Rivian, Mercedes-Benz Partner to Produce Electric Commercial Vans

The all-electric startup has partnered with the German luxury marque to start a joint venture that’s centered around manufacturing two electric vans at a new facility in Europe.

GM Offering to Buy Out Buick Dealers That Don’t Want to Sell EVs

With Buick set to go all-electric by 2030, General Motors is willing to buy out dealerships that don’t want to invest money into selling Buick’s upcoming EVs.

Baidu CEO Believes That SAE Level-4 Autonomous Driving Systems Will the First to Enter Commercial Use After L2, Skipping Over L3

​Robin Li, the co-founder and CEO of Chinese internet technology company Baidu Inc, said it’s more likely that Level-4 autonomous vehicles (AVs), not Level-3 AVs, will be the first to enter commercial use as robotaxis. While automakers will continue to develop L2 systems for passenger vehicles. Li shared his thoughts on the industry in a speech at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference 2022 (WAIC 2022) this week in Shanghai.

Volvo’s Electric Vehicle Brand Polestar Reports $1 Billion in Revenue in the First Half of 2022, Adds 6 New Global Markets

​Electric-performances brand Polestar is off to a strong start for the first half of 2022 following a strong Q1 with brisk sales of the Polestar 2 EV. In the first four months of 2022, customer reservations also more than tripled to nearly 23,000 vehicles compared to the same period in 2021.

Toyota is Investing an Additional $2.5 Billion to Expand its North Carolina Factory to Boost EV Battery Production

Toyota Motor Corp announced on Wednesday that it will invest an additional $2.5 billion at its newest U.S. facility, “Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina” (TBMNC), to produce more batteries for electrified vehicles. Battery production is scheduled to begin in 2025. The latest investment brings Toyota’s total investment in North Carolina to $3.8 billion.

Nexar Releases its ‘Driver Behavioral Map Data’ That Can Help Autonomous Vehicles Operate More Like Human Drivers

Computer vision company Nexar, which developed a dash cam application that seeks to rid the world of car crashes, has released its Driver Behavioral Mapping data that can be used to create maps to train autonomous vehicles to operate more like human drivers. This crowdsourced map data, which is collected anonymously by Nexar’s AI-powered dash cams, provide additional insights on how human drivers behave on different road segments and in various weather and road conditions.

Honda and LG Energy Solutions to Build a $4.4 Billion Joint Venture EV Battery Plant in the U.S.

Japan’s Honda Motor Co and battery maker LG Energy Solutions (LGES) are investing $4.4 billion to build a joint venture electric vehicle battery factory in the U.S. The factory will produce lithium ion batteries for Honda and Acura vehicles for the North American market. The battery plant aims to have an annual production capacity of approximately 40GWh, which is enough batteries to power up to 500,000 vehicles.

Prices For Used EVs Continue to Rise as Gas Cars Drop

According to an analysis conducted by iSeeCars, prices for used cars continue to rise rapidly, while used car prices for gas-powered vehicles are dropping.

Rivian Discontinues Base Model for R1S, R1T

The change means that Rivian’s electric vehicles are getting a price increase of up to $5,500 for the R1T and $6,000 for the R1S.

Tesla Believes Its Dojo AI System Will Help It Win the Self-Driving Car Race

The all-electric automaker’s newest artificial intelligence system, which is called Dojo, is being used to help the brand come out with self-driving vehicles before anyone else.

Mercedes-Benz Begins Production of the Highly Anticipated EQS Electric SUV in Alabama

​Mercedes-Benz has officially started production of the highly anticipated EQS electric SUV at its assembly plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The EQS SUV is the third electric model in the automaker’s EQ lineup, following the launch of the EQE and EQS sedans. The plant uses state-of-the-art digital, sustainable, efficient and flexible production methods and represents the future of automotive production for Mercedes-Benz.

New Premium Electric Vehicle Brand Zeekr Is Exploring IPO Options in the U.S. or Hong Kong, According to Sources

New electric vehicle brand Zeekr Intelligent Technology Ltd. (“Zeekr”), which is owned by Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group ("Geely"), is mulling plans to launch an IPO in either the U.S. or Hong Kong. Geely announced the Zeekr in March 2021 as a standalone brand to compete with Tesla, XPeng, NIO Inc. and others in the premium EV category in China. The company is targeting tech-savvy, younger customers more likely to purchase an electric vehicle.

Toyota is Working With the U.S. Dept of Energy to Advance ‘Megawatt-Scale’ Fuel Cell Powered Stationary Energy Generators

​Toyota Motor North America is collaborating with the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to build, install and evaluate a 1-megawatt (MW) fuel cell power generation system at NREL's Flatirons Campus in Arvada, Colorado. Toyota said it leveraged its over 25 years of fuel cell development experience in designing the 1-MW fuel cell system, expanding on its expertise from the light duty fuel cell electric vehicle market.

Mercedes-Benz Signs MoU With the Government of Canada to Source the Raw Materials for Electric Vehicle Batteries

Mercedes-Benz has signed an MoU with the Government of Canada that will help ensure that the automaker has a reliable supply for raw materials such as lithium to produce all of the electric vehicle batteries its will need by the end of the decade. The MoU is part of the automaker's efforts to set up an entire automotive value chain for the responsible production and recycling of EV batteries.

Ford Motor Co is Cutting 3,000 Jobs as it Transitions to Electric Vehicles, Software and Digital Services

Ford Motor Co is undergoing one the biggest transitions in the company’s history with plans of building more software-defined electric vehicles. The automaker plans to sell 600,000 electric vehicles by 2023 and 2 million by 2026. But to reach its electrification targets over the next several years, Ford plans to reduce costs and become a much leaner company.

Acura Prevision EV Concept Previews Brand’s Electric Future

With Acura’s first all-electric vehicle expected to arrive in 2024, the luxury brand is ready to provide a preview of what its upcoming EVs may look like.

XPeng Motors Valued at Over $8.4 Billion Files for U.S. IPO, the Company is Backed by Alibaba and Xiaomi

As existing shareholders continue to increase investments in EVs and related technologies, new participants are optimistic about China's growing electric vehicle market. As a result, electric vehicle startup XPeng Motors has strong financial backing and stamina for future development. The company has cash reserves of 8.2 billion yuan (US$1.19 billion), and is ramping up its investment in R&D.