Volkswagen wants half of its vehicle sales to be electric by 2030

Published

4 years ago

July 15, 2021

admin

In this article

VOW3-DE

Technicians work in the final inspection line of German carmaker Volkswagen’s electric ID. 3 car in Dresden, Germany, June 8, 2021.

Matthias Rietschel | Reuters

Half of Volkswagen’s sales are expected to be battery-electric vehicles by 2030, the German carmaker said Tuesday.

By 2040, the company said almost 100% of its new vehicles in major markets should be zero-emission vehicles.

Those objectives are part of Volkswagen‘s wider aim to be fully carbon neutral by 2050.

The firm said it would work on developing software to help boost profits as it focused on transitioning its vehicles from internal combustion engines to operating on batteries.

Volkswagen has earmarked 73 billion euros ($86.4 billion) for the development of future technologies between 2021 and 2025, which makes up 50% of the company’s total investments.

It also announced it was developing three software platforms, with an aim to develop one software platform that can be used across all Volkswagen Group cars by 2025. Developers of the technology said on Tuesday that software could become a major source of income for the autos industry by 2030, with up to 40 million vehicles expected to be operating on the Group’s software platforms within the next decade.

Volkswagen’s software company CARIAD is currently developing software platforms which will offer various features such as a unified infotainment system and the ability to hand steering controls over to the car.

In a further bid to boost its electric vehicle offering, Volkswagen announced it would establish a “controlled battery supply chain,” introducing one unified battery format and opening six giga factories across Europe by 2030.

The first factory in Skellefteå, Sweden, will be operated by Northvolt, and is expected to begin production in 2023.

In partnership with Chinese cell specialist Gotion High-Tech, Volkswagen will open a second giga factory in Salzgitter, Germany, with a view to begin production in 2025.

Volkswagen’s announcements on Tuesday came as part of its 2030 strategy, which comes ahead of a swathe of environmental policies expected to be announced on Wednesday by the European Union.

The carmaker has already begun to roll out fully-electric vehicles. In 2019, the company’s fully-electric ID.3 model sold out in the car’s presale.

Carmakers all over the world are racing to transition to electrification.

Stellantis — the product of a merger between Fiat Chrysler and France’s PSA Groupe — announced last week that it plans to invest at least 30 billion euros in electric vehicles and supporting technologies like software through 2025.

French carmaker Renault said in June that it had signed two new partnerships to develop a Gigafactory in northern France. Meanwhile, Swedish automaker Volvo aims to offer only electric vehicles by 2030.

EQORE bags $1.7M to bring smart storage to power-hungry factories

Published

2 hours ago

November 20, 2025

admin

EQORE bags .7M to bring smart storage to power-hungry factories

EQORE, a distributed battery storage startup based in Somerville, Massachusetts, has raised $1.7 million in seed funding to help industrial buildings tackle rising electricity costs. The round was oversubscribed and includes backing from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), Henry Ford III of Ford Motor Company, and Jonathan Kraft of The Kraft Group.

The timing couldn’t be more relevant. Data centers are booming, and that demand is slamming an already stressed grid. Big, utility-scale batteries help at the grid level, but they can’t fix the bottlenecks happening on local distribution networks. That’s where onsite storage steps in — storing energy when demand is low and discharging it when demand spikes, which helps stabilize costs for both the grid and the businesses using it.

MassCEC’s head of investments, Susan Stewart, said, “What excites us the most about EQORE’s technology is the dual impact: grid support and customer savings.” She noted that commercial and industrial buildings are ideal hosts for battery storage, but haven’t gotten much attention until now. “EQORE is closing that gap.”

Investor Randolph Mann highlighted what makes the company stand out: “By uniting advanced controls with high‑resolution metering and true end‑to‑end service, EQORE finally makes commercial behind-the-meter storage effortless and financially compelling for businesses.”

Advertisement – scroll for more content

EQORE comes out of MIT’s Sandbox program and delta v accelerator and is currently part of the Harvard Climate Entrepreneurs Circle incubator. CEO and cofounder Valeriia Tyshchenko, a third‑generation engineer from Ukraine and MIT graduate, said the new funding will help the company scale alongside its existing revenue.

With the seed round closed, EQORE plans to grow its team and ramp up battery deployments at energy-intensive manufacturing facilities. The company doesn’t just install batteries; it operates them. Its autonomous software shifts when a facility uses power based on market conditions and utility incentives, reshaping load in real-time without disrupting operations.

If you’re looking to replace your old HVAC equipment, it’s always a good idea to get quotes from a few installers. To make sure you’re finding a trusted, reliable HVAC installer near you that offers competitive pricing on heat pumps, check out EnergySage. EnergySage is a free service that makes it easy for you to get a heat pump. They have pre-vetted heat pump installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high quality solutions. Plus, it’s free to use!

Your personalized heat pump quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here. – *ad

Add Electrek as a preferred source on Google

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Environment

Check out Hyundai’s cool new off-road electric SUV concept [Images]

Published

3 hours ago

November 20, 2025

admin

Check out Hyundai's cool new off-road electric SUV concept [Images]

Hyundai took the sheets of its new off-road electric SUV, the Crater Concept, at the LA Auto Show. Here’s our first look at the compact off-roader.

Meet Hyundai’s new off-road SUV, the Crater Concept

We knew it was coming after Hyundai teased the off-road SUV earlier this week, hidden under a drape. Hyundai took the sheets off the Crater Concept at the LA Auto Show on Thursday, giving us our first real look at the rugged off-roader.

Hyundai refers to it as a compact off-road SUV that’s inspired by extreme events. The concept was brought to life at the Hyundai America Technical Center in Irvine, California.

The off-road SUV draws design elements from Hyundai’s Extra Rugged Terrain (XRT) models, such as the IONIQ 5 XRT, Santa Cruz XRT, and the new Pallisade XRT Pro.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

Although it’s a concept, Hyundai said the Crater Concept is a testament to its commitment to designing future XRT vehicles that are more functional, more capable, and more emotional.

“CRATER began with a question: ‘What does freedom look like?’ This vehicle stands as our answer,” Hyundai’s global design boss, SangYup Lee said.

The off-road SUV features Hyundai’s new Art of Steel design theme, first showcased on the THREE concept at the Munich Motor Show in September.

Hyundai said the design team was guided by one clear goal: To create a rugged and capable vehicle that’s designed to go anywhere. The Crater Concept embodies that vision with added wide skid plates, 33″ off-road tires, limb risers, rocker panels, and a roof platform.

Hyundai designed the interior for “tech-savvy adventure seekers,” with a singular design centered around a high-brow crash pad that stretches across the dashboard.

Hyundai-Crater-off-road-SUV — The Hyundai Crater Concept (Source: Hyundai)

The concept also swaps the traditional infotainment setup for a head-up display that spans the entire front window, which Hyundai said includes a live rearview camera.

Hyundai’s off-roader includes a new Off-Road Controller for front and rear locking differentials, as well as a terrain selector with modes including Sand, Snow, and Mud. Other off-road features include downhill brake control, trailer brake control, a compass, and an altimeter.

Although Hyundai said it was electric, it didn’t reveal any further details about the powertrain. The off-road SUV could be a battery-electric or fuel-cell-electric vehicle.

Like the new Nexo, Hyundai’s hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the concept features “HTWO” lamps exclusive to its FCEVs.

Earlier this week, the design team at Hyundai Design North America also introduced its new design and ideation studio codenamed “The Sandbox.” The creative design studio is set to serve as a global hub for future XRT vehicles and gear.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Environment

OpenAI taps iPhone assembler Foxconn to manufacture data center components in U.S.

Published

3 hours ago

November 20, 2025

admin

OpenAI taps iPhone assembler Foxconn to manufacture data center components in U.S.

OpenAI taps Foxconn to build AI hardware in the U.S.

OpenAI is partnering with Taiwan’s Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer, to design and build artificial intelligence data center components in the U.S., the AI startup’s latest announcement tied to its massive infrastructure development plans.

While no financial terms were disclosed, OpenAI said in Thursday’s announcement that it will have early access to evaluate the systems Foxconn produces, and the option to purchase them. The companies said the goal is to accelerate the deployment of infrastructure while securing long-term U.S. capacity.

Under the agreement, OpenAI and Foxconn will co-develop multiple generations of AI servers in parallel, while manufacturing core components like power, networking, and cooling systems at Foxconn’s U.S. facilities. The company’s website says it has factories in Wisconsin, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Indiana.

“This partnership is a step toward ensuring the core technologies of the AI era are built here,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a statement, calling AI infrastructure a “generational opportunity to reindustrialize America.”

OpenAI has been on a dealmaking blitz of late with many of the world’s largest technology companies, and has announced spending commitments of roughly $1.4 trillion, raising concerns about whether the startup will ever generate enough profit to justify those investments. Altman said earlier this month that the company will hit $20 billion in annualized revenue by the end of this year and hundreds of billions by 2030.

Prior deals include a $100 billion announced — but unfinalized — agreement with Nvidia for the chipmaker to invest in OpenAI in phases as the company builds out infrastructure. OpenAI also has cloud partnerships with Microsoft, Google and Amazon and hefty compute buildout commitments with Oracle.

Foxconn adds a manufacturing layer, further localizing OpenAI’s supply chain and potentially speeding the pace of deployment. The company is best known for assembling Apple’s iPhones but has expanded into AI and automotive manufacturing. It builds server racks tailored for AI workloads and is a key global supplier to Nvidia, the dominant player in high-end AI chips.

“Foxconn is uniquely positioned to support OpenAI’s mission with trusted, scalable infrastructure,” said Chairman Young Liu.

But the company has a checkered history in the U.S. In 2018, Foxconn broke ground on what was supposed to be a massive factory in Wisconsin for making flat-panel displays. That project was a failure, and is now the site of an AI data center being built by Microsoft.

WATCH: Anthropic adds $50 billion to AI’s mounting debt pile with new U.S. data-center push