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TechCrunch’s transportation team — well at least myself and senior reporter Rebecca Bellan — are hittin’ the road. Destination: SXSW, the annual tech, music, film, and culture conference in Austin. We both have panels and if you’re at SXSW, please come check these out and introduce yourself.
We’ll be keeping our eyes and ears open for transportation news coming out of the event, including Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe’s onstage interview. And you all know that I’ll be scouting the city for Waymo robotaxis, which are only available via the Uber app.
Our SXSW panels include a March 11 interview with Autodesk’s chief marketing officer Dara Treseder, and San Jose mayor Matt Mahan will focus on transforming urban spaces. On March 12, Rebecca will talk to execs from GM, Dolby, and Google about in-car entertainment, and I will interview Wing CEO Adam Woodruff, Walmart VP of dedicated delivery Warren Moore, and University of North Texas professor Clinton Purtell about the future of drone delivery.
Before we jump into the rest of the news, I wanted to touch on the tariffs enacted by the Trump administration, which are expected to upend the automotive industry.
We’ll be following developments of the roller-coaster deployment of this policy, including President Trump’s decision to delay tariffs on automobile imports from Canada and Mexico for one month after requests from executives at the Big Three automakers. The catch? The administration expects GM, Ford, and Stellantis to move any offshore operations to the United States by April 2.
I feel safe in this prediction: That is not going to happen.
When Volkswagen revealed its cheapest EV yet, there were a few winks and nods about software that got us wondering. A little bird confirmed what was on our mind.
Volkswagen’s ultra-cheap EV called the ID EVERY1 — a small four-door hatchback revealed this week — will be the first to roll out with software and architecture from Rivian. The EV is going into production in 2027 with a starting price of 20,000 euros ($21,500), and it will be the first to ship with Rivian’s vehicle architecture and software as part of a $5.8 billion joint venture struck last year between the German automaker and U.S. EV maker.
Another cheap EV, called the ID.2all, which is supposed to come out in 2026, is based on the E3 1.1 architecture and software developed by VW’s software unit Cariad, according to our source.
Got a tip for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com or my Signal at kkorosec.07, Sean O’Kane at sean.okane@techcrunch.com, or Rebecca Bellan at rebecca.bellan@techcrunch.com. Or check out these instructions to learn how to contact us via encrypted messaging apps or SecureDrop.
Let’s call this one the deal that Didi dreams of. I’m talking about the Chinese ride-hail firm Didi and its hunt for fresh funds for its autonomous vehicle technology unit that could value it at $5 billion.
Didi Autonomous Driving, the unit Didi created in 2020, has raised a total of $1.55 billion to date. Sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg (which reported the scoop) that the unit aims to raise several hundred million dollars more and is in talks with investors, including a Beijing-based fund, to gauge interest.
And in other GIGANTIC deal news, Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD raised $5.6 billion in a primary share sale. The company sold 129.8 million primary shares in the deal, more than was expected.
Other deals that got my attention …
AiDEN Auto, a connected vehicle technology and data privacy startup, raised $4.2 million in a seed funding round led by Nuri Venture Partners. Other investors include If Insurance, Tengro Ventures, Band of Angels, Mentors Fund, Start Equity Ventures, Conxcity, and Weltham Capital, as well as an unnamed group of angel investors and family offices. The San Francisco-based startup, founded by former Volvo engineers, has raised $6.1 million to date.
Canoo CEO Anthony Aquila is buying nearly all of the defunct EV startup’s assets out of bankruptcy. The price? $4 million.
CaPow, a company that developed in-motion electric charging systems for robotic fleets, raised $15 million in a Series A funding round led by Toyota Ventures. Investors Elements VC, IL Ventures, Payton Planar Magnetics Ltd., Mobilion, and Doral Energy-Tech also participated.
California’s Clean Mobility Options Voucher Program issued $33 million in awards to address mobility gaps and reduce air pollution, including for electric school buses and e-bikes.
Avride has yet another partnership, this time with Hyundai. The companies agreed to jointly develop autonomous vehicles. The deal will focus on AV technology designed for robotaxis. Avride is also expanding its fleet of Hyundai Ioniq 5 vehicles, which will be integrated with its self-driving system. History note: Waymo and Hyundai also have a deal.
Politecnico di Milano set a new autonomous speed record with the Indy Autonomous Challenge using a Maserati MC20 Coupe, which reached 197.7 mph.
Uber CPO Sachin Kansal and I spoke recently about his career at the ride-hailing firm and his promotion back in October. The deployment of autonomous vehicles through Uber’s 14 partnerships (and possibly more in the future) is the next big challenge for the new chief product officer.
The “Waymo on Uber” robotaxi service is now live in Austin. That means Uber users in Austin now have a choice between a Waymo robotaxi and a human driver. Speaking of Waymo, the company is logging more than 200,000 paid robotaxi rides every week — doubling its weekly robotaxi rides in less than a year.
Andreessen Horowitz co-founder Ben Horowitz donated a fleet of Tesla Cybertrucks to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police. He has a history of gifting tech to the department.
Volvo unveiled the ES90 sedan, the company’s first mass-produced EV that has an estimated 435 miles of range under Europe’s WLTP rating system. Fun fact: This Volvo is equipped with Luminar’s Iris lidar integrated into the roofline of the vehicle.
Tesla applied for a permit with the California Public Utilities Commission to operate a transportation service in the state. It’s important to note that Tesla’s application for a transportation charter-party carrier permit is different from what ride-hailing app companies Lyft and Uber have. A TCP permit means the company — in this case Tesla — owns the vehicles and uses employees as drivers. It’s also a required first step if the automaker wants to eventually operate a robotaxi service there.
Uber is piloting its teenagers-focused Uber for Teens service in India. The service is live in Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, and Mumbai. The company plans to expand the service in the coming weeks to 35 cities, including Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Pune.
Nothing this week, but stay tuned.
What is “This week’s wheels”? It’s a chance to learn about the different transportation products we’re testing, whether it’s an electric or hybrid car, an e-bike, or even a ride in an autonomous vehicle.
