Transportation

Fisker stiffed the engineering firm developing its low-cost EV and pickup truck, lawsuit claims

Henrik Fisker stood on a stage last August and proudly debuted two prototypes designed to catapult his eponymous EV startup Fisker into the mainstream. There was the Pear, a low-cost EV meant for the masses, and the Alaska, Fisker’s entry into the red-hot pickup truck market. In the weeks that followed, Fisker stopped paying the […]

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Rivian wins $827M incentive package to expand Illinois factory for R2 production

Rivian is getting $827 million in incentives from the state of Illinois to support building its next-generation electric vehicle, known as the R2. Rivian announced Thursday that the State of Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity will dole out the funds, which will be used to expand the automaker’s existing factory in Normal, Illinois,

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Hyundai is spending close to $1 billion to keep self-driving startup Motional alive

Hyundai has agreed to spend nearly $1 billion on Motional, an investment that will give the automaker a majority stake while providing the self-driving startup with the necessary capital to keep operating. The Korean automaker invested $475 million directly into Motional as part of a broader deal that includes buying out joint venture partner Aptiv.

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Acura’s new all-electric SUV proves the most expensive model isn’t always the best

The first electric vehicle I ever drove was a Tesla Roadster in 2011. I will never forget the feeling of the instant torque provided by the electric motor, propelling me to 60 miles per hour in less than four seconds — a feat my little Miata daily driver couldn’t even dream of doing. I’ve had

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Elon Musk guts Tesla’s charging team after winning over major automakers

Tesla has gutted its charging team in a new round of layoffs, despite recently winning over major automakers like Ford and General Motors and making its connector the de facto standard in North America. Tesla’s Supercharger network has long been seen as one of its greatest competitive advantages. It’s widely available, has far better uptime

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Inside the Autonomous Racing League event that pitted a self-driving car against a Formula 1 driver

Wander the pits at any professional motorsports event, especially something like Formula 1, and you’ll see endless computer displays full of telemetry. Modern teams are awash in real-time digital feedback from the cars. I’ve been in many of these pits over the years and marveled at the streams of data, but never have I seen

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Fisker starts new round of layoffs to ‘preserve cash’

EV startup Fisker Inc. is laying off more employees to “preserve cash,” one week after warning investors it would have to make cuts to stave off impending bankruptcy, according to an internal email viewed by TechCrunch. Founder and CEO Henrik Fisker told employees Monday morning in the email that the company is “continuing to evaluate

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India’s Ola removes CEO in four months, cuts 180 jobs in profitability push

Ola has let go its chief executive, Hemant Bakshi, merely four months after appointing him to the post, and is cutting about 180 additional jobs, a source familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. The move from the Indian ride-hailing startup is aimed at “improving profitability,” its founder and chairman, Bhavish Aggarwal, told employees in an

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Ford’s BlueCruise hands-free system under investigation after fatal crashes

Federal safety regulators have opened an investigation into Ford’s hands-free driver-assistance system, BlueCruise, after it was found to be active during two recent crashes that killed multiple people. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) said on Monday that it has confirmed BlueCruise was active in both crashes. One of the crashes

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Tesla profits tumble, Fisker flatlines, and California cities battle for control of AVs

Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. Sign up here — just click TechCrunch Mobility — to receive the newsletter every weekend in your inbox. Subscribe for free. Welp, Tesla earnings happened this week — and yeah that was a lot. A lot of what, you ask? A

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