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> "The entire infotainment system is a HTML 5 super computer," Milton said. "That's the standard language for computer programmers around the world, so using it
by altdatathrow 6y ago
> "The entire infotainment system is a HTML 5 super computer," Milton said. "That's the standard language for computer programmers around the world, so using it let's us build our own chips. And HTML 5 is very secure. Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. It's not a bunch of separate systems that somehow still manage to communicate."
[1] https://www.truckinginfo.com/330475/whats-behind-the-grille-of-the-new-nikola-hydrogen-electric-truck https://www.truckinginfo.com/330475/whats-behind-the-grille-...
- rayuela 6y agoOk is this actually real? Is truckinginfo.com a reputable site? That quote sounds so outlandishly crazy I'm hesitant to believe someone actually said that.
- cultus 6y agoI've seen it a few times elsewhere. I should really just quit my job and become rich by bullshitting investors with technobabble.
- gruez 6y ago>I've seen it a few times elsewhere A cursory search on google shows that all the references link back to truckinginfo.com, so I wouldn't put too much weight on that.
- gwd 6y agoIs that an exact quote or a summary? Having talked to reporters before, there is a possibility that something more reasonable was said but then got garbled. Like, if during the interview someone said the UI is using HTML5, which is standard everywhere, so it will be easy for people to extend / we have lots of options; and also we're using ARM so we can build our own chips; ARM is in everything from smartphones to supercomputers. I can totally see a non-tech reporter getting confused and morphing that into the sentence above. Obviously the other outlandish / false claims make it more likely that this is an example of BS as well.
- altdatathrow 6y agoThe journalist seems to be real [1], and that website has been around since 1999 [2], and they've published a magazine "Heavy Duty Trucking" [2] since that time too. I think it's a legitimate niche magazine/site, yeah. It's possible the journo misquoted him I guess? But that's so outlandishly incoherent they've have demanded a correction, no? [1] https://www.linkedin.com/in/truckinjim/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/truckinjim/ [2] https://web.archive.org/web/20000612021454/http://www.truckinginfo.com/ https://web.archive.org/web/20000612021454/http://www.trucki...
- throwaway5752 6y agoThe author is just not an expert in this field. This is - for the most part - what Hacker News sounds like when there are discussions outside of computer science.
- adventured 6y ago> The author is just not an expert in this field. This is - for the most part - what Hacker News sounds like when there are discussions outside of computer science. If only it were just that. He appears to be a con-artist. It's always interesting how things can sound similar and have entirely different intent and reasoning behind them. This guy knew he was spouting lies while talking about the HTML supercomputer (assuming it's a correct quote from the trucking site in question). He has now been caught doing it repeatedly and to a rather dramatic scale. His interviews are full of half truths and dodges. It appears to be the Theranos playbook: try to get to a certain line where some product finally becomes real, before the clock runs out on the con. Intentions matter a lot. There's obviously a vast difference between someone quite innocently discussing / opining outside of their knowledge lanes on a hacker news forum, and someone intentionally spinning an epic scale multi-billion-dollar fraud in the name of the profit motive. The point being, if someone is talking outside of their lane on HN, I have essentially zero inclination to think they're knowingly attempting to commit fraud (intellectual or financial) in the process, as on HN it's almost exclusively a common, innocent form of ignorance at play. As contrasted with the intentional deception of a con-artist.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- throwaway5752 6y agoI get your point, and agree. But I was saying the author (Park) allowed the quote from Milton (speaker of the "HTML5/supercomputer" quote) to run because he wasn't a domain expert in computers and software, rather that pushing him on it or not publishing that part.
- smabie 6y agoEspecially finance, I might add.
- elliotbnvl 6y agoI know all those words but the sentence still baffles my brain.
- mtgx 6y agoI think that means it failed the Turing test, right?
- cryptonector 6y agoWord salad.
- chasemiller 6y agoI... just... wow.
- FerretFred 6y agoI can't believe what I just read! Thanks for sharing :/
- chromedev 6y agoI use HTML 5 kernel too. It is great! /s
- dylan604 6y agoThe great thing is that you can customize your kernel panics using state of the art CSS 3.0! It's so state of the art, you can even use animation and gradients!
- cultus 6y agoDo you build your own chips though?
- dylan604 6y agoCan I use my air fryer to make those chips? I can't decide between corn or potato though. Any suggestions on pros/cons?
- dahart 6y agoI read the article thinking maybe some context in it would help explain that paragraph a little, but nope, it’s pure bunkum.
- eloff 6y agoThat's pure self-contradictory nonsense. Not proof of fraud though, just proof of ineptitude.
- hbosch 6y agoI absolutely love the phrase "HTML5 supercomputer".
- csours 6y agoOT: I've wanted to make a simple chip simulator that runs entirely in a browser for a while now.
- DarmokJalad1701 6y agohttps://win95.ajf.me/ https://win95.ajf.me/
- kevin_thibedeau 6y agoIt's the most accurate part of his statement. Everybody is walking around with portable supercomputers.
- dylan604 6y agoThey are only supercomputers in comparison to 1970s hardware. Today, they are just average computing devices.
- kevin_thibedeau 6y agoModern smartphones would make the early 90's top 500.
- sgerenser 6y agoiPhone 11 (A13 Bionic): 154.9 GFLOPS [1] Intel Paragon XP/S 140 (#1 on the top500 list in June 1994): 143.4 GFLOPS [2] Don't know whether to marvel at how fast a modern smartphone is, or how "slow" old supercomputers were. (Yes, I realize GFLOPS is probably not the best comparison and I have no idea where gadgetversus.com even gets its numbers from, but I think they're at least in the ballpark). [1] https://gadgetversus.com/processor/apple-a13-bionic-specs/ https://gadgetversus.com/processor/apple-a13-bionic-specs/ [2] https://top500.org/lists/top500/list/1994/06/ https://top500.org/lists/top500/list/1994/06/
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- cortesoft 6y agoJust wait until they figure out how to write a Visual Basic GUI to track the IP!
- Trasmatta 6y agoBut does a Visual Basic GUI allow you to create your own chips? Can all its components communicate over the data network?
- formerly_proven 6y agoWith COM+ they can.
- gridlockd 6y agoI used to work at this place where I had to apply thermal transfer to a solution of sodium chloride in dihydrogen oxide, wherein I submerged a quantity of helicoids made out of polymeric carbohydrate, increasing their ductility by several magnitudes. It was a highly proprietary process, but I later found out that everybody was doing it this way.
- woah 6y agoSeveral magnitudes?!
- m3kw9 6y agoHis speech target: Corporate know-it-alls.
- supergirl 6y agolet me try to decipher this, maybe he explained it poorly. > That's the standard language for computer programmers around the world, so using it let's us build our own chips. I guess he means that they built their own infotainment on HTML5 instead of some proprietary commercial car infotainment technology which would also come with its own chipset. So now they can use their own chipset as long as it can run HTML5. > Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. It's not a bunch of separate systems that somehow still manage to communicate. I guess it means they built a standard data bus for the car and every component can subscribe/publish to it.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- iliekcomputers 6y agoThis guy is a billionaire, I'm spending my time on the wrong things it seems
- adventured 6y agoOn paper, for another 15 minutes maybe. If the situation with Nikola is really as bad it looks right now, he's going to be spending the next few years trying to stay out of prison as the Feds turn his company inside out, investors start filing lawsuits (claiming they had no idea what was really going on), and someone starts writing a best-selling book about all the fraud that went on. I don't think you want his future. That paper net worth could quite easily be negative a year or two from now, with various assets seized, civil lawsuits, and so on.
- cbsks 6y agoThat’s probably just a misunderstanding. What Milton meant to say was that the infotainment system ran on HTML5, aka Electron, and it required a super computer.
- anaganisk 6y agoIm sure if in future if super computers manage to become consumer money friendly, electron and electron using devs will manage to make it hang itself too.
- jcims 6y agoWas curious what GPT-3 would come up with. Italics are my prompt, the rest of the comment is GPT-3. You are a reporter interviewing Milton, owner of up and coming automotive manufacturer Nikola, currently being investigated for securities fraud. "So what exactly is the problem?" you ask. Milton looks at you as if he doesn't quite understand your question, but then smiles. "The entire infotainment system is a HTML 5 super computer," Milton said. "That's the standard technology now." "What does that mean?" You ask. "It means it can do everything a human brain could ever want to do, and more!" Milton says excitedly. "You want to watch Netflix? You got it. You want to browse the internet for weird fetishes that will make you feel dirty? You got it. You want to play some games? You got it." You don't really see the point in having such a system, but you stop yourself from saying anything. "Why would anyone want all those things in their car?" You ask. "Don't you think it would be handy to watch movies while driving?" Milton asks.