Your EVs & mobility news Recap - Week 9 🚘⚡️

Hi! Hope you’re good!

You signed up for quick weekly notes that take less than two minutes to read. Here’s your Week 9 update:

1. CATL 🇨🇳 said it will work with Volkswagen China to develop lithium batteries for its EVs. They aim for better performance and lower costs, later expanding to recycling and vehicle-to-grid technology.

2. Baidu 🇨🇳 reported that it will partner with CATL 🇨🇳 to develop competitive driverless vehicles, jointly working on power batteries, battery swapping services, and skateboard chassis technology for autonomous driving applications.

3. Xiaomi 🇨🇳 launched the SU7 Ultra with 1,526 hp, a 1.98-second 0-60 mph (96 km/h) acceleration, a 201 mph (323 km/h) top speed, and a 385-mile (620 km) range, starting at $72,990. Deliveries begin in April 2025.

4. Tesla 🇺🇸 announced that it will acquire parts of the insolvent German company Manz AG 🇩🇪, including over 300 employees at the Reutlingen site 🇩🇪.

5. Tesla 🇺🇸 released a software update in China 🇨🇳 offering FSD-like driver-assist features to customers who paid 64,000 yuan ($8,786).

6. China’s industry ministry 🇨🇳 said that autonomous driving-related over-the-air software upgrades will require regulatory approvals under new regulations that prevent automakers from concealing defects or avoiding liability through these updates.

7. As of this week, Waymo 🇺🇸 completes over 200,000 paid trips weekly across LA 🇺🇸, Phoenix 🇺🇸, and SF 🇺🇸—a 20x increase in under two years. Next stops: Austin 🇺🇸, Atlanta 🇺🇸, and Miami 🇺🇸.

8. Lucid 🇺🇸 announced Q4/2024 results: 3,386 vehicles produced in Q4, met the 9,000 annual target, delivered 10,241 vehicles (+71%), earned $807.8M in revenue, and appointed Marc Winterhoff as Interim CEO.

9. BYD 🇨🇳 said that it will launch its new electric compact SUV, Atto 2, in France 🇫🇷 at a starting price of 28,990 euros.

10. The European Commission 🇪🇺 announced that it will present measures next week to boost EV demand in the EU 🇪🇺 and plans local components requirements for car battery production.

11. General Motors 🇺🇸 announced that it authorized a $6 billion share repurchase program and increased its quarterly dividend by 25% to 15 cents.

12. Aston Martin 🇬🇧 said it will cut 5% of jobs to save £25 million after losses rose 49% to £255.5 million. It delayed its EV launch, prioritizing the £850,000 Valhalla hybrid.

13. Idemitsu Kosan 🇯🇵 said it will build a lithium sulphide plant at its Chiba refinery for solid-state batteries. The facility will cost 21.3 billion yen ($140 million) and produce 1,000 tons annually.

14. Polestar 🇸🇪 announced that it secured additional loan funding of up to $450 million and delayed Q4 results to April as the company burns through cash amid falling demand for its EVs.

15. Mercedes-Benz 🇩🇪 said that it will cut 10-15% of sales and finance jobs in China 🇨🇳 and reduce office-based costs by 25% by 2027, while maintaining its 2,000-person research team to adapt products for the Chinese market.

That’s it for this week - thanks for checking it out!

Talk to you next week, Mobility Prof

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