This is how far America is falling behind on EVs
Dates to remember
- CoMotion LA ‘25 & CoMotion GLOBAL in Riyadh: Register now until Nov. 12 for CoMotion LA, Dec. 7 for CoMotion GLOBAL and bring your colleagues for half of the price. Complimentary tickets available for public sector & media.
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It’s a chronic condition we keep returning to: the divergent paths between the U.S. and the rest of the world on energy and mobility. The latest symptom: a big drop in EV investment in the U.S. in 2025. If trends persist, America will enter the 2030’s as a major outlier in terms of EV adoption.
Meanwhile, both Waymo and Tesla attract regulator scrutiny, Amazon starts to buy delivery bikes, Archer Aviation strikes a deal with Korean Air, Redwood Materials raises more cash and GM ditches its electric delivery van. Finally, a fascinating interview about why it costs car-crazed America so much to build highways.
What you need to know
U.S. EV investment plummets: Investment in electric vehicles in the U.S. dropped in Q3 by nearly a third at least compared to the same period last year. The sharp drop is due in no small part to the reversal of Biden-era EV incentives by the Trump administration. Between April and September, automakers abandoned roughly $7 billion of planned EV investments.This helps explain why a recent forecast by Alix Partners projects EVs will only account for 18% of new vehicle sales in the U.S. by 2030, compared to 40% in Europe and 51% in China.
Feds investigate Tesla ‘Mad Max’ mode: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it’s “gathering information” from Tesla about a new version of Full Self-Driving, dubbed “Mad Max,” which has been shown on social media to go well above speed limits.
…and Waymo for school bus violations: The NHTSA is investigating Waymo for an instance when one of its vehicles allegedly drove around a stopped school bus after its red lights and stop sign were deployed on a blocked roadway.
New Tricks for Old Bureaucracies with Joshua Schank
Can an old DOGE learn new tricks? In the latest episode of CoMotion’s Fast Forward podcast, host Nick Perloff-Giles sat down with Joshua Schank to discuss his forthcoming book ‘New Tricks for Old Bureaucracies,’ which examines his time as Director of LA Metro’s Office of Extraordinary Innovation, including insights into how to break logjams, build consensus, and get agencies moving.
Less than 3 weeks to go!!
Join us at CoMotion LA ‘25, ‘Unlocking the New Mobility Playbook’ featuring the OMF Summit Track, on Nov. 12-13.
This year’s ninth edition features mobility leaders including: Marcel Porras, Deputy Chief Innovation Officer, LA Metro, Laura Rubio-Cornejo, General Manager, LADOT, Mayor Rex Richardson, City of Long Beach, Pierfrancesco Maran, Member of the EU Parliament, Joanna M. Pinkerton, SVP - Digital Infrastructure Solutions, HNTB, Vishay Nihalani, Director of Product Management, Waymo, and many more.
The program has never been more timely with topics including: Mega Event Mobility, The Future of Sustainable Transportation, AV’s & Emerging Mobility Technologies, Digital Infrastructure, Funding & Investment in Mobility, Policy Innovation & Governance, Advanced Air Mobility, and Ports, Airports & Transportation Hubs. View the Agenda.
Register now and bring your colleagues, plus-one for half of the price.
More green for Redwood: Nevada-based Redwood Materials raises $350 million in a Series E round led by Eclipse Ventures and backed by Nvidia’s VC arm, boosting its valuation to around $6 billion — about $1 billion higher than its previous figure. The funding will help Redwood expand its energy-storage business for AI data centers and increase its battery recycling, materials production, and cathode manufacturing capacity.
Amazon pedals ahead: Amazon commits to buying thousands of pedal-assist cargo vehicles from Also (a spinoff of Rivian) to deploy in urban delivery operations across the U.S. and Europe beginning spring 2026. The battery-powered vehicles will carry up to 400 lbs and be able to operate in bike lanes. This could be crucial for making deliveries in cities like Paris that are heavily restricting access to motor vehicles.
GM ditches electric delivery: General Motors discontinues productions of its BrightDrop electric delivery vans, citing slower-than-expected market development and the elimination of U.S. EV tax credits.
Shared mobility –– in two ways: It’s been four years since Pony, a French micromobility service, introduced a two-seat electric bike to its network. Since then, over a million rides have been taken on the “Double Pony” and three quarters of them have involved two riders. The company just came out with a new version of the bike.
Archer Aviation to provide air taxis for Korean Air: Archer Aviation signs a partnership with Korean Air to commercialize eVTOL air taxis in South Korea, with a potential order for up to 100 aircraft.
Avride gets a lift from Uber: Avride, an Austin-based delivery robot startup, scores $375 million in “strategic investment and commitments” from Uber and Nebelius Group.
Partner content
🌟🎤Join us at the Monaco Hydrogen Forum on December 1-2, where a stellar lineup of seasoned industry leaders will dive into the latest advancements in hydrogen technology! Don’t miss this opportunity to connect and learn.
Register now to secure your spot.
A highlight of the event is the prestigious Monaco Prize for Innovation in Renewable Hydrogen and Transportation, which has established itself as one of the most prestigious awards in the industry. This award celebrates groundbreaking innovations that are shaping the future of clean mobility.
When we caught up with last winner, Ben Medland of DRIFT Energy Ltd., he shared how the prize transformed their journey:
“Winning the prize has been the catalyst for a stellar year of progress at DRIFT Energy Ltd. The connections we made have helped us grow and strengthen the business, putting DRIFT Energy Ltd on the map and sharing our story with a wider community. I highly recommend the prize and conference—it’s been one of the highlights of our journey so far.”
Apply for the prize today. Applications close on October 31st - don’t miss out!
What we’re reading
Why do American highways cost so much? It sort of makes sense that car-centric America is so bad at building public transportation infrastructure. What’s more curious is that it’s also really bad at building highways; it spends far more per-mile than its western peers. David Zipper interviews Zachary Liscow, a Yale professor of economics and law, about why that is.
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