Andreas Geim

Automated driving functions for all vehicle classes – this is the goal Bosch and CARIAD are pursuing with the Automated Driving Alliance. 🚘🙌 From the first line of code, tests, and validation to the delivery of functions: We have managed to significantly shorten the go-to-market timeline. The first functions will offer drivers comprehensive assistance with the driving task, featuring handsfree-driving on freeways and active lane-changing support. #BoschTechDay #automateddriving #adas

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Crazy times within #Automotive looking at the German Market. While some some politicians want to stick to combustion engines burning fossil fuels in the future, Germany get's left behind the drive train disruption. Looking at the BEV + HEV shares of new car registrations, we are meanwhile behind the European average with decreasing EV shares. Is this really what we do understand by #innovation and #disruption? Let's be more brave towards a positive future ... 🚀 What's your position? On top of the change or left behind? #eMobility #EV

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„Thomas Schmall shared insights into Volkswagen’s and PowerCo’s strategy to secure long-term supply with sustainable battery cells for the Group’s EVs. 🔋⚡️ Here is a glimpse of what he said in the interview with Porsche Consulting Magazin:   "Balancing sustainability and cost-effectiveness is key. The objective is to set industry standards for sustainable, competitive battery cells. PowerCo's Unified Cell aims to reduce battery costs by up to 50%. Additionally, we're investing in technologies to minimize resource consumption, including CO2-minimized mining and cobalt and nickel-free batteries.   Our cell factories operate on CO2-free electricity, and we're committed to a circular economy, recycling production surpluses and end-of-life batteries. Our recycling facility in Salzgitter further maximizes resource recovery."   Don't miss out on the full interview – click here: https://lnkd.in/dPRewRrk   Together, we're shaping a sustainable future for #eMobility. 🤝“   #Sustainability #Innovation

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Fresh Friday Figures: Daimler Truck has just released its Group financial results for Q1 2024. Here are the key takeaways: ▶️ Solid start into the year with robust profitability in normalizing truck markets ▶️ Stable Group revenue with €13.3 bn, despite expected decrease in unit sales ▶️ Group adj. EBIT rose by 4% to €1.2 bn, Net profit +7% at €847 mn ▶️ Adj. Return on Sales  in the Industrial Business increased by 0.5% pts. to 9.3% ▶️ Strong Free Cash Flow in the Industrial Business with €1.2 bn ▶️ Earnings per share grew to €1.00 (Q1 2023: €0.90) ▶️ Full-year guidance unchanged, headwinds in Europe increasing Key figures at a glance in the slider below, and in the Press Release available in the Daimler Truck Newsroom 👉🏻https://lnkd.in/eQybV228 Daimler Truck AG Daimler Truck North America Mercedes-Benz Trucks Daimler Truck Asia Daimler Buses GmbH Daimler Truck Financial Services GmbH #DTR0CK #Q1

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It was a great pleasure to discuss the development of the Chinese car market with my colleague Jun JIN and Burkhard Riering, editor in chief of Automobilwoche, at our webcast session “From China - with love?”. Once again, it has become obvious how dynamic and innovative the Chinese market is. The numerous new brands popping up like mushrooms speak a clear language. At the same time, the uncompromising growth strategy to conquer market share is currently reaching its limits in China. Soon we will see consolidation. However, this is no reason for European OEMs to sit back and relax. The existing overcapacities will keep prices under pressure. Chinese OEMs will not be deterred from their path to Europe either. But they will probably focus more on co-operations and alliances in order to produce locally for local - whether brownfield or greenfield. European manufacturers should take advantage of the market momentum and continue on their chosen path of accelerated and agile product development. Many thanks to Burkhard Riering for the excellent moderation and the extremely relevant questions! And to Jun for his deep insights! If you missed the session:  👉https://lnkd.in/d8ryW6vq #pwc #automotive #transformation #china

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Handelsblatt Exklusive: Following the software deal between Volkswagen and Rivian, the two car manufacturers are exploring further areas of partnership, several insiders from both companies told us. According to them, both a hardware cooperation and joint production are being discussed: 🚘 One scenario for an expanded #partnership involves Rivian's new #R2 SUV being produced at the VW plant currently under construction in South Carolina. SUVs and pick-ups from VW's new US EV brand Scout are to roll off the production line at this site from 2026. The R2 is due to be launched around the same time. The ideas are at an early stage and could be put aside again, the insiders said. How well the partnership between Rivian and VW gets off the ground in the critical #software area is likely to be of key importance. 🚦 A VW spokesperson declined to comment on speculation about an extended partnership. A Rivian spokesperson said: "There are currently no cooperation plans for the hardware sector." Last week, the German OEM and the US start-up announced the establishment of a new joint #venture in the software sector. Volkswagen is investing up to five billion dollars. The goal: use the start-up's expertise to develop an operating system for the next generation of EVs that is better than what CARIAD has to offer. ⚡ Further cooperation is likely to involve VW's new subsidiary Scout Motors Inc. VW is investing five billion dollars here: in the construction of the new plant and in the development of an independent platform. According to an insider, #OliverBlume told RJ Scaringe that VW does not know how to proceed with Scout. Its development would cost billions, despite the changed market environment. Accordingly, even a discontinuation of the Scout project had been discussed. 💡 In an interview with me, Scout CEO Scott Keogh contradicts this statement: "Oliver Blume is 100 percent behind our vision." Scout is bringing "an iconic brand back to life" with a "phenomenal product". The end of Scout has not been discussed, on the contrary: "The Group has made the decision to grow in #NorthAmerica, the largest economy in the world. One of the strategies necessary for this is the revival of Scout in the heart of the USA." Full story with Lazar Backovic in Handelsblatt:

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New car registrations in Germany from January to October 2024 are steady compared to the previous year (-0.4%) with a total of 2.35 million vehicles. Several noteworthy trends are emerging: ➡ Market leader Volkswagen Group increased registrations by 4.6%, driven by strong growth in Skoda (+24.9%) and Seat (+18.5%), offsetting declines at Audi (-17.9%). ➡ Stellantis holds the second-largest market share in Germany (13%) and achieved 6.9% growth, with Peugeot (+40%) and Citroën (+33.6%) making significant contributions. ➡ Japanese and Chinese manufacturers collectively hold a market share of over 12% and have boosted sales. Toyota (+18.3%) and Volvo (+52.5%) are particularly successful players in Germany. ➡ U.S. manufacturers saw a sharp decline of 24.8%, with Tesla (-42.5%) and Cadillac (-43.7%) experiencing the largest losses among American brands. ➡ Mercedes-Benz and BMW also reported losses (-9.5% and -4.1%), with MINI sales especially impacted, down by 28.8%. ➡ Chinese automakers are slowly gaining ground in the German market, although they still hold the smallest market share at only 4%. Nevertheless, they recorded an 8.9% growth by October 2024 – and Volvo is making the difference. Volvo’s increase of 52.5% has been instrumental in driving the growth of Chinese brands in Germany.   Further insights and studies are available at www.auto-institut.de.   #AutoMarket #AutomotiveResearch #carindustryanalysis #automotive 📩 Subscribe to "AutomotiveCOMPASS": Stay ahead of the latest automotive trends with exclusive insights and data-driven analysis from the Center of Automotive Management (CAM): https://lnkd.in/ehGCnrzK

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New on the EU vs CHINA EV: proposed import tariffs Based on the European Commission’s ‘investigation’ into the subsidies the Chinese automakers they receive from their own government, they propose import tariffs: BYD: 17,4% Geely: 20% SAIC: 38,1% These three were sampled from the automakers that cooperated — those that cooperated but not yet sampled will be subject to the 21% weighted average duty. The EV makers that were not cooperating with the investigation will be hit with 38.1%. There is a special note about Tesla, too: "Following a substantiated request, one BEV producer in China – Tesla – may receive an individually calculated duty rate at the definitive stage." The “substantiated request” is likely what we wrote about in one of our previous EV Universe issues, as Tesla was disappointed it's tariffs would be averaged by Chinese automakers that receive subsidies, while it doesn't receive said subsidies itself. Read more on this and EV news of the world in the EV Universe newsletter: evuniverse.io/subscribe There are 7,150 EV geeks like you and me with us already.

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Volkswagen is preparing for substantial layoffs and potential plant closures across Germany as part of a larger cost-reduction initiative aimed at tackling high production expenses and a decrease in demand. CEO Thomas Schäfer cited that some German factories are 25-50% more costly than VW’s competitors, largely due to high labor, energy, and material costs. This financial strain has been further intensified by slowing sales in key markets like China and Europe, which have been traditional strongholds for the brand. VW is expected to close at least three of its German plants and scale back operations in others, which could impact tens of thousands of employees. These restructuring plans have spurred a strong response from labor unions, notably IG Metall, which has threatened strikes if the closures proceed. The union is also urging the German government to intervene and support local industry in the face of these economic pressures. Chancellor Olaf Scholz is reportedly monitoring the situation closely, acknowledging the potential for significant regional economic consequences. This is part of a larger trend impacting Germany’s auto industry, as other major brands like Mercedes-Benz and Porsche have also announced similar cost-cutting measures recently due to international competition and declining profitability. Volkswagen Volkswagen Group

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Understanding objective and subjective reasons for the preferred usage of a private car is key for developing demand-oriented (and thus succesful) multimodal mobility alternatives. This is why we work together with academia in order to find out what drives mobility behaviour and which needs need to be adressed in order to develop the right mobility solutions that improve the mobility experience of car drivers and multi-mobilists.

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Cariqa, a startup set to transform the electric vehicle (EV) charging landscape, announced the close of its € 1 Million pre-seed funding round. The round included participation from Anthemis Group (Female Innovator Lab), Vento, Hatcher+, Techstars, Golden Egg Check and Plug and Play Tech Center. The funding will be used to develop the world's first consumer-facing EV charging marketplace and initiate Cariqa's rollout across Europe. Cariqa addresses EV charging market inefficiencies by eliminating unclear pricing for EV drivers and enhancing price control for charge point operators (CPOs). Currently, CPOs face low utilization rates of as low as 3%, making it difficult to justify high installation and maintenance costs. To attract users, CPOs often sell energy at discounts to intermediaries known as e-mobility service providers (EMSPs), sacrificing margins and limiting their ability to adjust prices dynamically. This results in higher costs for EV drivers. By directly connecting CPOs with drivers, Cariqa offers affordable, transparent pricing and empowers CPOs to improve utilization and control their prices. https://lnkd.in/exMcGC_K

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𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆 The German automotive industry faces enormous challenges. Technological advancements, the rapid development of electric mobility, and global supply chain issues are putting companies under pressure. An example of these difficulties is VW's software subsidiary, CARIAD, which has yet to demonstrate a successful track record. The strategic partnership between Volkswagen and Rivian seems like a desperate move but is likely the only way forward. Unlike CARIAD, which involves integrating a new subsidiary into the corporate structure, working with an independent partner fosters genuine innovation, free from internal dependencies and hierarchies. This approach is also pursued by sensified in its development partnerships, offering comprehensive solutions to meet these demands and bridge the development gap. 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁-𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 Traditional development processes are often too slow. sensified helps companies adapt quickly to market changes through agile strategy development and business creation. For example, Tiger Teams act as a task force to steer critical projects and ensure their success. Additionally, sensified aids in the exploration of new business fields, developing innovative products and services that meet current market demands. This is crucial for maintaining competitiveness in a dynamic environment. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀 - Experience and Expertise: Extensive experience in the automotive industry. - Innovative Technological Solutions: Focus on cutting-edge technologies. - Agile Approach: Rapid adaptation to market changes. - Extensive Network: Access to a broad network of industry experts and resources. - Commitment to Quality and Compliance: Adherence to the highest industry standards. What do you think about the role of independent partners in advancing the automotive industry? What additional measures do you consider necessary to boost competitiveness? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments! Learn more about development alliances at https://lnkd.in/dv5BqJMW #sensified #AutomotivePartnerships #TechnologicalTransformation #DevelopmentAlliance

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