Trucks | FoT: GM data sharing, Canoo, Harbinger

FoT is the intelligence arm of Trucks Venture Capital 

Notable:

GM and OnStar given 5-year ban by FTC for selling driver behavior data (link). 'GM monitored and sold people’s precise geolocation data and driver behavior information, sometimes as often as every three seconds.' How about preventing everyone from doing this forever and not just for five years?

Downside protection: 'it sure sounds like Volkswagen thinks Rivian is going to be a VW brand' (link).

FTC sues John Deere over its repair monopoly (link). Via Felix G. 'Deere has become notorious for cornering the repair market on its machines, which include tractors, combines, and other major agricultural equipment by introducing software locks that prevent farmers from fixing the equipment they buy without the authorization of John Deere.'

Biden admin’s final rule banning Chinese and Russian connected cars also bars robotaxi testing on US roads (link). 'Today's rule will prohibit Chinese and Russian software and hardware from being used in connected vehicles on American roads.'

A VW van that survived Los Angeles fire becomes a symbol for a community (link).

Lawsuit states Allstate used GasBuddy, Life360 and other apps to quietly track driving behavior (link). Via Wen.

The breakthroughs required for sodium-ion batteries (link). 'The price of lithium-ion batteries rose for the first time in 2022, which set off alarms for potentially needing an alternative. Sodium-ion is perhaps the most compelling near-term challenger to lithium-ion.'

Video: Indonesia's traffic coordinators (link). Video: Robbery suspect tries to get away in Waymo AV (link). Video: public video and data feeds of highway license plate readers (link). Video: Amish Drift (link). Video: winter drifting in an old lead sled (link). Video: Lucid Motors assembly plant drone view update (link).

The company that makes airborne fire retardant used to fight LA fires is St Louis-based Perimeter Solutions (link). 'Phos-Chek is an ammonium-phospate based product that was originally developed by Monsanto. It’s the only fire retardant used by aerial tankers to battle wildfires in the U.S.'

M&A / Deals / Changes:

EV startup Canoo files for bankruptcy (link).

EV trucking startup Harbinger raises $100M (link). Led by Capricorn Investment Group and Leitmotif.

Dashcam startup Netradyne raises $90M (link). Led by Point72 Private Investments.

Off-road AV startup Overland raises $32M (link). Led by 8VC.

Online auto ecommerce startup Caramel acquired by eBay (link).

Canadian EV software marketplace startup Lyteflo raises $3M (link). Led by Diagram.

GM signs supply deal with Vianode for synthetic graphite (link).

Indian aviation startup Saria Aviation raises $10M (link). Led by Accel.

Indian automotive engineering software startup Eccentric raises $3M (link). Led by Exfinity Venture Partners and Arkam Ventures.

DOT announces $635M in EV charging and other grants (link).

Board & Executive Changes:

Elroy Air: Dr. Andrew Clare to become CEO; Dave Merrill to become Executive Chairman (link).

More on incoming Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy (link).

Featured Jobs:

Senior Data Engineer at ChargerHelp, remote (link).

MobilityJobs is the No.1 job board for auto & transportation companies (link). If you are a startup you can use the job board for free standard listings — just enter 'Trucks' at checkout.

New Stuff:

Cameras are now fining drivers for illegally passing school buses in Florida (link). 'Over 11,500 violations were recorded in the first few weeks of the 2024/2025 school year—or roughly 1,600 violations per school day.'

Charging startup Chargepoint shows cut-resistant cables (link).

Drone maker DJI will remove all geofence limits (link).

Statistics / Projections:

Bicycle thefts in North America are estimated to be around 2 million vehicles per year (link). Via David Z. / Findinds Press.

NYC's new congestion pricing results in 8% fewer vehicles in areas south of 60th street after just one week (link). Via Bloomberg.

EV and hybrid sales in the US reach 20% combined share (link). Via CNBC / Motor Intelligence.

Global EV and hybrid sales up 25% in record 2024 (link). Via Yahoo / Rho Motion.

Thank you:

Thank you to Igino Cafiero (link), Scott Davidson (link) and Hamed Moghaddam (link) for offers of introductions to new founders, investors and friends over the last week.

Trucks portfolio companies mentioned in this issue:

ChargerHelp (link). View the full portfolio of Trucks companies (link).

The past is never dead; it's not even past (WCF),

Reilly Brennan