Featured

The Lithium-Ion Battery Was a Long Time Coming

Conversation, Featured

What’s at Stake:
Early in the previous century, about 38 percent of vehicles on American roads were powered by electricity. Last year, just 3 percent of new U.S. cars sold were electric. Those statistics underscore the decidedly uneven development and market impact of the leading electric vehicle battery chemistry. As author Charles Murray notes, lithium-ion technology has nonetheless helped reignite the EV market after many fits and starts.

Veteran technology journalist Charles Murray chronicles the history of the lithium-ion battery and its central role in propelling EVs in Long Hard Road: The Lithium-Ion Battery and the Electric Car (Purdue University Press, September 2022).

Tech Roadmap for Automakers Disillusioned With Robotaxis

Featured, Truth & Consequences

OEMs will likely double down on their Level 2 → 2+ → 3 strategies. But there is a very real risk of a race to the bottom since each option comes with challenges.

Argo AI’s Demise Reveals Automakers’ AV Miscues

Featured, Opinion

By Junko Yoshida

What’s at stake?
What went wrong with Argo AI is the wrong question. Rather: What’s up with Argo’s investors? What outcome did investors Ford and Volkswagen expect? Were they prepared to play the long game? Most important, do they understand what it takes to build a highly automated vehicle that’s both sexy and safe?

As the enthusiasm of its largest investors–Ford and Volkswagen–for autonomous vehicles waned, Argo AI’s fate was sealed.

Winners, Losers in the Fall of Argo AI

Featured, News & Analysis

Argo’s IP will be dispersed by financial backers Ford and VW, but Qualcomm appears to be the biggest winner.

China’s Startup Army is Being Disarmed

Featured, Opinion

Beijing’s attempts to create a complete technology ecosystem, including extended supply chains for semiconductor design, production and packaging, are being boxed in on a number of fronts.

How Will China Retaliate?

Featured, News & Analysis

By George Leopold and Junko Yoshida

What’s at stake:
All eyes are on China as the nation mulls its response to the latest U.S. technology export controls. China will no doubt retaliate – but how? Its options appear limited, but so do the options for de-escalation. At stake is whether the tech industry may find itself in a world split in two: China and the rest of the world.

Intel Alliance Offers U.S. ‘Trusted’ Design, Foundry Services

Breaking News, Featured

By George Leopold

As it seeks a mix of new fab customers, Intel Foundry Services (IFS) is launching an alliance with leading chip designers to offer U.S.-based manufacturing at advanced process technology nodes.

U.S. Awards First Battery Supply Chain Grants

Featured, News & Analysis

By George Leopold

The U.S. Energy Department has released $2.8 billion in infrastructure funding to jumpstart a U.S. battery supply chain.

VW-Horizon Deal: Winners, Risks, and Legacy OEMs’ Future

Conversation, Featured

By Junko Yoshida

What’s at stake?
China is primed to dominate the global EV market. Hence, news of the VW-Horizon Robotics agreement doesn’t necessarily represent a design win for the Chinese AI chip startup. At stake is the survival of Volkswagen, among the world’s largest legacy OEMs. Has VW considered the consequences of this deal ten years down the road?

When the news of Volkswagen’s 2.4-billion euro investment in China’s AI startup broke last week, Tu Le was one of our first calls.

Mirror Deal Between Magna, Seeing Machines Reflects Regulatory Push

Featured, Forensics

The partners are poised to dominate the driver monitoring market as new rules enter into force.