A "Small Operational Error"

A "Small Operational Error"

Maybe you aren't keeping up on current events, but Carlos Tavares and his struggling business Stellantis (who, for the record, is not a North American company) just got their asses kicked.

His company went from record profits in 2023 to massive sales losses in 2024, operating cash flow concerns, potential dividend cuts, a legal battle with the UAW, and market cap declines of about six bln euros. reuters.com, cnbc.com, nytimes.com, qz.com, fastcompany.com, cnn.com, cbc.ca

On top of that, his US dealers wrote him a nasty letter. Sticks and stones, Carlos.

The word on the street is that Stellantis is already searching for a new CEO (and some people believe he’s already gone). But Travares is likely to stay until at least 2026. reuters.com, bloomberg.com

However, my favourite part of this story is that Carlos called the current state of his US business a “small operational error.” That is a delightful fucking gaslit understatement. reuters.com

Stellantis might just be the canary in the established automotive OEM mineshaft. Three out of four of the German OEMs have also cut their forecasts. Volkswagon has cut sales projections more than Stellantis has. Ford and General Motors experienced weak growth in domestic new vehicle sales in the third quarter. And Nissan isn’t sitting pretty, either, experiencing their fifth consecutive monthly decline. fortune.com, reuters.com, bloomberg.com

We are witnessing an unprecedented seismic shift in the automotive industry as Chinese brands expand and established OEMs are forced to retract. “Chinese automakers are expected to continue rapidly expanding outside of China to achieve 33% of the global automotive market share by 2030, according to consulting firm AlixPartners.” cnbc.com 

In their press release, Stellantis described the situation like this, “Deterioration in the global industry backdrop reflects a lower 2024 market forecast than at the beginning of the period, while competitive dynamics have intensified due to both rising industry supply, as well as increased Chinese competition.” media.stellantis.com

In the here and now, Carlos won’t ride this decline alone. For the remainder of 2024, we will see slowing vehicle sales globally. Making the fight for market share even more ugly. ing.com

(You might want to listen to my Michael Dunne interview for more context on China’s global automotive expansion.)

China’s Automotive Expansion

BYD launches the Shark hybrid pickup truck in Panama. cnevpost.com

BYD starts taking preorders for their sexy new MPV. cnevpost.com

Chery delays their European plant while assessing tariff implications. autonews.com

Nio partners with UK AI startup Monolith to optimize EV battery packs in real time. reuters.com

The EU finalizes their Chinese EV tariffs. theverge.com

China files a complaint with the WTO over Canada’s proposed EV tariffs. cnbc.com

Must Know Musk News

Elon suggests that the world needs to get better at math and understand how the Kardashev Scale suggests how all our energy needs could be met by solar. x.com

Tesla’s sales are starting to turn around. theverge.com

Tesla recalls all of the Cybertrucks again. theverge.com

Tesla Energy has installed 750,000 powerwalls worldwide. x.com

Tesla won a lawsuit by basically arguing, “You don’t actually believe us when we say it’s fully self-driving, do you?” reuters.com, electrek.co

Rise Of The Machines

Creepy ass robot hand can detach from its arm, crawl over to objects, and pick them up. techcrunch.com

Shanghai-based Fourier launched their next-generation humanoid robot. youtube.com

ETH Zurich built a four-legged robot that can climb ladders. techcrunch.com

Energy

Aussie mining billionaire Andrew Forrest plans to make his company, Fortescue, net zero by the end of the decade. He urges industry and governments to drop their net-zero fantasy and target “real zero” by 2040. cnbc.com

England’s 142-year history of coal-fired electricity comes to an end. theguardian.com

Lithium-ion batteries just keep getting cheaper. visualcapitalist.com

Sweden’s NoviOcean has a funky new wind, wave, and solar generation platform that can power 1,000 homes daily. interestingengineering.com

LG found a way to solve thermal runaway in EV batteries. insideevs.com

But Wait, There’s More

Hyundai made its 100 millionth vehicle. electrek.co

Hyundai will supply Ioniq 5s to Alphabet’s Waymo business unit for future robotaxies. theverge.com

Ford starts giving away home chargers when you buy one of their EVs. electrek.co

Toyota dropped another $500 million into Joby Aviation for air taxis. theverge.com

GM is working on a new level-3 autonomous driving system. techcrunch.com

GM has a hurricane problem. reuters.com

Ford has a brake problem. reuters.com

Rivian still has a parts problem. reuters.com

Against all odds, Volvo reports a sales increase. reuters.com

Boeing (fucking Boeing, again) has a rudder problem. cbc.ca

Most dealer websites suck. overfuel.com

US dealers build an equally shitty website to express their opposition to EV mandates. arstechnica.com, evvoiceofthecustomer.com

ICYMI

We might not have enough electricity to power our AI future. fortune.com, bloomberg.com, nytimes.com

Americans don't believe EVs are cleaner than gas cars. npr.org

These dudes are fucking assholes. Don’t be like them. pcmag.com

Kick Out The Jams

Lil Wayne wonders where the love goes. youtube.com

Christina Aguilera’s “Genie In a Bottle” was released 25 years ago. youtube.com

The Horrors are walking the length of the city like a child waiting for the call. youtube.com

Starcrawler is learning to say goodbye. youtube.com

Noga Erez just took the script and flipped it. youtube.com

ILUKA asks who said you can't be a witch in cowgirl boots. youtube.com

Pacifica does a fun cover of “Take on Me. youtube.com

ICYMI: Hamumankind’s “Big Dawgs” really kicks. It’s my jam this week. youtube.com