Trucks | FoT: Tesla Robotaxi, SiMa, Hailo

FoT is the intelligence arm of Trucks Venture Capital 

Notable:

Tesla is reportedly stopping development on its low-cost Model 2 vehicle (link). It is also setting an August date for its robotaxi service launch (link). It's possible that Model 3 pricing continues to drop, pushing the used prices for Model 3s even lower. Tesla's software revenue is a take rate function of all possible hardware-minimum vehicles on the market; it almost doesn't matter which models they are as long as they are avenues for the company’s software offerings. In this regard a used Model 3 is nearly the same to the company as a new Model 2: both contribute close to zero margin on the hardware, but very high margins on software. It's unclear if the 'robotaxi launch' means a pure service offering on top of existing models, or the presentation of a brand-new vehicle. A compendium of Tesla's statements about its autonomy capabilities (link). Via GH and Diego.

Here come the mass-produced Chinese robotaxis: GAC Aion and Didi plan 100,000 units for China under the new joint venture, Andi (link). We are only at the 'two guys giving thumbs up' phase but it’s going to move pretty quickly over the coming year.

A look inside Boeing's struggles (link). 'Boeing returned more than $68 billion to shareholders in 2010-19 through stock buybacks and dividends, the Melius analysts note. That amount of capital probably would have been more than enough to fund two clean-sheet programs to replace the 737 and put Boeing in a stronger competitive position against Airbus.'

The big winner in EV charging funding? Gas stations (link). Via Elise. 'As a result, the biggest winners at the dawn of the EV-charging era are some of the biggest fossil-fuel sellers — familiar names like Pilot Flying J, Love’s Travel Stops, Sheetz, Circle K and Wawa — along with the retail division of oil major Shell.'

An inside look at California's fading 'hydrogen highway' (link).

Why all VTOLs are starting to look the same (link).

Video: Inside Xiaomi's factory, producing 1 SU7 every 76 seconds (link). Video: trailer for Andrew Cunningham's Kia Boyz film (link). Via Weans. Video: The Volkswagen XL1 was a 250-mpg Bugatti Veyron (link). Video: Electric Trucks tow 500 miles over The Rocky Mountains; the Silverado wins (link). Video: a look at how three people shaped Japanese car culture: Max Orido, Taniguchi Nob, Keiichi Tsuchiya (link).

For sale: former home of 'Engine Charlie,' Charles Wilson, onetime GM CEO and US Secretary of Defense under President Eisenhower (link).

M&A / Deals / Changes:

Commercial EV charging startup Powered Properties raises $200M (link). Led by GreenPoint Partners and EV Realty.

Israeli chip startup Hailo raises $120M (link). Led by Delek Motors Ltd., OurCrowd Ltd. and Poalim Equity Ltd.

Battery startup Alsym Energy raises $78M (link). Led by Tata Limited and General Catalyst.

California chip startup SiMa raises $70M (link). Led by Maverick and Point72.

California sidewalk delivery startup Kiwibot acquires Taipei chipmaker Auto Mobility Solutions (link).

AV startup Ghost Autonomy closes (link).

Board Changes:

EVgo: Scott Griffith joins board (link).

Caterpillar: David Calhoun to leave board (link).

United Airlines: Michelle Freyre joins board (link).

New Stuff:

Waymo introduces 40% off pricing for low-demand weekday 2AM-2PM time windows in San Francisco (link).

US Army picks 8 companies to compete in automated vehicle challenges (link).

Aperia Technologies launches Halo Connect i3 (link). 'i3 is an intelligent, cloud-connected tire inflation system designed to optimize tire performance, extend tire life, and reduce maintenance costs.'

Researchers map ocean to 25% complete (link).

Uber and Waymo launch autonomous deliveries in Phoenix (link).

EV startup Canoo spent 2x the company's total revenue on CEO's jet usage (link).

Patents & Patent Applications:

Toyota's patent shows biometric push start button (link).

Apple's patent for a heads-up semi-transparent front windshield (link).

Featured Jobs:

Manager, Business Development at Drop Mobility, remote (link).

Staff Software Engineer | Embedded Systems at Zitara in San Francisco, CA, USA (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.

Statistics / Projections:

Cyclists now outnumber motorists in Paris (link). Via Forbes / L’Institut Paris Région.

Majority of recent CO2 emissions linked to just 57 producers (link). Via Reuters / InfluenceMap.

'BYD reported a 42% fall in its electric vehicle deliveries in the first 3 months of the year compared to the final quarter of 2023, allowing Tesla to reclaim the crown as the world’s largest seller of battery electric vehicles' (link). Via FT.

US traffic deaths down 3.6% in 2023 (link). Via Reuters / National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Thank you:

Thank you to Lee Hower (link) and Ian Westberg (link) for offers of introductions to new founders, investors and friends over the last week.

Trucks portfolio companies mentioned in this issue:

Aperia (link), Drop Mobility (link), Zitara (link). View the full portfolio of Trucks companies (link).

See you next week,

Reilly Brennan