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Senior Reporter (and resident battery expert) team song traveled General Motors’ Visit the sprawling Warren Technical Center outside Detroit to learn more about the automaker’s plans to reduce the cost of its next EV. The result: GM is investing in LMR batteries and a new battery cell development center that will serve as a bridge between R&D efforts and full-scale production.
Kurt KeltyGM’s vice president of batteries and sustainability provided new details about the company’s $900 million plan and how this new chemistry will preserve driving range while reducing costs. For example, a Chevrolet Silverado EV could be $6,000 cheaper. Read the story here.
Like most companies these days, AI also makes a cameo appearance. It’s important to note that at GM, AI plays more than just a support role. I was interviewed recently. sterling andersonGM’s Chief Product Officer, and Jason FisherWe explained to the Managing Director of Virtual Integrated Engineering about the changes within the company and how AI is utilized. That story is scheduled to come out next week, and I’ll give you a little preview.
GM can use a collection of external AI models as well as internally generated models to use across a wide range of businesses, the key points being: It will accelerate the vehicle development cycle. Don’t worry, there will be more details in my article. If you missed it, we’ll highlight it in next week’s newsletter.
Finally last week I Ferrari Luce EV And how little it matters that it was so widely criticized. I’ve received some great emails from you guys about this topic. thank you! But polls show that not many people care as much about Luce as he is reported to have.
The survey asked ‘Do you like it, dislike it, or are indifferent?’ Most of you (about 44%) are indifferent, while the rest are equally divided between love and hate.
The more I think about the future of the Luce EV, the more I think it could be a rage buy among those who can afford it and who Ferrari deems worth buying.
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oncoming SpaceX The IPO is clearly the deal of the decade for bankers and CEO Elon Musk. But this could also have implications for Tesla shareholders.
As part of the IPO registration process, companies often file numerous amendments before debuting on the public markets. SpaceX has already submitted several. And sharp-eyed senior reporter Sean O’Kane noticed some significant new sentences added to the S-1 document. “We may issue a significant amount of shares in connection with a future transaction.”
It’s certainly possible that SpaceX will use the $75 billion it’s expected to raise to acquire various companies, but the most likely M&A target is Tesla. This sentence is included in the risk factors, so it appears that investors are preparing for the possibility of a large-scale dilution event occurring in the future. Read the full story.
Here’s another interesting deal that O’Kane discovered. Target and slate autoElectric vehicle startup backed by Jeff Bezos. Carvana was granted an option to invest in Slate Auto, according to documents obtained by TechCrunch. As O’Kane notes in his article, this could hint at a deeper partnership between the two companies.
Other deals that received more attention…
layup partsa startup that wants to become the Amazon of composite parts, has raised $42 million in a Series A funding round led by dual-purpose venture fund Marlinspike, with participation from new investors Cerberus Ventures and Pinegrove Venture Partners, as well as existing backers Founders Fund and Lux Capital.
Mach Industriesa three-year-old defense technology startup currently developing five self-driving cars, raised a $300 million Series C at a $1.8 billion valuation. The round was led by Infinite Capital and Ribbit Capital and includes support from Bedrock Capital, Sequoia Capital, and Khosla Ventures.
Morpar Defense Technologiesa Polish-Ukrainian defense startup developing anti-drone radar systems, has closed the first tranche of a €2 million funding round. Swedish investor Front Ventures invested €1.5 million, Tech.Eu reported.
spiroBloomberg reported that the African electric mobility startup raised $215 million in this round, bringing its valuation to close to $1 billion.
Notable Reads and Other Useful Information
Avride CEO Dmitry Polishchuk shared some statistics about self-driving car startups on LinkedIn. The company has completed 60,000 trips for Uber riders in Dallas since its launch in December. (The Avride robotaxi appears in the Uber app in Dallas.) The company’s fleet, including test vehicles and Uber robotaxi, has driven more than 1.3 million miles, including 1 million miles in the first five months of 2026.
electric ebike It launched its third brand in six months, an initiative in which the company invested about $10 million. How is this 7-year-old company growing while so many others are failing? I looked into the company in more detail and interviewed the co-founder. Read the full story.
uber The annual Lost & Found Index has provided a rather quirky anthropological snapshot of riders over the past decade. This year, the company also released a list of items remaining on robotaxi available through the Uber app. There’s a strange item on the list! It also got me thinking about how Uber is clearly looking at every possible way to enter and monetize the nascent self-driving car industry. What I mean is: Uber plans to put 500 data-collection vehicles on the road this year as part of its new AV Labs division.
waymo There were some interesting news items this week. One of the robotaxis was used in the robbery, which sheds light on what Waymo does with all the rider footage it collects. And the Alphabet-owned company announced a deal with B2U to use batteries from retired all-electric robotaxi to support power grids in California and Texas.
woven capitalToyota’s Growth Fund has promoted Jarek Khoilian and Manas Punhani to president. Reminder: Woven Capital launched $800 million Fund II in September 2025.
One more thing…
with Subaru With the launch of a new EV, we thought it would be good to remember what the original was like. This refers to Solterra, which was created through a partnership between Toyota and Subaru to jointly develop a platform dedicated to battery electric vehicles.
Spent a week with Pearl White 2026 Subaru Solterra Premium trim model starting at $38,495. Putting aside for a moment the fact that my friend’s Ring camera identified the Solterra as a mini golf cart, this EV has something to offer. Yes, it’s basic. And of course, it won’t launch off the line like a Tesla, Lucid or Porsche Taycan. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
The headline here is that Solterra just got better. And I really needed it.
The 2026 model has a number of notable updates that improve performance, range and usability.
The front and rear motors have been updated with new controllers that improve power distribution and control, and together they produce an improved 233 horsepower (the XT trim bumps that up to 388 horsepower). Like most other EVs, the Solterra now has integrated NACS charging ports, a system developed by Tesla. Range has also been improved to an EPA-estimated 288 miles. This is notable considering Subaru only increased battery capacity by 2 kWh and increased range by more than 50 miles. There are also pre-condition settings to prepare the battery for charging, greatly improving charging times.
Subaru also improved the interior technology, adding a 14-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and making a wireless 15W smartphone charger standard.
Subaru doesn’t offer true one-pedal driving in the EV’s standard offering, the Solterra. Instead, Subaru has mounted paddles on the back of the steering wheel so you can enhance regenerative braking if desired. However, it does not come to a complete stop like other popular EVs with one-pedal driving. Long-time EV owners may be turned off by this, but it may be more appealing to car buyers who want their EV to perform like an old gas car.
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