EVs beyond the auto industry

Issue #252, May 23, 2024

The influence of electric vehicles (EVs) and autonomous driving is beyond just the automotive industry. In Japan, major car makers will work together for technological development in areas like generative AI and semiconductors to gain market share in software-driven vehicles. Given their low entry barriers, phone makers like Xiaomi have ventured into car making. Peugeot is partnering with a mobility startup to integrate so-called “teledriving” tech for last mile delivery of goods, with a focus on B2B customers. A slowdown in EV sales has ramifications for not just the auto industry but the many financial institutions that have pledged to decarbonize the loans and investments they make. The compulsion to decarbonize the commercial vehicle industry’s current fuel of choice, diesel, is keeping the technology teams busier than ever before. Tesla has told suppliers to start building components and parts outside of both China and Taiwan for diversification. Below are some recent updates in electric mobility that extend beyond the core industry players.

Japan and software-defined-vehicles

Japan has set a target for its automakers to sell 12 million next-generation software-defined vehicles (SDVs) at home and abroad by 2030, part of a national strategy that will include collaboration among the country's auto giants. Production will be strengthened to a level where Japan can secure a 30% share of the global SDV market. Major automakers such as Toyota, Nissan, and Honda will work together to begin technological development in areas like generative artificial intelligence and semiconductors. - Nikkei Asia

Phone makers making EVs

Xiaomi makes rice cookers, smartphones, lamps and now a car, showing how low the barriers to entry have become in the world of EVs. The Beijing-based smartphone maker launched its first line of EVs a few months back in a lavish event in Beijing. Xiaomi has managed to use the existing EV industry base in China to its favor and has benefited from a partnership with the Beijing Automotive Group. - WSJ, Business India

Driverless cars for last mile delivery

Peugeot is partnering with a mobility startup to integrate so-called “teledriving” tech — an alternative to autonomous cars — into its vehicles. The deal will see the two companies assess the use of teledriving tech on “last-mile delivery” vans and smaller logistics vehicles, with a focus on business-to-business customers. The idea is to recreate the journey a delivery vehicle typically takes from an order fulfillment center to households or businesses, similar to the model offered by Amazon — only this time with remote-controlled cars. - CNBC

EVs and financial risk

EVs have swiftly gone from a rare bright spot?in the fight against climate change to a cause for concern. A slowdown?in EV adoption has potentially huge implications for the energy transition. It also has ramifications for the many financial institutions that have pledged to decarbonize the loans and investments they make. - Bloomberg

Decarbonizing CVs

The compulsion from national and global decarbonisation drives to develop technology solutions to replace the commercial vehicle (CV) industry’s current fuel of choice, diesel, is keeping the technology teams in the auto industry busier than ever before. Electrification and hydrogen/fuel cell technologies are emerging as the most favoured among many options. The shift from diesel has been quite swift in the passenger vehicle industry. For the CV industry, it can be a case of easier said than done. A thought process that has emerged is to develop engine platforms that can run on more than one fuel. - ET Auto

Tesla diversifying beyond China

Tesla has told suppliers to start building components and parts outside of both China and Taiwan by as early as next year due to rising geopolitical uncertainties. Suppliers making components such as printed circuit boards, displays and electronics control unit systems for use in Tesla models sold outside of China have received the request from Tesla, according to six supply chain executives with direct knowledge of the matter. - Nikkei Asia