Tesla wants to bring its robotaxi service to new markets, including cities in Florida, Nevada, Arizona, and California, Elon Musk said in an earnings call Wednesday. The company is testing its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) feature in Europe and China, and hopes the launch the controversial product in the near future. And it is plotting a new version of its Optimus humanoid robot.

"We have done what we said we were going to do," Musk said. "That doesn't mean we're always on time, but we get it done. And our naysayers are sitting there with egg on their face."

It was another sign that Musk wasn't going to let the limitations of his compan …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Tesla released its second quarter financial earnings today, offering the latest evidence of the damage Elon Musk’s political activities have done to his flagship company.

Tesla said it earned $1.17 billion in net income on $22.5 billion in revenue. That’s above Wall Street expectations of $22.3 billion but represents a 12 percent decrease year over year compared to $25.5 billion in revenue in Q2 2024.

The company’s profits also slid dramatically, logging a 16 percent decrease in net income for the second quarter year over year. And Tesla’s automotive revenue — the money it earns from car sales — slid 16.6 percent year over year, from $19.9 billion in Q2 2024 to $16.6 billion in this most recent quarter. The sale of $439 million in regulatory credits once again buoyed Tesla’s finances — though those are expected to dry up soon after congressional Republicans approved President Donald Trump’s plan to zero out fines for automakers who exceed fuel-efficiency targets.

The company’s profits also slid dramatically, logging a 16 percent decrease in net income for the second quarter year over year.

The earnings comes on the heels of another terrible quarterly sales report for the company. Tesla said it delivered a total of 384,122 vehicles, a 14 percent decline compared to Q2 2024. (For a direct-to-consumer company like Tesla, deliveries are a proxy for sales.)

Tesla said its operating income decreased 42 percent year over year to less than $1 billion, with almost half coming from the sale of regulatory credits to other automakers (again, revenue that is expected to almost vanish in the months to come). Tesla’s cash pile decreased by $200 million in Q2 to $36.8 billion, and free cash flow (or the amount of cash the company has generated after accounting for its day-to-day operating expenses and capital expenditures) was at just $100 million. Some analysts predict that Tesla’s free-cash flow could actually turn negative later this year, which could trigger a steep drop in share price.

In its report, Tesla said it has completed “first builds of a more affordable model in June, with volume production planned for the second half of 2025.” These affordable models are expected to be stripped down versions of the Model 3 and Model Y, rather than a new vehicle program altogether, which is what many investors had hoped for. The company said it also is continuing to develop both the Tesla Semi and Cybercab, which are expected to enter volume production in 2026.

Tesla also gestured at the economic uncertainty caused by the Trump administration’s trade war, as well as “political sentiment” that has turned its brand toxic for many customers. That said, the company failed to mention politics or Musk’s growing unpopularity in its reasons for the drop in revenue, instead citing falling sales, lower regulatory credit revenue, a reduced average vehicle selling price, and decline in energy generation and storage revenue.

After years of exponential growth, the sudden reversal in Tesla’s fortune has left many investors and supporters with whiplash. Tesla now serves as a sobering example of what happens when a company is left on autopilot (or Autopilot, as it were) while its high-profile CEO gets distracted by questionable side quests.

After years of exponential growth, the sudden reversal in Tesla’s fortune has left many investors and supporters with whiplash.

Musk publicly stepped away from his controversial position as the head of DOGE, the Trump administration’s effort to slash “waste, fraud, and abuse” from the federal government that has mostly resulted in huge cuts to global humanitarian aid and the firing of thousands of federal workers. But even though he is now publicly feuding with Trump, Musk hasn’t completely backed away from his political activities. Earlier this month, he said he would create a new political party called “the America Party,” following through on his threat to challenge Republicans who supported Trump’s budget bill.

As Musk slides deeper into politics, investors have urged him to stay focused on Tesla and its costly — and questionable — project to build more self-driving cars and humanoid robots. The company rolled out its first robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, last month — although the service fell short of Musk’s earlier predictions. The vehicles were only available to a group of pro-Tesla influencers, and each car came with a safety monitor in the passenger seat who had access to a kill switch.

While Musk would like investors to focus on Tesla’s work with AI and self-driving cars, the company is still in the business of making and selling cars. But as competition heats up in China and Europe, here in the US, federal incentives that lower the price of most EVs are scheduled to disappear by the end of September — again, thanks to Trump’s bill. After that happens, Tesla’s sales are predicted to drop even more.

Tesla’s response to its demand crisis has been — you guessed it — deals, deals, and more deals. In recent days, the automaker has rolled out a series of discounts and financing incentives on all of its models, as it seeks to capitalize on what is likely to be its last best chance at a successful sales quarter this fall.

General Motors and Redwood Materials are joining forces yet again, this time with the intent to build energy storage units made out of new batteries and recycled EV packs.

The two companies signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding to build energy storage out of US-manufactured batteries, as well as “second-life” EV packs from GM’s vehicles. The announcement comes on the heels of Redwood’s decision to move more aggressively into the energy storage business with the creation of a new division. The company’s first project will be building a storage system for an AI development center in California.

Battery storage systems play a crucial role in balancing energy for the grid. These systems can store energy from a variety of sources, including renewables like wind and solar, releasing it when needed, which helps save power during periods of low demand.

The rise of AI is putting increasing pressure on the grid, in the US and globally. The steepest rise in global electricity demand is coming from new data centers in the US and China, as well as the manufacturing of electric vehicles, batteries, solar panels, and semiconductors.

The rise of AI is putting increasing pressure on the grid, in the US and globally

GM has a preexisting partnership with Redwood to recycle scrap from its battery manufacturing facilities in Warren, Ohio, and Spring Hill, Tennessee, as well as end-of-life EV batteries . The automaker says this new deal will help power its ambitions to expand beyond EV batteries and into grid management and energy storage. GM has its own energy division that sells power banks, charging equipment, solar panels, and management software to residential and commercial customers.

“The market for grid-scale batteries and backup power isn’t just expanding, it’s becoming essential
infrastructure,” said Kurt Kelty, GM’s VP of batteries, propulsion, and sustainability, in a statement. “Electricity demand is climbing, and it’s only going to accelerate. To meet that challenge, the U.S. needs energy storage solutions that can be deployed quickly, economically, and made right here at home. GM batteries can play an integral role.”

Redwood Materials was founded in 2017 by Tesla’s former chief technologist JB Straubel. In addition to breaking down scrap from Tesla’s battery-making process with Panasonic, Redwood recycles batteries from Ford, Toyota, Nissan, Specialized, Amazon, Lyft, Rad Power Bikes, Lime, stationary storage facilities, and others. The company also produces cathodes at a facility in Nevada, and eventually at its under-construction site in South Carolina.

Joby Aviation is getting ready to take flight.

The electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) company has delivered its first production aircraft to Dubai, where it plans to launch a commercial air taxi service in early 2026. Joby, which has successfully completed multiple flight tests with a pilot onboard, says it has begun in-market testing ahead of the anticipated launch of commercial operations.

It’s a significant milestone for Joby, which has been developing the technology to power its multi-rotor aircraft since 2009. And its a significant milestone for the fledgling air taxi sector, which has been leaning on hype and promises for the future of air travel to attract investors and potential clients while its aircraft trudge through years of safety testing and certification.

Dubai is aiming to become a launchpad for advanced air mobility, granting Joby a six-year exclusive operating agreement last year. The agreement, signed at the World Governments Summit, provides Joby with regulatory and financial support from Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA). The company has said it will begin operations from four planned vertiports, including Dubai International Airport and Palm Jumeirah.

It’s a significant milestone for Joby, which has been developing the technology to power its multi-rotor aircraft since 2009.

In addition to the delivery in Dubai, Joby is also making progress here in the United States. The company is about to begin a process mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration called Type Inspection Authorization (TIA), in which the FAA sends its own pilots to test out Joby’s aircraft. TIA signals the final stage of testing before commercial passenger operations can begin.

“In my view,” said Paul Sciarra, chair of Joby’s board of directors, in an interview, “this combination — both the beginnings of commercial service in a big international city, plus the real last lap of the certification program — I think are going to be the two things that gear shifts this in people’s mind from, ‘Gosh, this is awesome, like, when’s it going to show up?’ to ‘Holy crap, it’s happening tomorrow.’”

In addition to test flights, the company plans on conducting a series of demonstration flights along the routes it plans on flying. Then it will shift to commercial trips by the end of this year or early next, he said.

Sciarra also said the environmental conditions in Dubai present a unique challenge, with average temperatures usually around 110 degrees. Maintaining reliable air conditioning in the aircraft will be crucial for passenger comfort, he said. And there are a lot more “boxes to check” before commercial flights can commence, including training on-the-ground mechanics and flight crews.

“I think we’re getting ever closer to that moment when people are going to be able to go to a place and book a flight on this service, or see these aircraft flying over a place that they’re familiar with,” Sciarra said. “That’s not years away. That’s like months away at this point.”

Joby’s all-electric aircraft has six rotors and seats five, including the pilot. The vehicle can take off vertically, like a helicopter, and then shift into forward flight using tilt rotors. Joby says it can reach a top speed of 200mph, travel 150 miles on a single battery charge, and is 100 times quieter than a conventional aircraft. Its pouch-style lithium-ion batteries power the craft’s six electric motors for at least 10,000 flight cycles, according to Joby’s founder JoeBen Bevirt.

Joby is also ramping up manufacturing, making it the first eVTOL maker to deliver multiple production aircraft. The company now has five aircraft in its test fleet, including a hybrid hydrogen-electric variant. A second aircraft was recently delivered to the US Air Force as part of its ongoing defense partnerships.

Joby has received approximately $1 billion in outside investment, including $750 million from Toyota. Still, the company has struggled to meet financial expectations, reporting $0 in revenue in the first quarter of 2025. Joby is hoping Dubai will set the stage for its inevitable launch in the US, including key markets like New York, Los Angeles, and Florida. And as its manufacturing facility in Dayton, Ohio, starts churning out more aircraft, the company expects that it will really take flight.

“The broader external question,” Sciarra said, “is how many markets can we credibly address in this near term?” 

This might be a bigger deal than the robotaxis.

Tesla said it completed its first fully autonomous vehicle delivery from factory to customer. A video posted on X shows the vehicle — a Tesla Model Y — leaving the company’s Austin Gigafactory, driving on the highway, passing through suburban sprawl and residential neighborhoods, before arriving at a customer’s apartment building.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk had promised the first fully autonomous delivery would take place on June 28th. But on Friday, he announced that the milestone had been achieved a day early.

“There were no people in the car at all and no remote operators in control at any point. FULLY autonomous!” Musk wrote on X. “To the best of our knowledge, this is the first fully autonomous drive with no people in the car or remotely operating the car on a public highway.”

That last part isn’t accurate. Waymo has been operating fully driverless vehicles with passengers on the highway for over a year. The vehicles, which are driving on freeways in Phoenix, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, are only available to employees of the company, with the goal of opening them up to the public at a later date.

But Tesla’s achievement is still notable, especially when you consider the rocky rollout of the company’s robotaxi service. The robotaxis launched with safety monitors in the passenger seat with access to a kill switch, and within a few days, the vehicles were recorded committing several safety lapses, including driving over the double-yellow line into the opposite lane of traffic and hard braking in the middle of the road for no apparent reason.

By proving it can operate fully autonomous vehicles on highways without a safety monitor present in the vehicle, Tesla is able to demonstrate that its Full Self-Driving system is getting closer to Musk’s promise of “unsupervised” driving. The robotaxis aren’t quite there yet, still requiring safety monitors and remote supervisors. That leaves Tesla in limbo between confidence that its technology can handle the driving without anyone in the vehicle, but less confident when there’s a human being riding inside.

Update, June 28th: Added Tesla’s 30-minute “long version” of the trip.

The 2026 Chevy Silverado EV is going off road — way off road — with the addition of the Trail Boss trim to the electric pickup’s lineup. The electric version of the automaker’s popular off-road trim, Trail Boss offers more capability and — insanely — even more range for the already class-leading Silverado EV.

The upgraded electric truck has 2-inches of extra lift for more clearance while grinding gravel and climbing boulders, including 35-inch all-terrain tires and 18-inch wheels. Despite the added height, the Trail Boss will get a staggering GM-estimated range of 478 miles if you opt for the max range battery.

And in terms of maneuverability, Sidewinder mode enables all four tires to turn in the same direction for diagonal driving. It sounds similar to the Silverado’s sister truck, GMC’s Hummer EV with its Crab Walk and King Crab diagonal driving features.

But Sidewinder is also available to the RST trim, so what else is cool about Trail Boss? How about a trim-exclusive Terrain mode, which offers additional control while traversing uneven trails at low speeds. Compared to other drive modes, Terrain unlocks sharper 4-wheel steer, giving drivers better ability to control torque and traction at low speeds.

Speaking of power, the Trail Boss version of the Silverado EV will put out 725 horsepower and 775 lb-ft of torque when combined with the max range battery. That battery also offers a max towing capacity of 12,500 lbs along with a 2,100 payload capacity. Of course, you should expect some range loss while towing heavy loads.

Chevy is also dialing up the tech, offering enhanced Super Cruise with hands-free highway driving on both the Trail Boss and LT trims of the truck. The driver assist feature is also available while towing.

The automaker is also lowering the base price for the Silverado EV to $54,895, including destination charges, which is down from the previous base price of $57,095. The interior features a 17.7 inch center touchscreen alongside an 11-inch instrument gauge, which now comes standard on the Work Truck for the first time.

But the Trail Boss will run a lot higher, with the extended range version starting at $72,095 and the max range blasting off at $88,695. What, you thought all that extra range would be cheap?

Waymo said it recently received its last delivery of Jaguar I-Pace SUVs, which will be retrofitted with sensors and autonomous driving technology at its factory in Arizona, before joining its robotaxi fleet.

In a blog post published today, the Alphabet company said it currently has 1,500 Jaguars operating across its four main markets: San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin. And it plans on adding 2,000 more vehicles into 2026, for a total fleet size of 3,500. The company recently hit an average of 250,000 paid passenger trips per week.

Waymo typically doesn’t like to comment on the size of its fleet, so today’s announcement provides a rare glimpse into the number of robotaxis the company currently has in operation. Waymo’s plans to scale up comes as the company eyes Atlanta, Miami, and Washington, DC for launch in 2026.

The Jaguar I-Pace has been the company’s primary vehicle since Waymo retired its fleet of Chrysler Pacifica minivans in 2023. The company had once projected it would have 20,000 I-Paces operating as robotaxis, but appears to have fallen significantly short of that goal. Waymo is also currently testing and validating two new models, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and the all-electric Zeekr RT minivan, but has yet to say when they will join the fleet.

Waymo assembles its robotaxis with the help of auto engineering company Magna International at a 239,000 square-foot factory in Mesa, Arizona. The company’s final batch of Jaguar I-Paces will be assembled there, which should carry Waymo through to next year. And starting in 2026, Waymo will begin work on its sixth generation “Waymo Driver,” which will launch in the Zeekr RT. Zeekr is a subsidiary of Geely, which is one of China’s largest automakers.

The new robotaxi is being designed in Sweden (where Geely owns Swedish carmaker Volvo), adapted from Geely’s all-electric five-door Zeekr. Waymo is then importing the vehicles to Arizona, where they will be outfitted with the hardware and software necessary for autonomous driving. The first test vehicles began arriving in the US last year.

In order to adapt to multiple vehicle platforms, Waymo says its Mesa factory will add automated assembly lines and “other efficiencies” over time. And when it’s operating at full capacity, the company expects it will be able to churn out “tens of thousands” of robotaxis each year. Waymo added new processes at the end of the assembly line for passenger validation and commission to ensure each vehicle is ready to accept riders as soon as it leaves the factory. Each vehicle drives itself into service after leaving the factory, where it is ready for passenger pickups within 30 minutes, according to Waymo spokesperson Chris Bonelli.

Waymo’s interest in publicizing its plans to grow its fleet size comes as Tesla plans to launch its own robotaxi service in Texas and California later this year. And it aligns with the Alphabet company’s recent announcement of a partnership with Toyota to explore the possibilities of selling autonomous vehicles to customers for personal ownership.

Last night, a new company called Slate Auto unveiled its first product, a spartan two-seater electric truck with a mere 150 miles of range and a world of possibility. There's no paint, no distracting infotainment screen, and no stereo or even radio. It doesn't tower over your average 12-year-old, and it may sell for under $20,000 (including incentives) when it arrives in 2026.

If it arrives, of course. We don't need to get into the litany of obstacles that lie in the path of Slate's future success - including a global trade war and a presidential administration openly hostile to EVs - because instead I'm interested in talking about the truck as a possible antidote to our growing obsession with overpowered, oversize trucks and SUVs.

You've probably noticed this problem if you have eyes and live in America in 2025. Our roads are packed with these roving land yachts. Sales of SUVs and pickup trucks reached new highs in 2024, accounting for 75 percent of total vehicle registrations. A decade ago, these two segments made up just half of the market. Today, they represent three out of every four new vehicles sold in America.

A world of possibility

These vehicles are bigger and heavie …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Honda is looking to the stars for its next hydrogen breakthrough.

The automaker is teaming up with space tech companies Sierra Space and Tec-Masters to test its high-differential pressure water electrolysis system on the International Space Station. The test is part of Honda’s vision to support life on the Moon and elsewhere in space using regenerative fuel cell technology that continuously produces hydrogen, oxygen, and electricity.

It’s another risky move from Honda, which is more bullish on hydrogen than most other automakers. Hydrogen-powered cars have historically faced a lot of hurdles, including fueling challenges and pricing pressures. But Honda is counting on hydrogen to help it decarbonize its vehicle fleet by 2040. And now it wants to tap into the most abundant element in the universe to power its push into space.

Honda says it envisions its hydrogen-powered regenerative system as part of a human settlement on the lunar surface. But it also hopes that by stress testing the technology on the Moon, it can prove its utility on Earth.

It’s another risky move from Honda, which is more bullish on hydrogen than most other automakers

Here’s how Honda’s system works: during the lunar day, the system will use electricity generated by solar panels capturing sunlight. The company’s high-differential pressure water electrolysis system will then produce hydrogen and oxygen from water. When the Moon rotates away from the Sun, some of the oxygen will be used for astronauts, with the rest put toward generating electricity. The only byproduct of the electrolysis process is water, which is recycled back into the regenerative system, creating a closed-loop energy cycle.

Honda plans on testing the process in the microgravity environment on the ISS. The company says it will work with NASA to transport the equipment on Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser spaceplane, with Tec-Masters as the ISS technology expert.

Creating a reliable source of oxygen and electricity in space would help humans establish livable habitats off-Earth in an era when space travel seems more achievable than ever. While the science community has explored the use of electrolysis as a means to sustain life in the vacuum of space, it has found that low gravity environments will have some effect on the gas-evolving process. A study published in 2022 concluded that around 11 percent less oxygen was created through electrolysis in a lunar environment as compared to the gravity of Earth.