Latest from Sean O'Kane
Tesla profits drop 55%, company says EV sales ‘under pressure’ from hybrids
Tesla profits fell 55% to $1.13 billion in the first quarter from the same year-ago period as a protracted EV price-cutting strategy and “several unforeseen challenges” cut into the automaker’s bottom…
Tesla launches new Model 3 Performance variant to rev up demand
Tesla has officially revealed a new Performance variant of the recently refreshed Model 3 sedan as the company looks to fight off receding demand. The new version of the Model…
Fisker plans more layoffs as cash dwindles and bankruptcy looms
Fisker says it’s planning more layoffs less than two months after cutting 15% of its workforce, as the EV startup scrambles to raise cash to stay alive. Fisker expects to…
Tesla recalls the Cybertruck for faulty accelerator pedals that can get stuck
Tesla is recalling all 3,878 Cybertrucks that it has shipped to date, due to a problem where the accelerator pedal can get stuck, putting drivers at risk of a crash,…
Tesla still plans to build 1,800-mile charging corridor for semi trucks despite Biden funding snub
Tesla is pushing forward with a plan to build an electric big rig charging corridor stretching from Texas to California, despite being snubbed by a lucrative federal funding program that’s…
Tesla has spent $200K advertising on Elon Musk’s X so far
Tesla has spent around $200,000 on advertising through February on Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, after the CEO caved to shareholder pressure last year and said his company would…
Tesla ditches EV inventory price discounts as Elon Musk moves to ‘streamline’ sales and delivery
Tesla has ended discounts on inventory across its electric vehicle lineup — even as sales for EVs have flagged — as part of a larger and vague plan by CEO…
Featured Article
Tesla layoffs hit high performers, some departments slashed, sources say
Tesla management told employees Monday that the recent layoffs — which gutted some departments by 20% and even hit high performers — were largely due to poor financial performance, a source familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. The layoffs were announced to staff just a week before Tesla is scheduled…
Tesla execs Drew Baglino and Rohan Patel leave as company lays off 10%
Two high-profile executives have departed Tesla the same day that the electric automaker laid off thousands of workers, TechCrunch has confirmed. Drew Baglino, Tesla’s SVP of Powertrain and Energy, and…
Ford’s hands-free BlueCruise system was active before fatal Texas crash
It’s the first known fatality resulting from a crash involving the use of BlueCruise, which Ford first announced in 2021.
Two internal whistleblowers at Faraday Future claim the troubled EV company has been lying about some of the few sales it has announced to date. They also claim founder Jia…
Lucid Motors ekes out a new delivery record as it searches for more EV buyers
Lucid Motors delivered more EVs in the first quarter of 2024 than it has in any other quarter, though it set the record by a very slim margin. The Saudi-backed,…
Tesla is reportedly abandoning its plan to build a lower-cost EV, thought to be priced around $25,000, according to Reuters, despite that vehicle’s status as a pivotal product for the…
Tesla slashes Model Y inventory prices by as much as $7,000
Tesla is dropping prices of unsold Model Y SUVs in the U.S. by thousands of dollars in an attempt to clear out an unprecedented backlog of inventory. Many long-range and…
Faraday Future avoids eviction at its LA headquarters — for now
Faraday Future has avoided getting evicted from its Los Angeles headquarters — for the time being. The troubled EV startup reached an agreement April 2 with its landlord, Rexford Industrial,…
Fisker’s Ocean SUV investigated for doors that won’t open
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a third investigation into EV startup Fisker’s Ocean SUV, this time centered on problems getting the doors to open. The NHTSA’s Office…
Rivian has a challenging year ahead — and the first quarter is off to a tepid start. The EV startup announced Tuesday that it built 13,980 vehicles and delivered 13,588…
Tesla blames sales drop on Houthi attacks and arson in Germany
Tesla just turned in one of its more disappointing first quarters for deliveries in a while, and the company is putting some of the blame on an arson attack at…
Fisker lost track of millions of dollars in customer payments for months
Fisker temporarily lost track of millions of dollars in customer payments as it scaled up deliveries, leading to an internal audit that started in December and took months to complete,…
Tesla is pushing a free one-month trial of its FSD Beta driver-assistance software to US customers
Tesla is about to start giving every customer in the U.S. a one-month trial of its $12,000 driver-assistance system, which it calls Full Self-Driving Beta, provided they have a car…
The exchange said Monday that Fisker’s stock is “no longer suitable for listing” because of “abnormally low” price levels.
Lucid Motors raises another $1 billion from Saudi Arabia as it searches for luxury EV buyers
Lucid Motors is raising another $1 billion from its biggest financial backer, Saudi Arabia, as it looks to blunt the high costs associated with building and selling its luxury electric…
Fisker loses potential Nissan deal, putting rescue funds at risk
The negotiations between Fisker and a large automaker — reported to be Nissan — over a potential investment and collaboration have been terminated, a development that puts a separate near-term…
Amber launches Tesla warranty service to help owners of aging EVs
Owners of aging EVs aren’t exactly flush with options if something breaks after the original warranty expires. One Bay Area startup called Amber thinks it can help them navigate that…
Rivian starts offering adapters to access Tesla’s Supercharger network
Rivian customers can now request an adapter to tap into Tesla’s vast North American network of Superchargers, making it the second automaker to do so behind Ford. The company announced…
EV startup Fisker is pausing production of its electric Ocean SUV for six weeks as it scrambles for a cash infusion. The company said in a Monday morning regulatory filing…
Lordstown Motors comes out of bankruptcy with a new name to fight Foxconn
Lordstown Motors has emerged from bankruptcy with a new name and a nearly singular focus: continuing its lawsuit against iPhone-maker Foxconn for allegedly “destroying the business of an American startup.”…
Applied Intuition lands $6B valuation for AI-powered autonomous vehicle software
Autonomous vehicle software company Applied Intuition has raised $250 million in a round that values the startup at $6 billion, as it pushes to bring more artificial intelligence to the…
Lucid Motors is stuck in a fight over the name of its Gravity SUV
Lucid Motors is at risk of losing the trademark for the name of its Gravity SUV, just months before the company is supposed to start production. Google Ventures-backed EV charging…
Faraday Future survives long enough to issue its first recall
Troubled EV startup Faraday Future has issued its first recall, covering all 11 vehicles it built last year, as it fights to hold onto its Los Angeles headquarters. The recall…