Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility, your hub for news and information on the future of transportation. Sign up here for free – just click TechCrunch Mobility!
Touch touch. Microphone check. Check 1, 2, 3. Is this thing on? Hey, yes, it’s the same TechCrunch Mobility newsletter you love, but on a different day. That’s right, this is not Sunday. In fact, it’s Thursday morning. Shall we move on to the latest transportation news? Hell yeah, let’s do this.
a little bird
He small birds in the autonomous vehicle industry were active this week. The most important thing was advice on Engine, the autonomous vehicle startup created by a joint venture between Hyundai and Aptiv. If you remember, hyundai It recently agreed to spend nearly $1 billion on Motional: $475 million as a direct investment in the company and another $448 million to buy Aptiv’s 11% common equity stake in the company.
This week we get to the consequences part of that agreement. Motional is pausing all commercial operations and pushing ahead with plans to launch a driverless taxi service through 2026, two years later than planned. The goal is to advance core technology while preserving capital.
That measure comes at a cost: deep cuts throughout the organization. While the company has not publicly shared layoff numbers, we hear that hundreds have been laid off. If you have been affected, please contact us.
Do you have a suggestion for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com, Sean O’Kane at sean.okane@techcrunch.com, or Rebecca Bellan at rebecca.bellan@techcrunch.com.
Offers!
Wow, two huge investments in autonomous vehicles in the span of a few days. Pretty surprising, considering AVs are long past the hype era of throwing money at this technology. Perhaps autonomous vehicles are being swept up in the AI investment frenzy. Either way, offers are being made!
A week after Hyundai’s nearly $1 billion deal with Motional, a UK startup called wayve raised $1.05 billion in a Series C funding round led by SoftBank Group. (Oh, SoftBank, another AV company?) Nvidia and existing investor Microsoft also participated. Wayve’s initial investors include Meta’s head of AI, Yann LeCun.
Wayve, founded in 2017, is taking a self-learning approach (also known as end-to-end deep learning) rather than a rules-based system for autonomous driving. It also does not support robotaxi fleets like Waymo, Cruise or Motional and instead plans to be a supplier to original equipment manufacturers. Want even more details about this startup? Check out this interview with Wayve’s co-founder and CEO Alex Kendall.
Other offers that caught my attention…
EnviroSparkthe electric vehicle charging company, raised 50 million dollars from Basalt Infrastructure Partners.
momentsThe GM-backed Chinese autonomous vehicle technology startup confidentially filed for an initial public offering in the US. Bloomberg reported. The IPO could raise between $200 million and $300 million.
Zeekr Smart Technology Holdingthe Chinese brand of electric vehicles from the Chinese holding company Geely, is prepared and ready to go public. The company set the terms of its initial public offering: 17.5 million shares at a price of between $18 and $21 per share. The New York Stock Exchange approved its list. Stay tuned!
Notable readings and other tidbits
ADA
mobile C.T.O. Shai Shalev-Shwartz made an interesting comment on social media site X when asked if he thought lidar would be a necessary part of so-called L3+ systems to meet regulatory standards. He wrote: “Currently, cameras are not sufficient for L3 and it is very likely that regulation will require lidars. At some point in the future, it is reasonable to assume that cameras and radars will be sufficient.”
Electric vehicles, charging and batteries.
CT reporter Sean O’Kane interviewed the founders of Bloom about their plans to reinvent the way electric bikes are made in the United States. Readers: What do you think?
Speaking of micromobility, the Estonian company Bolt Technologies is making throwing motions Scooter operations in the US market..
Profits
This week there were many gains. Here are some highlights:
luminary shared in its first quarter earnings report that tesla is now the lidar manufacturer’s largest customer. Tesla accounted for “more than 10%” of Luminar’s revenue in the first quarter of 2024, or just over $2 million.
Lucid engines said in its first quarter report that senior vice president of digital mike bell —a longtime Apple and Intel executive—resigned from his position. Bell will serve in an advisory role until mid-August to help “transition” his roles at the company.
rivian reported a loss of $1.45 billion in the first quarter, showing that its recent company-wide cost-cutting measures still have a ways to go before it can approach profitability. Founder and CEO RJ Scaringe spent most of the earnings call talking about his progress.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi revealed during the company’s first-quarter earnings call that membership fees for its Uber One program now exceed the “billion-dollar” run rate. The company now plans to offer even more benefits to members in its quest for a “sticky” app.
This week’s wheels
What is “This Week’s Wheels”? It’s an opportunity to learn about the different transportation products we’re testing, whether it’s an electric or hybrid car, an electric bike, or even a ride in an autonomous vehicle. Stay tuned for my time behind the wheel of an absolutely massive all-electric vehicle. Mercedes-Benz eSprinter and the 2024 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.
