Author: Todd Gilbert

Archer Aviation said on Monday that Soracle, its joint venture partner backed by Japan Airlines and Sumitomo Corporation, has been appointed to lead the development of air taxi services in Osaka Prefecture, positioning Archer as the only U.S. eVTOL manufacturer set to play a central role in the region’s new urban air mobility plans. Soracle intends to deploy Archer’s Midnight aircraft as the mainstay of its fleet under agreements with Osaka Prefecture and Osaka City. The deal marks what both companies called a key step in building regulatory, operational and community frameworks to connect Osaka and the wider Kansai region…

Stellantis has reduced nearly 10,000 jobs in Italy in the past four years while vehicle production has dropped sharply over the past two decades, according to a report released on Monday by the Fiom-Cgil metalworkers’ union. The union said Stellantis’ Italian workforce fell to 27,632 at the end of 2024, down from 37,288 in 2020. Vehicle production, including vans and small trucks, has more than halved since 2004, dropping from around 1 million to fewer than 480,000 units in 2024. The report, titled “Stellantis: the great escape”, highlighted the challenges facing the group’s Italian operations. Stellantis, formed from the merger…

General Motors said it has donated 59 BrightDrop electric vans to the American Red Cross to bolster disaster relief and community support programs for vulnerable populations across the United States. The all-electric vans will be used by the Red Cross and its Community Adaptation Program partners to deliver health, hunger, and housing services, as well as support local relief operations during emergencies. The move builds on GM’s more than two-decade partnership with the humanitarian organization. “Getting disaster relief quickly to the people who need it most is a shared mission between General Motors and the American Red Cross,” said Ian…

Danish charging platform Spirii has entered into a partnership with French parking space rental provider Yespark Group to expand and digitalise electric vehicle charging infrastructure in Europe, the companies said on Thursday. The agreement covers France, Belgium and Italy, where Yespark recently strengthened its presence through the acquisition of Zenpark. The company now manages more than 10,000 parking spaces across 6,000 sites in over 700 cities. Around 1,000 of those locations currently include charging points, which have all been migrated to Spirii’s charging point management system, Spirii Connect. The system provides real-time monitoring, smart charging and energy management functions. “Migrating…

Finnish DC fast charger company Kempower and UK EV infrastructure firm EO Charging have deployed more than 300 electric bus charging points across the United Kingdom, part of a three-year collaboration that began in 2022. The partnership has so far delivered 342 charging points, with an additional 150 already underway. The infrastructure serves 11 bus depots nationwide, predominantly in London and Scotland, supporting operators including Metroline, Go Ahead, and Stagecoach. In Scotland, the companies implemented Kempower’s first commercial pantograph project in the Northern Hemisphere. The overhead pantograph system enables charging speeds of up to 500kW, allowing buses to recharge in…

Norwegian electric vehicle (EV) charging company Wattif has rapidly expanded from a single-market startup in 2021 to managing more than 45,000 charge points across six European countries, the company said on Tuesday. Partnering with EV charging management platform AMPECO, Wattif reported a 370% revenue increase while consolidating eight legacy systems into a unified platform to support pan-European operations. Wattif’s expansion covers Norway, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Ireland, and the UK, including recent strategic acquisitions such as BilLader AS, EFUEL, Charge365, Laddel, and Mer Norway’s housing cooperative portfolio. Andreas Strand, CEO of Wattif, highlighted the role of AMPECO’s system in the growth:…

Chinese autonomous driving technology firm WeRide and Southeast Asian super app Grab will jointly roll out a robotaxi service in Singapore, marking a significant step in WeRide’s international expansion. The service, branded Ai.R (Autonomously Intelligent Ride), has been selected by Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) as the first autonomous shuttle project serving residential areas. It will operate along two designated routes in the northeastern district of Punggol, with an initial fleet of 11 robotaxis. WeRide said the Ai.R fleet will include its five-passenger Robotaxi GXR and eight-passenger Robobus, both of which have achieved Singapore’s Milestone 1 (M1) certification. “This makes…

Waymo, Alphabet’s autonomous driving unit, and transit technology provider Via announced a partnership to integrate fully autonomous ride-hailing services into public transportation, beginning this fall in Chandler, Arizona. The collaboration will allow government agencies that use Via’s software to incorporate Waymo vehicles into existing networks. In Chandler, the integration will be deployed within the city’s Chandler Flex microtransit service, which has provided nearly 120,000 rides to date. Via’s scheduling algorithms will match riders with autonomous vehicles, creating dynamic and efficient routes. Waymo said its vehicles, which operate in five U.S. cities and deliver hundreds of thousands of paid trips weekly,…

Tesla has updated its referral program in the United States, offering $1,000 off its three most expensive models — the Model S, Model X and Cybertruck — when customers place an order using a referral code. The new incentive replaces the previous $250 discount and applies only to Tesla’s premium lineup. Buyers of the Model 3 and Model Y will instead receive three months of Full Self-Driving (Supervised) subscription. Tesla had previously offered $2,000 across its entire lineup under a referral program last year. The latest change comes after the automaker recently raised starting prices by $10,000 on the Model…

Zeekr will begin pre-sales of its updated Zeekr 001 shooting brake on September 23, earlier than initially planned, according to domestic media reports citing an internal company notice. The official launch remains scheduled for mid-October, with deliveries to start shortly after. The updated 001 will be equipped with Nvidia’s Thor-U smart driving chip and a 900-volt high-voltage system, alongside minor interior and exterior refinements. The model is Zeekr’s first and has served as its key sales driver since launch, accounting for 20.40 percent of the brand’s deliveries between January and August, when 25,575 units were handed over. Zeekr last updated…

Autel Energy said its MaxiCharger technology is supporting South Africa’s largest public EV bus charging project at the Arrowgate Depot in Cape Town, where the company is working with STS Tech Group to expand charging infrastructure for a 120-bus fleet by 2025. The site currently operates 30 MaxiCharger DC Fast units with power ratings between 150 and 240 kW and will grow to 50 by the end of the year, enabling the transition of the full fleet. Sixty-eight BYD B12 buses, each with a 240-km range and capacity for 65 passengers, are already in service. Autel said the project will…

BYD’s luxury sub-brand Yangwang has unveiled the U9 Xtreme, an ultra-high-performance electric supercar that has claimed the title of the world’s fastest production vehicle. Launched on Saturday, the U9 Xtreme recorded an officially certified top speed of 496.22 km/h (308.3 mph) at Germany’s ATP proving ground, surpassing the 472.41 km/h set by a Yangwang U9 test car in August. The company said it will produce only 30 units of the model, with reservations now open. The U9 Xtreme also became the first pure-electric production vehicle to break the 7-minute barrier at Germany’s Nürburgring circuit, clocking a lap time of 6…

Nio introduced the ET9 Horizon Edition, a special variant of its ET9 executive flagship sedan, as the Chinese electric vehicle maker seeks to strengthen its presence in the country’s ultra-luxury car segment. The ET9 Horizon Edition was unveiled at the company’s Nio Day 2025 event in Hangzhou, with deliveries scheduled to begin by the end of September. The model starts at RMB 818,000 ($114,960) including the battery pack, marking a RMB 50,000, or 6.51 percent, increase over the base model’s starting price of RMB 768,000. A mid-tier Signature Edition is also available from RMB 788,000. Under Nio’s Battery as a…

Dow Jones said it has acquired Eco-Movement, a Netherlands-based platform that provides global electric vehicle (EV) charging data, in a move aimed at strengthening its energy business unit OPIS. Eco-Movement, headquartered in Utrecht, tracks nearly 2 million charging connectors across more than 80 countries, offering real-time information on infrastructure availability and pricing. The platform will be integrated into OPIS, which focuses on data and analytics in fuels, carbon markets, clean energy, and hydrogen. Dow Jones reported an 11% rise in revenue from its energy business to $278 million in its latest fiscal year, contributing to overall company revenues of $2.33…

A third of UK drivers are ready to switch to electric vehicles, with government grants emerging as a key factor in boosting adoption, according to a new study commissioned by Renault. The survey found that 54% of respondents in London would consider buying a battery-powered car following the launch of the Electric Car Grant (ECG) earlier this summer. Younger adults aged 17 to 34 were significantly more likely to consider replacing petrol cars within two years, while only 27% of respondents aged 55 and older said they might do so. On the dealer side, 48% of respondents said the ECG…

Israel may become one of the first countries outside the United States to host a Tesla robotaxi pilot, a senior government official said this week, signaling the company’s potential expansion of its autonomous ride-hailing ambitions. Speaking at an energy and infrastructure conference in Ramat Gan, Moshe Ben Zaken, Director General of the Ministry of Transportation, said Tesla is preparing to carry out a trial of autonomous taxis in Israel. He described it as a “first-of-its-kind” pilot, according to local media outlet The Marker. Tesla has not confirmed any robotaxi programs outside the United States and has not officially announced plans…

Tesla has begun offering its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software to all eligible customers in Australia and New Zealand, expanding availability beyond a limited early access program launched last month. The system, available through an over-the-air update starting Tuesday, can now be activated on Model 3 and Model Y vehicles equipped with the company’s latest Hardware 4 (HW4/AI4). https://twitter.com/TeslaAUNZ/status/1968314169578697069 Australian customers can purchase FSD for A$10,100, while buyers in New Zealand are charged NZ$10,900. Early adopters paid less, with some securing the system for as little as A$7,500 several years ago. Tesla also plans to introduce a subscription option in the…

Jaguar Land Rover , Britain’s biggest carmaker, said on Tuesday it will extend a pause in production at its UK plants until Sept. 24, prolonging the shutdown to more than three weeks following a cyber attack earlier this month. The company, owned by India’s Tata Motors, shut down its systems in early September after the breach disrupted manufacturing and retail operations. JLR said its three UK factories, which normally build about 1,000 cars daily, will remain offline, and many of its 33,000 employees have been told to stay home. “We have taken this decision as our forensic investigation of the…

Ford said it will relocate its global headquarters from the iconic Glass House, which has served as its home since 1956, to a newly built Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn this November. The new site will serve as the centerpiece of the wider Henry Ford II World Center campus and is expected to be fully completed by 2027, the Detroit News reported. The new facility will span 2.1 million square feet across four floors, offering double the employee capacity of the 950,000-square-foot Glass House. Ford said the building will integrate closely with its Research & Engineering and Trackside facilities, placing…

Volkswagen will delay the start of production for its key electric models, the ID. Golf and ID. Roc, to 2030, after earlier plans had already been postponed. The company is also seeking a financially strong partner for its battery subsidiary PowerCo as it navigates cost pressures and slower-than-expected EV demand. According to Handelsblatt, the Wolfsburg plant will begin production of the ID. Roc compact SUV in summer 2030 as the first model built on Volkswagen’s new SSP platform, followed by the ID. Golf. The Golf had originally been scheduled for 2028 and later shifted to 2029, while the ID. Roc…