Author: Shaun Williams

Chinese electric vehicle maker Xpeng said it has partnered with Singapore-based charge point operator Charge+ to expand fast-charging access in Southeast Asia, with plans to roll out at least 20 new direct current (DC) fast charging sites across the region. The companies said the network will include hubs in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia, with charging power ratings of up to 480kW DC. Four sites are already operational in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Bangkok. Charge+ highlighted its facility at KL Eco City in Kuala Lumpur, which includes six 350kW DC charging ports, calling it the city’s fastest EV charging station.…

Lola Yamaha ABT will retain Lucas di Grassi and Zane Maloney as its drivers for the 2025/26 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, the team announced on Wednesday. The pairing led the team to four points finishes last season, including a second-place podium for di Grassi at the Miami E-Prix in the team’s fifth race. “I’m pleased to confirm a second season with Lola Yamaha ABT in Formula E,” di Grassi said. “Our first season was very positive with a podium in Miami and 32 points scored. We’ve worked extremely hard this summer and added reinforcements to the team to…

The City of Alameda has partnered with curbside charging company It’s Electric to install the island’s first building-powered public electric vehicle chargers on Alameda Housing Authority (AHA) property, in a move aimed at expanding access to residents without private parking. The pilot installation at Everett Commons uses existing electrical capacity from nearby buildings, avoiding the need for costly grid upgrades. Chargers can be deployed in as little as two days and are powered by 100% renewable electricity supplied by Alameda Municipal Power (AMP). Property owners will also share in charging revenues, a model the city said ensures long-term financial sustainability.…

Zeekr  launched pre-sales of its updated Zeekr 001 shooting brake in China, introducing major upgrades to its powertrain and battery systems while keeping exterior styling largely unchanged. Customers can reserve the model with a deposit of RMB 2,000 ($280) and will receive a RMB 7,000 discount on the final payment, the company said. Showroom models will be available starting October 4, ahead of the official launch on October 11. Zeekr did not disclose pricing details but said they are expected to remain unchanged from the current range of RMB 259,000 ($36,410) to RMB 329,000. The updated Zeekr 001 is built…

The Australian government will provide AU$40 million ($26 million) to support the rollout of public kerbside and fast electric vehicle (EV) charging points, with a focus on both urban and regional locations. The funding aims to accelerate deployment by easing grid connections and expanding charging access. The government said the first stage will involve identifying suitable installation sites and options to cut connection costs. Later steps include developing models to serve regional “black spots” and initiating kerbside charging using existing electricity poles. The program will prioritise areas with “immediate and short-term need for charging,” with final delivery plans shaped by…

Aachen-based startup Voltfang, which specialises in stationary battery storage systems from requalified electric vehicle batteries, has entered into a partnership with infrastructure investor Palladio Partners to develop and operate large-scale storage facilities in Germany, with planned investments of €250 million by 2029. Founded in 2021, Voltfang has built a customer base that includes Aldi Nord, McDonald’s, Schaltbau and the Jet petrol station chain. With a new factory in Aachen increasing production capacity, the company is expanding its role from manufacturer to operator of grid-connected storage systems. “Implementing projects of this magnitude requires two things: scalable battery expertise and solid financing.…

Agentic AI firm Tensor said it will debut the world’s first personally owned Level 4 autonomous vehicle at the Dubai World Congress for Self-Driving Transport in 2025, marking a shift toward private ownership in advanced driverless technology. The Tensor Robocar, developed from the ground up for autonomy, incorporates more than a decade of proprietary innovation, the company said. Unlike fleet-based robotaxis, the vehicle is designed for individual use, with features aimed at privacy, control, and off-grid independence. The Robocar is equipped with 37 cameras, 5 lidars and 11 radars, enhanced by radar-transparent materials to maintain visibility in harsh environments such…

Bot Auto, a Houston-based autonomous trucking startup, has completed its first humanless hub-to-hub validation run in the city, marking a milestone in its push toward commercial deployment of Level 4 self-driving technology. The test, carried out at sunset, saw the truck navigate real-world traffic without a safety driver or remote assistance. The company said the run validated the maturity of its autonomy stack and safety protocols, supported by redundant systems, continuous health monitoring and fallback measures. Founded in 2023, Bot Auto has been developing its Transportation-as-a-Service model with a focus on operational efficiency and safety. “Autonomy must outperform human drivers…

China’s GAC Group has officially launched a new premium electric vehicle brand, Qijing, developed in partnership with Huawei, as the two companies expand their cooperation in the fast-growing EV market. GAC said it has created a standalone company to operate Qijing and will make the brand its top priority. “We will put our best resources toward ensuring the brand’s long-term development,” the automaker said in a release. Huawei, meanwhile, has assigned senior staff to the project, which will integrate the company’s Qiankun intelligent technologies across all Qijing models. The collaboration signals a departure from Huawei’s existing cooperation models with automakers.…

Canadian manufacturer Taiga Motors has introduced two new electric jet skis, expanding its lineup with the two-seater Orca P2 and the three-seater Orca WX3. The launch took place in Monaco, marking the company’s latest step in bringing high-performance electrification to the watercraft market. The Orca P2, priced from $20,999, succeeds the Orca Performance and is marketed as a benchmark for handling and acceleration on a lighter, more refined platform. The completely new Orca WX3 is built for versatility and family use, offering seating for three, reinforced towing for water sports, and up to two hours of runtime. It starts at…

Nissan is studying the cost competitiveness of Chinese suppliers and exploring how to apply their practices globally, the company said, as it seeks to reduce variable costs by 250 billion yen ($1.71 billion) in a wider efficiency initiative. Tatsuzo Tomita, Nissan’s chief of total delivered cost transformation, said the automaker is learning from Chinese suppliers’ use of standard parts and close collaboration with designers. “We’ve gained access to Chinese-style ways of working, and my current challenge is figuring out how to apply those methods to parts for our current and upcoming vehicles,” Tomita told reporters at Nissan’s head office in…

AUDI, a new brand created by Volkswagen’s Audi and China’s SAIC Motor, launched its first model, the E5 Sportback, at an event late Monday, drawing strong early demand. The E5 Sportback, a mid-size sedan, starts at RMB 235,900 ($33,180), matching its pre-sale pricing. SAIC Audi said the model received 10,153 orders within the first 30 minutes of the launch. Built on the Advanced Digitized Platform co-developed by Audi and SAIC, the vehicle measures 4,881 mm in length, 1,960 mm in width, and 1,479 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,950 mm — dimensions comparable to Nio’s ET5 Touring. The…

Nio has raised $1.16 billion through its latest share offering, with underwriters fully exercising their over-allotment option, underscoring strong market demand for the issuance. The company said it issued a total of 209,090,918 class A ordinary shares. This comprised 160,823,190 American Depositary Shares (ADSs) – each representing one class A ordinary share – and 20,995,000 class A ordinary shares. The underwriters also took up an additional 27,272,728 ADSs as part of the over-allotment option. The ADSs were priced at $5.57 each, while the class A shares were offered at HK$43.36. Nio said proceeds will be used to fund research and…

Alphabet’s Waymo has secured a permit to begin testing autonomous vehicles at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), a key step toward launching commercial ride-hailing services at the hub, city officials said Tuesday. The “Testing and Operations Pilot Permit” follows years of negotiations between SFO and Waymo, and comes just weeks after the company was cleared to test at San Jose Mineta International Airport. Waymo has operated service at Phoenix Sky Harbor since 2023 but has long targeted SFO, the main gateway for its Silicon Valley home base. https://twitter.com/Waymo/status/1967984942761001026 The permit outlines a three-phase rollout: initial tests with a trained specialist…

Scottish public transport operator McGill’s said it has added 30 new Yutong E12 electric single-decker buses to its Midland Bluebird brand, part of a £14 million investment aimed at reducing emissions across its network. The new buses, each with capacity for up to 70 passengers, feature 422 kWh battery packs, air conditioning, USB charging ports and noise reduction systems. They will operate across several routes in the Forth Valley, including the Falkirk to Stirling service, which the company said will see increased frequency to every 15 minutes from Monday to Saturday. The order takes McGill’s electric bus fleet to 151…

Tesla will expand warranty protection for buyers in the United States and Canada beginning with the 2026 model year, adding coverage for key propulsion-related components across its core lineup of vehicles. The new warranty offers protection for seven years or 110,000 km (70,000 miles) on costly systems beyond the high-voltage battery and drive units, which already carry separate eight-year warranties. Coverage applies to the Model S, Model 3, Model X and Model Y, though the Cybertruck is not included. https://twitter.com/minusYCore/status/1966288796615426492 According to updated warranty documents, the change brings Tesla in line with California regulations and reduces potential long-term ownership risks.…

Voyah, the premium electric vehicle unit of Dongfeng Motor, officially launched the 2026 Dream MPV, offering eight variants, including five plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and three battery electric (BEV) models. The seven-seater MPV retains a “2+2+3” seating configuration and maintains its previous dimensions of 5,315 mm in length, 1,998 mm in width, 1,820 mm in height, with a 3,200 mm wheelbase. The PHEV variants, priced from RMB 329,900 ($46,310) to RMB 429,900, include two Kunpeng editions featuring Voyah’s Xiaoyao Cockpit 2.0 and Kunpeng smart driving 2.0 systems, and three Qiankun editions with Huawei’s HarmonySpace 5 and Qiankun ADS 4 smart driving…

Lucid Motors is internally holding to its original target of producing 20,000 vehicles in 2025, even after it officially revised its production guidance last month to a range of 18,000 to 20,000 units. Interim Chief Executive Marc Winterhoff told investors at the Morgan Stanley Conference on Friday that the California-based electric vehicle maker’s workforce is committed to reaching the higher figure. See also: Lucid Reassesses Right-Hand Drive Version of Gravity SUV for Global Markets “We recently put out a range when it comes to this year’s production numbers, 18 to 20,000, and all of our internal plan actually still shoots…

Tesla shares rose as much as 6% in early trading on Monday after CEO Elon Musk disclosed he had purchased about $1 billion worth of the electric carmaker’s stock, his first open-market buy in more than four years. Musk acquired 2.57 million shares on Friday, paying between $372.37 and $396.54 per share, according to a regulatory filing. The move marks the billionaire’s first stock purchase since early 2020 and comes as Tesla seeks to advance its shift toward artificial intelligence and robotics while grappling with slowing vehicle sales and thinner margins. The purchase also reinforces Musk’s push for greater control…

Geely Auto has partnered with UK-based EV charge point company Andersen to provide a complimentary home charging solution for early buyers of its all-electric EX5 SUV in the United Kingdom. Customers who pre-order the vehicle during the pre-sale window will receive a co-branded Andersen A3 home EV charger, along with nationwide installation. The offer applies to pre-orders placed from September 1 to October 23, 2025, and features the award-winning 7kW Andersen A3 charger in a Cheltenham Graphite finish with Geely branding. The promotion aims to ensure that first EX5 owners have a seamless and high-quality charging experience from the start.…