Trucks | FoT: Wayve, Xpeng, Continental

FoT is the intelligence arm of Trucks Venture Capital 

Notable:

Sizing up the US / China political fight on AVs (link). 'In April, Tesla became the sole foreign brand to meet China's automobile data security standards. The company has also been added to the Chinese government's approved procurement list.' If tariffs are Layer 1 to the US/China automotive battle, data in and around ADAS and AV is Layer 2. Layer 3 is likely satellite comms to the vehicles, 5-10 years out.

Automatic emergency braking will be required as of Sept 2029, but the rollout (and performance) has been uneven (link).

When cars are 'too online,' what becomes of them as their fragile corporations crumble like this Biscoff cookie on my plate (link).

Software defined vehicles reportedly set for a 'levels' designation, akin to AVs (link). Hey, this isn't a bad idea. It's a terrible one. Assigning a layer structure to an emerging technology area is going to put in marker what should be written in pencil.

China's XPeng Mona M03: 'the only car with advanced autonomous driving selling for less than Rmb200,000 ($28,000 USD)' (link). Via AJ. 'The M03 range has a starting price of just Rmb119,800, half that of Tesla’s Model 3 standard version, and competes against the US EV manufacturer and models offered by Chinese domestic market leader BYD.' Sung in the style of the old Ford ad: Have you been driven in Xpeng Mona, lately?

Canada's new rail line from Calgary to Banff is a Rorschach test for your belief system: congestion saver or billionaire's real estate project? (link). Or both.

Modeling how US election outcomes could impact IRA funding (link).

Unpacking Northvolt's mistakes with Cuberg, its lithium metal subsidiary purchased in 2021 (link).

Researchers show that a battery's first charge is arguably its most important (link). 'Charging lithium-ion batteries at high currents just before they leave the factory is 30 times faster and increases battery lifespans by 50%.' When I asked Zitara CEO Shyam Srinivasan about this, he wrote: ‘If true, this would represent a significant and counterintuitive shift in the industry’s presently hazy understanding of formation cycling.’

Tesla deletes older blog post stating all cars have self-driving hardware (link). 'Tesla originally made this bold statement back in 2016, leading purchasers to think that autonomy was just around the corner, and that hardware upgrades wouldn’t be required to get us there. That statement remained on the website until yesterday, giving Tesla’s tacit approval to the concept that current Tesla vehicles still fall under the same promise – that if you buy a Tesla right now, it will eventually be able to drive itself.'

Video: milk crate side car (link). Via JMIII. Audio: ChargerHelp CEO Kameale Terry on EV charger reliability on the Shift podcast (link). Video: China's drone swarms (link). Video: Canadian supermarket's rollerskating strategy in the 80s (link).

The USPS eagle logo is probably going about Mach 4.9 (link).

M&A / Deals / Changes:

UK AV startup Wayve raises strategic round from Uber (link). The message is clear: Uber is backing AVs again, just not internally. Related: Azeem A's change of heart on AVs (link).

Tier 1 supplier Continental explores breakup, with its auto division spinning off and a second unit housing the tire business and Contitech unit (link). 'The company announced on Aug. 5 that it was considering spinning off its car parts division, which produces brakes and automated driving systems and accounts for around half of the group’s sales...Conti RemainCo looks set to become increasingly attractive since it would be turning into a leading tyre maker with best-in-class financial returns, which have historically been impaired by Autos.'

ELF pod car reborn as ETA seeks $3M funding to restart the company (link).

Digital retail conglomerate Trader Canada acquired by AutoScout24 from Thoma Bravo (link).

Irish EV retail platform Drive acquired by ACV Auctions (link).

Chrysler heir Frank Rhodes wants the company back (link). This does not seem likely, but it is also likely true that Chrysler and related brands will go through another ownership change in the next decade.

GM and Samsung finalize deal for a $3.5 billion EV battery plant in Indiana (link).

Board & Executive Changes:

Hertz Global: Francis Blake, Lucy Clark Dougherty join board (link).

Blink Charging: Michael Battaglia promoted to CEO, joins board; succeeds Brendan Jones who continues on board (link).

Polestar: CEO Thomas Ingenlath resigns (link).

Nikola: Tom Schmitt named Chief Commercial Officer (link).

Featured Jobs:

Manufacturing Process Engineer at Aperia Technologies in Hayward, CA, USA (link).

Robotics Engineer, Customer Support, East Coast at Teleo, 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:

Hawaii becomes the sixth US state to offer integration of its digital drivers license into Apple's iOS (link).

Glydeways to test their pod autonomy system in Atlanta area (link).

Researchers able to bypass known airport crewmember (KCM) credentials through hack (link).

GM's BrightDrop EV truck brand to be folded into Chevrolet (link). If 2021 was marked by unbundling and new EV brands, current times demand bundling.

Ford's Securicode system (subject of one of my favorite editions of WITI, link) is to become a $455 paid option on upcoming F-150s (link). Via Weans.

Following US lead, Canada will impose 100% tariffs on Chinese EVs (link).

Polaris funds off-road EV trails in Michigan (link).

Patents & Patent Applications:

Ford's patent application shows in-vehicle advertisements (link).

Rivian's patent application shows energy consumption prediction modeling while driving off-road (link).

Statistics / Projections:

Vehicles with higher front ends and blunt profiles are 45% more likely to cause fatalities in crashes with pedestrians than smaller cars and trucks (link). Via NPR / IIHS.

In 2019, 1/4 of U.S. consumers shopped at Costco, but today it is nearly 1/3 (link). Via NYT.

The current national average for a kilowatt of electricity at an L2 commercial charging station is 34 cents (link). Via AAA.

2024 US EV sales estimate cut from 12.4% to 9% (link). Via Bloomberg / JD Power.

Thank you:

Thank you to Skylar Bennethum (link), Fred Daley (link), Jim DiSanto (link), Alan Hall (link) and William McKenzie (link) for offers of introductions to new founders, investors and friends over the last week.

Trucks portfolio companies mentioned in this issue:

Aperia Technologies (link), ChargerHelp (link), Teleo (link), Zitara (link). View the full portfolio of Trucks companies (link).

See you next week,

Reilly Brennan