadfast commitment to sustainability and ecological restoration is yielding remarkable results, as evidenced by the numerous advantages of the Miyawaki approach. A comprehensive study conducted in collaboration with experts from Bangalore University revealed that the Miyawaki method excels in carbon sequestration, capturing an impressive 30.86 tonnes of carbon per acre.

By doing so, TKM not only restored native habitats but also created self-sustaining ecosystem that contribute to a healthier planet. Under the guidance of Late Dr Akira Miyawaki himself, TKM initiated its maiden Miyawaki plantation drive, way back in 2009, marking a significant milestone in its journey towards conservation of greenery and eco-consciousness. Since that momentous day, TKM's plantation drives have continued to evolve and expanded to 112 acres of green cover within the factory premises, out of which 32 acres of afforestation has been developed using Miyawaki method. Today, Toyota’s manufacturing facility, located in Bidadi (on the outskirts of Bengaluru) proudly boasts more than 328,000 trees of over 790 native species planted within its premises. The results have been truly awe-inspiring with a remarkable increase in biodiversity observed over the years. 

From a mere 181 plant species, the count has surged to an impressive 790, while the number of faunal species has risen from 76 to 284. The vibrant ecosystem now encompasses 88 bird varieties, 38 butterfly species, 107 insects, 17 reptiles, 8 mammals, and 6 amphibians, reflecting the successful development of a thriving native forest ecosystem.

In addition, TKM has created an experiential environmental learning centre ‘Ecozone’ (spread across 25 acres with 17 theme parks and home to 65,000 trees with 650 native species) for children, teachers, community members and other stakeholders, within its manufacturing facility aimed at creating the environment leaders and change champions for the future, to usher in desired behavioural change in the communities. This green zone depicts the creation of dense forest within the plant facility using the ‘Miyawaki Concept’ of plantation. The forests are dominantly planted with species of 4 major forest types such as Dry Deciduous, Moist Deciduous, Semi-evergreen and Evergreen Forest, covering 21 different sub-concepts such as Pollination meadows, herbal garden, plants for spices etc. So far, more than 42,000+ students & other stakeholders have been covered through ecozone initiative.

B Padmanabha, Executive Vice President and Director of Manufacturing - Toyota Kirloskar Motor, averred, “At Toyota Kirloskar Motor, we recognise that environmental and social sustainability are just as crucial as economic progression. Guided by Toyota’s Global Environmental Challenge 2050 (six challenges announced in 2015), our sustainability efforts are far reaching that go beyond product zero emissions. While the first three challenges seek to achieve zero carbon emissions covering the entire life cycle of our products, across manufacturing operations as well as our value chain, the last three challenges focus to achieve water conservation, establishing recycled based society and living in harmony with nature.”

“We believe that a sustainable future is built through collective action and community involvement, as exemplified by one of our eco initiatives - Green Wave Program that covers afforestation (plantation drives, distribution of saplings), sharing best practices (e.g. Miyawaki plantation methodology), creating awareness on nature conservation and imbibing good eco behaviour (Toyota Ecozone – Experiential Eco Learning). Together with our employees and other stakeholders, we aim to catalyse positive change in the community to safeguard the environment to the future,” he added. 

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South Korea-based Stradvision, a company specialising in AI-based vision perception technology, has been selected by a global commercial vehicle manufacturer to deploy its SVNet software across its Indian vehicle lineup.

The programme focuses on fleet-scale deployment of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) in a market where perception software must balance technical reliability with cost-efficiency.

The company stated that the Indian commercial vehicle sector requires ADAS solutions capable of operating on resource-constrained hardware while maintaining performance in high-density traffic.

SVNet is engineered to detect and classify objects in mixed-traffic environments, including two-wheelers, three-wheelers and pedestrians. This software architecture allows the OEM to implement functions such as automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning and lane departure warning across various models using a single software stack.

The deployment is structured to allow the manufacturer to standardise its perception platform while adjusting for model-specific hardware.

Till date, Stradvision has deployed approximately 5 million units of SVNet globally, providing the production maturity required for high-volume commercial vehicle programmes. This project indicates a shift in the automotive industry towards perception solutions that prioritises scalability and operational efficiency across diverse market conditions.

Philip Vidal, CBO, Stradvision, said, "India's commercial vehicle segment is one of the most consequential ADAS markets opening right now. The scale of the fleet, the complexity of the traffic environment, and the cost requirements make it a genuine test of whether perception software can perform where it matters most. SVNet was built for exactly this kind of deployment, and this program is a strong validation of that."

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Einride AB, the freight technology company, has appointed General (Ret.) Keith B. Alexander to its Board of Directors. The appointment coincides with the formal establishment of a dedicated defence business aimed at providing autonomous driving capabilities to military organisations globally.

General Alexander, a current member of the Amazon Board of Directors, previously served as the Director of the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and was the Founding Commander of the U.S. Cyber Command.

The move into the defence sector follows the completion of autonomous pilot contracts with a European NATO-allied organisation. Einride intends to utilise its vehicle-agnostic autonomous system, the Einride Driver, which can be integrated into new vehicle platforms or retrofitted onto existing fleets.

This technology licensing model operates alongside the company’s Freight-Capacity-as-a-Service offering, which manages electric heavy-duty fleets through AI optimisation software and charging infrastructure.

The company currently operates in the U.S., Europe and the Middle East, serving more than 30 enterprise customers. Einride reports approximately USD 92 million in expected annual recurring revenue from signed contracts. The firm is also progressing toward a public listing through a proposed business combination with Legato Merger Corp. III, expected to conclude during the first half of 2026.

General Keith B. Alexander, said, "Autonomous systems operating in defence environments face a distinct threat landscape, where adversaries probe for vulnerabilities in communication, navigation, and control. What brought me to Einride is its strong operational foundation, proven safety record and real operational experience. My role is helping ensure Einride's systems meet the standards required by NATO-allied and U.S. defence organisations and scale from pilots to full programs."

Robert Falck, Chairman of Einride's Board of Directors, said, "General Alexander has spent decades operating at the intersection of technology, security, and high-stakes decision-making. As Einride continues to expand its offering to the defence sectors, his knowledge and experiences are exactly what we need in the boardroom."

Roozbeh Charli, CEO, Einride, added, “Having validated our technology in a defence context, we're now moving with intent: recruiting specialised talent, developing defence-specific expertise, and bringing in leadership with deep domain knowledge. Appointing General Alexander to our Board of Directors is one concrete example of that, his experience directly strengthening our strategic direction in this space.”

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Hyundai Mobis has established an integrated data management and validation system designed to test electronic control units (ECUs) for software-defined vehicles (SDVs) and autonomous driving.

The platform links real-world road test data with simulators to replicate driving scenarios, addressing the requirement from global carmakers for data-based validation results spanning tens of thousands of hours.

The system utilises a platform that connects multiple simulators in parallel to reflect various validation scenarios.

Hyundai Mobis intends to expand this infrastructure to link up to 60 simulators, which would allow the company to complete 10,000 hours of evaluation within a one-week period. This process typically requires several years of physical test driving under standard real-world conditions.

By integrating sensors mounted on test vehicles, the system collects data from diverse driving and parking environments. It can replicate specific conditions that are difficult to reproduce consistently in reality, such as nighttime driving, heavy rain and unexpected road incidents, by combining them with virtual simulations.

This approach is intended to assess the recognition performance and stability of radar, cameras, LiDAR and ultrasonic sensors.

Hyundai Mobis will use this system to validate algorithms for autonomous driving sensors and various ECUs as part of its strategy to acquire global orders for SDV components. The company plans to enhance the system through data integration and collaboration with its research hubs worldwide.

Ko Bongchul, Chief of Automotive Electronics R&D at Hyundai Mobis, said, “In the era of SDVs and autonomous driving, evaluation and validation are just as critical as technology development. We expect that establishing this evaluation and validation system will simultaneously expand the speed and scope of validation, thereby significantly boosting our competitiveness in securing orders for core SDV components.”

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TomTom, the location technology specialist, has announced the appointment of Mike Schoofs as Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Management Board. The decision was formalised following approval by shareholders at the company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM). The AGM also confirmed the appointment of Co-founder and former CEO Harold Goddijn to the Supervisory Board, alongside Joep van Beurden, while Derk Haank was reappointed as a member.

Schoofs joined TomTom in 2005 after holding positions at KPN-Orange and Samsung. During his tenure, he has served in various commercial leadership roles globally and within specific regions. In 2023, he assumed the role of Chief Revenue Officer, where he managed the company’s commercial strategy and expanded its enterprise business footprint. A Belgian national based in Amsterdam, Schoofs also serves as an advisor to several European startups.

The leadership transition occurs as the company focuses on the integration of artificial intelligence within location intelligence and the provision of data for its partners. TomTom’s strategy remains focused on scaling its commercial presence across all business segments under the new executive structure.

Derk Haank, Chairman of TomTom’s Supervisory Board, said, “Mike brings extensive commercial leadership experience and deep knowledge of TomTom’s business, built over more than two decades with the company. We are confident that he is well positioned to lead TomTom in its next phase.”

Mike Schoofs, said, “I’m excited to lead TomTom at a moment when location intelligence is reaching a decisive turning point, accelerated by AI and the growing need for trusted, real‑world data. I look forward to creating lasting impact for our customers and our partners.”

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