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Audi ascending

Ford has owned the International Consumer Electronics show the last few years, but now a host of other automakers are making their presence felt at the techno party. Case in point: Audi AG CEO Rupert Stadler's appearance as a keynote speaker Thursday morning at the Las Vegas Hilton. Actor James Cromwell, from I, Robot movie fame, introduced Stadler, who rolled onto stage in an e-tron Spyder concept car.

SCCA, IMSA champion joins Survive the Drive

Bob Sharp, SCCA and IMSA GTU champion, has joined the board of directors of Survive the Drive, an organization aimed at educating teen drivers about auto safety and crash prevention. Sharp joins Sam Posey and John Fitch as representatives from the motorsports world. Survive the Drive began in 1997 in northwestern Connecticut with Skip Barber Driving School instructor Bob Green.

General Motors partners with battery supplier LG on electric vehicles

General Motors said Thursday that it is partnering with its battery cell supplier, LG Group, to develop electric vehicles. The agreement, signed Wednesday by GM CEO Dan Akerson and LG President Juno Cho, will “help GM expand the number and types of electric vehicles it makes and sells,” the automaker said in a statement. It's the second example this week of automakers looking for partners to help in developing more fuel-efficient cars, as U.S.