Trucks | FoT: Waymo, JetZero NC, Bedrock Ocean

FoT is the intelligence arm of Trucks Venture Capital 

Notable:

Amid Los Angeles protests, Waymos attacked and burned (link), service stopped in certain city sections (link) and further restricted during 'no kings' US rallies over the weekend (link). Used as intended, AVs can make roads and communities safer; but when used for malevolence, they can be a call option for terrorists. What steps will we see networks put in place to avoid what happened to them in Los Angeles?

Trump administration is set to impose new fees on large foreign-made car carrying ships (link). Ruh-ro: 'Special foreign-made vessels called ro-ros (roll-on, roll-off vessels), which transport vehicles, could raise the price of cars up to $300.'

Waymo rides cost more than Uber or Lyft — and people are paying anyway (link). 'Obi found Lyft offered the lowest average price at $14.44. Uber was next at $15.58. Waymo’s average price across the month’s worth of data was $20.43.'

After President Trump signed new congressional review acts that blocked California's gas car phaseout, the state sued and says it will set new mandates (link). Trump's statement: 'We officially rescue the U.S. auto industry from destruction by terminating California’s electric vehicle mandate.'

USDOT wants more self-driving cars without pedals or steering wheels (link). Via Ryan H. 'The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has the authority to exempt 2,500 vehicles per manufacturer, but the agency has spent years reviewing some exemption requests without taking action. Now, NHTSA says the process will take months rather than years.'

Tesla robotaxi launch in Austin moved to June 22 launch (link). Musk: 'If you need a geofenced area you don't have real self driving' (link). Alex Roy discussed Tesla's upcoming launch on the Automotive News Shift podcast, highly recommended (link). Roy coined the notion of 'dual mode' vehicles some months ago (you can drive them yourself sometime, but in certain ODD the L4 system can take over) and it is probably the framework we will be using in the coming decade.

Toyota's Chairman says EVs pollute more than hybrids. Is he right? (link). Via Emily J.

Video: inside Rivian's design studio, with a focus on R2 vehicle (link). Video: recreating Fast & Furious final race scene with miniatures (link). Video: RedBull pits two wheels against four in off-road race challenge (link). Video: Xiaomi SU7 Ultra sets Nürburgring lap time record for production EV vehicle (link). Via Chris H.

M&A / Deals / Changes:

Aviation startup JetZero announces new manufacturing facility planned for North Carolina along with a combined 10-figure investment from the state and company into the facility, creating nearly 15,000 new jobs (link).

Ocean floor mapping startup Bedrock Ocean raises $25M (link). Led by Primary and Northzone.

Indian battery management startup Vecmocon raises $18M (link). Led by Ecosystem Integrity Fund.

Toyota and Daimler broker $6B Japan truck merger to fight Chinese rivals (link). The deal brings together Toyota unit Hino Motors with Daimler Truck subsidiary Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus.

Rolls-Royce CEO defends decision to exit EVTOL powertrain market (link). 'Originally, each electric taxi was expected to cost £1 million ($1.35 million) but then that increased to £3 million, Erginbilgic said at the panel hosted by the Wall Street Journal. “It cannot be a mass market when it is that expensive.”'

Wayve and Uber partner to launch L4 autonomy trials in the UK (link).

Germany puts rail first in $575B investment spree (link). 'Vice-chancellor and finance minister Lars Klingbeil wants to inject up to €10.5bn into the country’s train links this year, giving state-owned Deutsche Bahn the lion’s share of €22bn of infrastructure investments earmarked for 2025.'

Apple reportedly in lead for F1 US streaming rights (link).

Board & Executive Changes:

Renault: CEO Luca de Meo announces his departure (link).

Avis Budget Group: Daniel Cunha named CFO (link).

Curated Jobs:

Staff Test Engineer at Estes Energy in San Francisco, CA, USA (link).

Senior Commercial Manager at Gatik in Mountain View, CA, USA (link).

Hiring? Post a job (link). If you're a startup, use code 'Trucks' for free standard listings.

Hunting? View all 305 postings on the MobilityJobs job board (link).

New Stuff:

A bicyclist is suing Waymo after its autonomous vehicle parked in a no stopping zone and a passenger opened the rear door of the car in the cyclist's path (link).

Among various news around Apple's WWDC event, the new version of CarPlay will allow users to play live video when the car is parked (link). Related: digital car keys within Apple Wallet coming to 13 new brands (link).

Brendan Donnelly's Victorian era costuming using modern NASCAR themes (link). Via Weans.

Lyft looks to expand its advertising business, including new formats (link).

Patents & Patent Applications:

Toyota's patent application shows multi-mode teleoperation control (link).

Statistics / Projections:

Tesla US registrations fall 16% in April vs the same time last year (link). Via Yahoo / S&P Global. 'Overall EV registrations fell 4.4% in April compared to a year ago, the first year-over-year decline since February 2024.'

Vehicle mobile app usage rises among EV drivers, with non-Tesla brand usage up 15% in just one year (link). Via Automotive Drive / JD Power. 'Tesla drivers are much more likely to use their vehicle’s app than other EV drivers, with the report finding 79% of Tesla drivers use the Tesla app each time they drive. That’s up from 69% last year.'

The trains that run on Dolly Parton's Dollywood property have a higher ridership than 27 U.S. states (link). Via TheTransitGuy.

Global aviation demand: Boeing forecasts 43,600 new airliners needed by 2044, with 51% of new aircraft demand from growth, not replacements (link, link to full Boeing report PDF). Via Reuters.

Thank you:

Thank you to Andrew Alas (link), Marina Hadjipateras (link), Chris Heiser (link) and Boaz Mamo (link) for offers of introductions to new founders, investors and friends over the last week.

Trucks portfolio companies mentioned in this issue:

Estes Energy (link), Gatik (link), JetZero (link). View the full portfolio of Trucks companies (link).

We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it (Faulkner),

Reilly Brennan