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Welcome back to Mobility TechCrunch — your central hub for news and ideas about the future of transportation.
I spent a few days in Austin to SXSW, where I met with founders and executives, attended a few talks, and even moderated two panels. While generative AI was clearly the big draw, the future of transportation still attracted the attention of investors, urban planners, founders, corporations, and the media. I heard a lot of conversations about how autonomous vehicles would fit into cities, as well as debates about what technology could help alleviate traffic and reduce emissions.
I caught an interesting conversation between the mayor of Austin kirk watson and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, who predicted the company would be greener, more affordable, and challenge Amazon in the future. These goals seem a little more attainable (and higher on the priority list) now that Uber has finally checked the profitability box.
Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana He was also at SXSW, where he announced that the company will begin offering a robotaxi service to the public in Los Angeles this week and in Austin later in the year. Side note: We hear service in Austin will probably arrive sometime this summer. Maybe I’ll be back in town sooner than expected!
Alright, let’s move on to the rest of the week’s news!
a little bird
start-up of electric vehicles fisker has spent the last few months courting dealers in an effort to move away from a Tesla-style direct sales model after struggling to sell half of the cars it made in 2023.
It seemed like the company had made some progress on that front. However, a little bird told us that one of the dozen dealers he had signed up had already quit. Fisker Ourisman, which was supposed to be the newest extension of Ourisman Automotive Group, walked away from the startup and deleted the website it created to promote Fisker’s Ocean SUV just a month after signing the deal.
The dealership’s loss comes as the Wall Street Journal reported that Fisker hired outside help to consider a possible bankruptcy filing.
It’s not immediately obvious whether other distributors have followed suit. Mike Domenicone, owner and operator of Classic of Atlanta, said he conducted more than 150 test drives and sold out the first shipment of Ocean SUVs at his new “Classic of Fisker” subsidiary.
Do you have a suggestion for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com or Sean O’Kane sean.okane@techcrunch.com. If you prefer to remain anonymous, Click here to contact uswhich includes SecureDrop (instructions here) and various encrypted messaging applications.
Offer of the week
If you’re looking for yet another example of investor enthusiasm for AI, just take a look at the autonomous vehicle software company’s latest fundraising. Applied intuition.
The company raised $250 million in a round that raised its valuation to $6 billion and included a who’s who of high-profile investors. The Series E round was led by Lux Capital’s Bilal Zuberi, investor Elad Gil and Porsche Investments Management, the sports car maker’s independent venture arm. Others joining the round included Andreessen Horowitz, Mary Meeker’s Bond growth fund and even Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg.
Applied Intuition says it is pushing to bring more artificial intelligence to the automotive, defense, construction and agricultural sectors. as a reporter Sean O’Kane wrote, the company appears to have found a sweet spot for venture capitalists who are on the hunt for startups with AI products that cross over into big industries with big budgets (defense is a hot area) with seemingly endless opportunities.
Other offers that caught my attention…
anaphitea battery technology startup, raised £1.6 million ($2 million) through a government-backed grant led by Elbow Beach Capital.
movinga mobility application that includes ride-sharing and other urban services, expanded its financing agreement with General Catalyst to $300 million, up from the initial $150 million obtained in 2023.
Joyridea micromobility software provider, raised $5.2 million in a Series A funding round led by Yamaha Motors and includes return investments from Urban Innovation Fund, Proeza Ventures, Two Small Fish Ventures and Export Development Canada (EDC).
EngineSelf-driving vehicle technology startup Motional has secured a bridge loan that provides temporary financial respite while the company looks for a longer-term source of financing, TechCrunch has learned exclusively.
telo, the electric vehicle startup that aims to produce a pint-sized pickup truck, raised $5.4 million in a round from Neo and Spero Ventures. Marc Tarpenning, a partner at Spero and co-founder of Tesla, will join the board.
volvo car invested an undisclosed amount in British startup Breathe Battery Technologies. Volvo plans to integrate the startup’s battery management software into its next generation of electric vehicles to improve charging time by 30%.
Notable readings and other tidbits
autonomous vehicles
Apptronik, the Austin-based robotics startup, has partnered with Mercedes-Benz. The two companies will collaborate to identify and then test applications for highly advanced robotics at Mercedes-Benz Manufacturing.”
dawn showed off its autonomous vehicle system during a day of analysts and investors at its Pittsburgh headquarters. The company demonstrated how Peterbilt 579 semi-trucks equipped with the latest Aurora Driver system (and without a human behind the wheel) handled real-world closed-course driving conditions.
automatic ghost, a remote driving startup that launched seven years ago amid the hype over autonomous vehicle technology, closed after failing to raise new funding. The startup had raised $95 million since its founding and had customers. And they told us they were close to raising more funds before it fell through. We’ll be watching to see what happens with Phantom Auto’s intellectual property.
zoox expanded its driverless testing, in terms of hours of operation, conditions and geography, near its headquarters in Foster City, California and in Las Vegas. The driverless Zoox, which is not yet open to the public, is now operating along five miles of road from the south end of the Las Vegas Strip. Zoox is expected to open to the public in Las Vegas later in 2024.
Electric vehicles, batteries and charging.
core shellA battery materials startup, revealed a breakthrough that could reduce the cost of lithium-ion batteries.
Lucid engines is caught in a trademark fight over the name of its Gravity SUV. Gravity Inc., an electric vehicle charging company backed by Google Ventures, filed a “petition to cancel” in December with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office requesting that Lucid’s Gravity brand will be revoked.
India It will reduce import taxes on certain electric vehicles for companies that commit to investing at least $500 million and establishing a local manufacturing plant within three years, a policy change that could bolster Tesla’s plans to enter to the South Asian market.
Lordstown Motors emerged from bankruptcy with a new name, Nu Ride Inc., and an almost singular focus: continuing its lawsuit against iPhone maker Foxconn for allegedly “destroying the business of an American startup.” The reconstituted version of Lordstown Motors will also look at “possible business combinations,” although it did not say what type of mergers it seeks.
Shared ride
Uber and Lyft They are abandoning Minneapolis for a minimum wage law.
This week’s wheels
Image credits: Kirsten Korosec
While in Austin, I did a street demonstration at a Autonomous VW ID Buzz prototype. This was not a true driverless ride, as a human safety operator was still behind the wheel. However, he gave me an idea of how VW ADMT – the autonomous driving, mobility and transportation subsidiary of the German automaker – is making progress. The final and commercial version of the driverless ID. Buzz AD, which will be designed for ride-sharing, is expected to launch in 2026.
You may remember that VW’s autonomous vehicle ambitions were wrapped up in Argo AI, a startup backed solely by automaker and partner Ford. The two companies withdrew financial support from Argo AI, leading to its closure. VW then turned to Mobileye and has since followed a different path to automated driving that contrasts Waymo, Cruise, Zoox and Motional.
VW and Mobileye believe in a progressive approach where the technology found in advanced driver assistance systems used in modern cars can evolve into a driverless system used in robotaxis. It is similar to what Tesla has argued.
My trip was not completely smooth, although I did not expect it to be. However, the vehicle saw and stopped suddenly when a vehicle driven by a man unexpectedly exited an alley. A mishap occurred as we approached a double-parked emergency vehicle. The identification. Buzz sat for a while before the security operator took control and surrounded him.
