Trucks | Future of Transportation for 2026.02.23
FoT is the intelligence arm of Trucks Venture Capital

Notable

Why are Chinese vehicles cheaper? Researchers say it isn't primarily because of subsidies, but much greater vertical integration and lower overhead costs (link). 'Leapmotor reportedly produces 60–70% of its components in-house. Our bill-of-materials analysis indicates that BYD manufactures around 80% of Tier 1 components and roughly 36% of Tier 2 components internally—more than twice Tesla’s in-house share of Tier 1 components (37%). A UBS study similarly estimates that 75% of BYD’s Seal is produced in-house, compared with 46% for Tesla’s Model 3 and 35% for Volkswagen’s ID.3.'

Uber lost roughly 1/4 of its value over the last 6 months, with analysts pointing to fears over Waymo and robotaxis weighing on the ridehailing sector (link). At some point in the near future Uber and Lyft will both acquire or restart their own AV engineering efforts, whether because they believe in the effort or they believe in the narrative.

The humanoid explosion: 'driven by attention, capital and belief' (link). Via JD.

Inside Ford's cost-down approach to its new Universal EV platform (link). 'For example, a 1mm change in roof height can translate into a $1.30 savings in battery costs.'

Are hybrids a bridge to electrification or merely a smokescreen that delays lower emission adoption? (link).

Draft 'Made in Europe' rule ties EV subsidies to 70% local content rule (link). The impact of local-focused regs (for both hardware and software) is that only companies of global scale will be able to compete in the future. You have to be big enough to stamp out compliance sheetmetal and software in local flavors, or create a global patchwork of joint ventures.

Trump exempts vehicles, parts from new 15% global duty after Supreme Court loss (link). 'The new tariff does not apply to imports of steel, aluminum and copper, nor will it apply to goods from Canada and Mexico that comply with North American trade rules, according to the text of a presidential proclamation Trump signed. The exemptions are a win for automakers and suppliers that urged the White House to keep the status quo on autos and metals tariffs after the Supreme Court ruling. Those goods, subject to other duties, had been exempt from most nation-level tariffs Trump implemented in 2025.'

US judge upholds $243 million verdict against Tesla over fatal Autopilot crash (link). 'The case arose from an April 25, 2019, incident in Key Largo, Florida, in which George McGee drove his 2019 Model S through an intersection at about 62 mph while he bent to look for his phone, which he had dropped. McGee crashed into Naibel Benavides Leon and Dillon Angulo's SUV, which was parked on a shoulder and which they stood beside. Benavides was killed.' Related: Tesla will stop using the term Autopiot to market its electric vehicles in California in order to avoid a suspension by the Department of Motor Vehicles (link).

Canadian op-ed: 'American carmakers are leaving. Bring on the Chinese EVs' (link).

Video: breaking the record for battery-powered RC car, using drone motors as hub motors, with a new goal of 250 mph (link). Video: if some car mufflers are fake now, why not make them play music? (link). Via Diego.
Video: Waymo & NVIDIA on their futures in autonomy (link).

U.S. Olympic speed skaters adapt NASCAR 'bump drafting,' revolutionizing team event (link).

M&A / Deals / Changes:

Indian EV charging startup Statiq raises $18M (link). Led by Tenacity.

Mister Car Wash taken private by LGP for $3.1B (link). 'The Tucson, Ariz.-based operator of roughly 550 car wash locations is the largest car wash subscription program in North America.'

Uber set to invest $100M in EV chargers for robotaxis (link).

NAPA Owner Genuine Parts plans to split into two companies (link). Via Carly.

Board & Executive Changes:

Autoliv: Martin Lundstedt, Franz-Josef Kortumto to leave board (link).

GM: Claudia Gast named head of strategy, replacing Zach Kirkman (link).

Curated Jobs:

Forward Deployed Engineer / Solution Architect at ECR in Pittsburgh, PA, USA (link).

Hiring? Post a job (link). If you're a startup, use code 'Trucks' for free standard listings.

Hunting? View all 238 postings on the MobilityJobs job board (link).

New Stuff:

Skyryse advances SkyOS toward FAA certification (link).

City Roads ‘renders every single road within a city' (link). Via Steve B.

Speed limits could be reduced on 20% of San Diego's roads in new city plan (link).

Uber moves to enact stricter background checks for drivers (link).

Apple's iOS 26.4 introduces CarPlay support for ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini (link). Via Ryan.

NYC is trying to build a map of everything underground (link).

Parking-aware navigation system could prevent frustration and emissions (link). Via David Z. 'In simulated tests with real-world traffic data from Seattle, this technique achieved time savings of up to 66 percent in the most congested settings. For a motorist, this would reduce travel time by about 35 minutes, compared to waiting for a spot to open in the closest parking lot.'

Apple TV partners with IMAX to show Formula 1 races live in theaters (link).

NY governor pulls proposal that would have allowed AVs to operate in parts of the state -- notably in NYC (link).

Patents & Patent Applications:

Ford's patent application for multiple-vehicle sensing and control (link).

Lucid's patent application for an augmented reality windshield (link).

Statistics / Projections:

Compared with 2025 results, vehicle problems after 3 years of ownership have increased by 2 problems per 100 vehicles (PP100), resulting in an industry average of 204 PP100 (link). Via JD Power. 'Most consumer complaints stem from infotainment and phone connectivity issues, while over-the-air software updates provide limited perceived benefits.'

Study shows plug-in hybrids use 3x more fuel than manufacturers claim (link). Via Guardian / The Fraunhofer Institute.

Nearly all owners of new BEVs (96%) say they would consider purchasing or leasing another BEV for their next vehicle (link). Via JD Power.

China's high-speed rail: from 0 miles in 2003 to a network that links 97% of cities with populations of more than half a million (link).

Global battery recycling revenues are set to grow to roughly $70 billion a year by 2040, up from about $2.5 billion last year (link). Via Inside EVs / McKinsey.

UK study of over 8,000 EVs found average battery health at 95.15%, much better than expectations (link, link to PDF report). Via Inside EVS / Generational. 'Even vehicles between 8 and 9 years old retain a healthy 85% median capacity, comfortably above the 70% mark where most OEM warranties are triggered.'

Thank you:

Thank you to Bibhrajit Halder (link), Kersten Heineke (link), Patrick Hunt (link) and Sean Simpson (link) for offers of introductions to new founders, investors and friends over the last week.

Trucks portfolio companies mentioned in this issue:

Edge Case Research (link), Skyryse (link). View the full portfolio of Trucks companies (link).

For every expert there is an equal and opposite expert (Jasper Fforde),

Reilly Brennan