In this episode, we dive deep into the latest shifting tides of the electric vehicle market, starting with Tesla&#x27;s political push in New Jersey to safeguard its upcoming Robotaxi fleet against restrictive new legislation. We also examine the regulatory scene down at Giga Texas, where brand-new EPA filings have finally peeled back the curtain on the highly anticipated Cybercab&#x27;s official battery size, weight, power, and range specs. Meanwhile, Rivian continues its grueling march toward profitability, navigating another tough round of corporate layoffs just a week after their major R2 launch event. On the legacy automotive front, Hyundai is officially breathing down Chevrolet&#x27;s neck as it closes in on the coveted number-two spot for EV sales in the United States. Plus, we look at unexpected sightings of Costco-branded Tesla Semis right here in Arizona and unpack a surprising report detailing Apple’s sneaky new development that could finally bring CarPlay to Tesla vehicles. Support the Show https://www.supportkilowatt.com/ Other Podcasts: Beyond the Post YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@beyondthepostfm) Beyond the Post Podcast (https://www.beyondthepost.fm/) Shuffle Playlist (https://shows.acast.com/shuffle-playlist) 918Digital Website (https://www.918digital.com/) News Links: Teslarati: Tesla urges New Jersey owners to oppose new bill that could block Robotaxi CleanTechnica: Rivian Pursues Financial Sustainability with Layoffs Electrek: Rivian lays off hundreds, under 2% of staff, a week after R2 launch Electrek: Hyundai is closing in on Chevy as the #2 EV brand in the US Not a Tesla App: Costco-Branded Tesla Semis Spotted in Arizona Teslarati: Apple is developing the missing link for Tesla to get CarPlay: report Ars Technica Cars: Mobileye is entering the US robotaxi market with standalone service InsideEVs: Telo&#x27;s Tiny Electric Truck Moves Closer To Reality With An Important New Partner Not a Tesla App: Tesla Reveals Cybercab Specs in New EPA Filings Not a Tesla App: Over 100 Tesla Cybercabs Spotted Staging at Giga Texas InsideEVs: Full Tesla Cybercab Specs: EPA Documents Confirm Battery Size, Weight, Power, And Preliminary Range *Show Art Created By ChatGPT Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tesla, Mobileye, and the Fight for Autonomous Roads

Kilowatt: A Podcast about Electric Vehicles

# Full Transcript

**Podcast:** Kilowatt: A Podcast about Electric Vehicles

## Transcript

Hello everyone and welcome to Kilowatt, a podcast about electric vehicles, renewable energy, autonomous driving, and much, much more. My name is Bodhi and I am your host. And on today's episode, we are going to talk about news. So we had two earnings calls in a row and now we're on to news. So let's go ahead and dive in. Last week, Rivian rolled out the R2, their midsize electric SUV, and it looks great. I have not seen one in person.

But I'm looking forward to seeing one in person. But last week, great, wonderful week for Rivian rolling out the R2. This week, they're not so great. They're laying off 300 people, which is just shy of 2% of their 15,232 workforce, if you spread that across North America and Europe. This is in addition to nearly 600 people that they laid off in October.

You know, around 800 people, which in on the whole isn't a lot, but it's still 800 people. And if you're one of those people, it's definitely a painful experience for sure. The one thing that I just hope, right, is a lot of times automotive companies will be like, hey, be one of the first to get our new car here. You're an employee. You're the first in line. I hope that these, some of these people or any of these people,

I hope that they didn't buy and take delivery of an R2 only to find out now that they have a vehicle loan, they just lost their job on top of that. Like if that happens, I think Rivian should just cover the entire car for them because that, that, that sucks. Uh, cause an 800 or a, uh, you know, $6, $58,000 car loan.

That's, that's not a cheap monthly payment. So anyway, uh, that was where my head went moving on though. Mobileye is planning on launching a robo taxi service. So Mobileye builds, uh, they build hardware and software for autonomous driving. Uh, they were actually the first partner that Tesla had for autonomous driving. And then, uh, there was an, a really bad accident.

I think it was in Florida and, you know, I, I'm sure Tesla was already working on hardware too by that point, but, uh, Elon was very critical of Mobileye. Mobileye blamed Tesla. The partnership went awry. And then not that long after that Intel bought them. And I think they were spun back out and bought by somebody else.

I think it's an Israeli company that owns them now, but Mobileye will be launching their own robo taxi service in 2027. They're going to utilize their move it M O O V I T mobility platform. And they're expecting to launch with a hundred robo taxis. Uh, that sounds like a lot. And, and not, not only does that sound like a lot just to start with, like, even if they launched in early 2027,

and by the end of 2027, I think that would be a lot of robo taxis, but we'll keep an eye on it and let you know how it's going. And their initial launch is supposed to be somewhere here in the United States. So hopefully fingers crossed, it'll be Tempe and I get to see them.

O...

Tesla, Mobileye, and the Fight for Autonomous Roads

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.

Tesla, Mobileye, and the Fight for Autonomous Roads

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are findingedge in conversations you're not hearing.

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.