Coast begins deliveries of its Model 1 solar electric trailer and its quality is undeniable
Coast, the future-focused sub-brand of trailer manufacturer Aero Build, has begun deliveries of the Model 1 – a solar electric travel trailer that Founder and CEO Brian Fuente put his heart and soul into to not only modernize a stale recreation segment but do so in a manner that is optimized and affordable without any compromise on quality. Fuente walked us through the Coast Model 1 and shared his insight on the trailer, the company’s design approach, and its future in electric campers.
Aero Build is a young trailer manufacturer that has been developing and crafting a variety of ground-up business-centric vessels in Nashville, Tennessee, for the last eight years. Pride in the work and commitment to the utmost quality in every build has helped the young company find early success, providing the financial runway to explore new ventures like electric travel trailers for recreational use.
The result is Coast – a passenger-focused sub-brand that not only looks to modernize the travel trailer industry further but also gives owners the freedom of travel and exploration, complimented by comfort, space utilization, and some of the best technology available today.
Those ideas culminated in Coast’s first trailer – the Model 1. Initially unveiled in early 2023, the Model 1 has since become open for pre-orders and begun production in Nashville. This past weekend, the first customer builds of the solar electric travel trailer were delivered to customers, kicking off a new chapter for Coast, which it hopes will help propel it from a niche bespoke builder to a renowned name in recreational vehicles.
Before deliveries began, Electrek got the chance to do a virtual walkthrough in the Model 1 with Coast Founder and CEO Brian Fuente, who offered some excellent insight on what sets these trailers apart.
Coast’s Model 1 trailer is a winner at first glance
Earlier this month, I hopped on a video call with Coast CEO Brian Fuente, who walked me through a near-production version of the Model 1. This slightly dated model has seen several improvements before the first travel trailers went out to customers.
My first impression of Fuente was that he knows his stuff. Not only from the perspective of recreational trailers, e.g., comfort, space utilization, etc., but from a tech standpoint, ensuring Coast’s first entry into the segment delivers quality materials and design as well as all the electronic components required to live comfortably off the grid for days or even weeks at a time.
The quality and sustainability of the materials chosen are apparent. Albeit a compact travel trailer, it’s clear that every square inch was optimized, and the Coast team reworked the layout repeatedly until it was perfect in their minds. I complimented Fuente on this achievement, and he shared some valuable insight:
We’ve been a trailer manufacturer for what, seven years now? So I think what sets us apart is we have a commercial division where we’ve built hundreds and hundreds of trailers and sent them all over the world, so we know a thing or two about trailer manufacturing. With all that knowledge we’ve been able to soak all that into this unit.
So, we can proudly say that this is one of the best built trailers you’ll ever find. It’s the price point too. We don’t have the drivetrain system… yet, we’re working on that, but from a quality standpoint, this thing is just built to last.
Fuente then pointed out that the Model 1 trailer we were viewing looked brand new (I’d agree), but it had already had several people staying in it and had traveled all over the country. More evidence of the quality of the fit and finishes chosen to ensure this trailer can handle a lifetime of travel exploring the world.
It was interesting that Fuente brought up the electric powertrain before I could even ask (I was going to, don’t worry), considering Coast’s main competitors in the space, who are already providing additional electrification to maximize towing efficiency.
I asked the CEO how he feels about the company’s trailer competitors like Pebble and Lightship, for instance, and how he thinks Coast compares:
Well, I think from a design perspective, I think it’s more palatable. It’s kind of a blend that feels like a smart home on wheels, like a home. I think from an interior design perspective, it’s just comfortable. I think this is a very comfortable unit with a lot of space and room to move around in this unit too. We are not those companies. We don’t have the big VC money. We’re the bootstrap operation and we have been trailer manufacturing for a long time.
I think that’s what sets us apart too because we’re in production and we have an incredibly talent team. This is a comfort focused electric vehicle that’s built to last a long time and I think there’s a buyer for everyone and I’m just so excited to see innovation in the space.
When we first started designing this (Model 1), the reason I was so motivated to do it was because I was just so tired of seeing junk, and I experienced the manufacturing plants in Indiana and said, ‘Guys, we gotta do better.’ From a culture standpoint, our company has really built a lifestyle brand and people have really bought into it because we provide a really great customer experience.
Bootstraps, for sure. Fuente told me he goes out to customers and shows them firsthand how to use the Coast electric trailers and even gives his personal cell number in case they have any questions or issues, saying, “That’s just who we are. We build one hell of a trailer, and we rarely have a warranty issue, and when we do, it’s usually minor. When we do, we usually take care of it within 24-48 hours.”
As sales of Coast’s electric travel trailers grow, it will be impossible for its CEO to stay on speed dial for everyone, but right now, that customer service method exemplifies how vital the buyer is to this operation. From there, Fuente spoke about Coast’s potential and the future.
All our trailers are hand-built, so we’re just focused on quality right now. Yes, we have people knocking on our door to invest, but we want to protect what we have and we want to be close to our customers. We’ve got some new partnerships that I can’t tell you about yet, but we’ve got some really big news coming soon.
Fuente told me a second trailer model is already in the works. As confirmed above, Coast is also working to add an electric drivetrain option to help drivers maximize range and efficiency while towing.
I highly recommend booking a live tour and exploring the Coast 1 trailer yourself to truly understand its design and opportunity for those who want to travel while still living comfortably with the freedom to work. Each trailer comes with Starlink’s highest level of WiFi – expensive for Coast to install, but worth every penny according to Fuente to ensure its customers get the best.
The exterior roof features eight monocrystalline solar panels that deliver 1,600 total watts of green energy to owners when out on the road or wherever their journeys take them.
The Coast Model 1 trailer is available to order now and starts at $129,900. I plan to visit Coast in Nashville soon, spend the night in a Model 1, and see if the real-life experience in the trailer matches the quality I saw from my virtual tour. What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Forget fumbling with cables or hunting for batteries – TILER is making electric bike charging as seamless as parking your ride. The Dutch startup recently introduced its much-anticipated TILER Compact system, a plug-and-play wireless charger engineered to transform the user experience for e-bike riders.
At the heart of the new system is a clever combo: a charging kickstand that mounts directly to almost any e‑bike, and a thin charging mat that you simply park over. Once you drop the kickstand and it lands on the mat, the bike begins charging automatically via inductive transfer – no cable required. According to TILER, a 500 Wh battery will fully charge in about 3.5 hours, delivering comparable performance to traditional wired chargers.
It’s an elegantly simple concept (albeit a bit chunky) with a convenient upside: less clutter, fewer broken cables, and no more need to bend over while feeling around for a dark little hole.
TILER claims its system works with about 75% of existing e‑bike platforms, including those from Bosch, Yamaha, Bafang, and other big bames. The kit uses a modest 150 W wireless power output, which means charging speeds remain practical while keeping the system lightweight (the tile weighs just 2 kg, and it’s also stationary).
TILER has already deployed over 200 charging points across Western Europe, primarily serving bike-share, delivery, hospitality, and hotel fleets. A recent case study in Munich showed how a cargo-bike operator saved approximately €1,250 per month in labor costs, avoided thousands in spare batteries, and cut battery damage by 20%. The takeaway? Less maintenance, more uptime.
Now shifting to prosumer markets, TILER says the Compact system will hit pre-orders soon, with a €250 price tag (roughly US $290) for the kickstand plus tile bundle. To get in line, a €29 refundable deposit is currently required, though they say it is refundable at any point until you receive your charger. Don’t get too excited just yet though, there’s a bit of a wait. Deliveries are expected in summer 2026, and for now are covering mostly European markets.
The concept isn’t entirely new. We’ve seen the idea pop up before, including in a patent from BMW for charging electric motorcycles. And the efficacy is there. Skeptics may wonder if wireless charging is slower or less efficient, but TILER says no. Its system retains over 85% efficiency, nearly matching wired charging speeds, and even pauses at 80% to protect battery health, then resumes as needed. The tile is even IP67-rated, safe for outdoor use, and about as bulky as a thick magazine.
Electrek’s Take
I love the concept. It makes perfect sense for shared e-bikes, especially since they’re often returning to a dock anyway. As long as people can be trained to park with the kickstand on the tile, it seems like a no-brainer.
And to be honest, I even like the idea for consumers. I know it sounds like a first-world problem, but bending over to plug something in at floor height is pretty annoying, not to mention a great way to throw out your back if you’re not exactly a spring chicken anymore. Having your e-bike start charging simply by parking it in the right place is a really cool feature! I don’t know if it’s $300 cool, but it’s pretty cool!
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Tesla has launched a new software update for its vehicles that includes the anticipated integration of Grok, but it doesnt even interface with the car yet.
Earlier this week, CEO Elon Musk said that Tesla would integrate Grok, the large language model developed by his private company, xAI, into its vehicles.
Today, Tesla started pushing the update to the fleet, but there’s a significant caveat.
The automaker wrote in the release notes (2025.26):
Grok (Beta) (US, AMD)
Grok now available directly in your Tesla
Requires Premium Connectivity or a WiFi connection
Grok is currently in Beta & does not issue commands to your car – existing voice commands remain unchanged.
First off, it is only available in vehicles in the US equipped with the AMD infotainment computer, which means cars produced since mid-2021.
But more importantly, Tesla says that it doesn’t send commands to the car under the current version. Therefore, it is simply like having Grok on your phone, but on the onboard computer instead.
Tesla showed an example:
There are a few other features in the 2025.26 software update, but they are not major.
For Tesla vehicles equipped with ambient lighting strips inside the car, the light strip can now sync to music:
Accent lights now respond to music & you can also choose to match the lights to the album’s color for a more immersive effect
Toybox > Light Sync
Here’s the new setting:
The audio setting can now be saved under multiple presets to match listening preferences for different people or circumstances:
The software update also includes the capacity to zoom or adjust the playback speed of the Dashcam Viewer.
Cybertruck also gets the updated Dashcam Viewer app with a grid view for easier access and review of recordings:
Tesla also updated the charging info in its navigation system to be able to search which locations require valet service or pay-to-park access.
Upon arrival, drivers will receive a notification with access codes, parking restrictions, level or floor information, and restroom availability:
Finally, there’s a new onboarding guide directly on the center display to help people who are experiencing a Tesla vehicle for the first time.
Electrek’s Take
Tesla is really playing catch-up here. Right now, this update is essentially nothing. If you already have Grok, it’s no more different than having it on your phone or through the vehicle’s browser, since it has no capacity to interact with any function inside the vehicle.
Most other automakers are integrating LLMs inside vehicles with the capacity to interact with the vehicle. In China, this is becoming standard even in entry-level cars.
In the Xiaomi YU7, the vehicle’s AI can not only interact with the car, but it also sees what the car sees through its camera, and it can tell you about what it sees:
Tesla is clearly far behind on that front as many automakers are integrating with other LLMs like ChatGPT and in-house LLMs, like Xiaomi’s.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Robinhood stock hit an all-time high Friday as the financial services platform continued to rip higher this year, along with bitcoin and other crypto stocks.
Robinhood, up more than 160% in 2025, hit an intraday high above $101 before pulling back and closing slightly lower.
The reversal came after a Bloomberg report that JPMorgan plans to start charging fintechs for access to customer bank data, a move that could raise costs across the industry.
For fintech firms that rely on thin margins to offer free or low-cost services to customers, even slight disruptions to their cost structure can have major ripple effects. PayPal and Affirm both ended the day nearly 6% lower following the report.
Despite its stellar year, the online broker is facing several headwinds, with a regulatory probe in Florida, pushback over new staking fees and growing friction with one of the world’s most high-profile artificial intelligence companies.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier opened a formal investigation into Robinhood Crypto on Thursday, alleging the platform misled users by claiming to offer the lowest-cost crypto trading.
“Robinhood has long claimed to be the best bargain, but we believe those representations were deceptive,” Uthmeier said in a statement.
The probe centers on Robinhood’s use of payment for order flow — a common practice where market makers pay to execute trades — which the AG said can result in worse pricing for customers.
Robinhood Crypto General Counsel Lucas Moskowitz told CNBC its disclosures are “best-in-class” and that it delivers the lowest average cost.
“We disclose pricing information to customers during the lifecycle of a trade that clearly outlines the spread or the fees associated with the transaction, and the revenue Robinhood receives,” added Moskowitz.
Robinhood is also facing opposition to a new 25% cut of staking rewards for U.S. users, set to begin October 1. In Europe, the platform will take a smaller 15% cut.
Staking allows crypto holders to earn yield by locking up their tokens to help secure blockchain networks like ethereum, but platforms often take a percentage of those rewards as commission.
Robinhood’s 25% cut puts it in line with Coinbase, which charges between 25.25% and 35% depending on the token. The cut is notably higher than Gemini’s flat 15% fee.
It marks a shift for the company, which had previously steered clear of staking amid regulatory uncertainty.
Under President Joe Biden‘s administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission cracked down on U.S. platforms offering staking services, arguing they constituted unregistered securities.
With President Donald Trump in the White House, the agency has reversed course on several crypto enforcement actions, dropping cases against major players like Coinbase and Binance and signaling a more permissive stance.
Even as enforcement actions ease, Robinhood is under fresh scrutiny for its tokenized stock push, which is a growing part of its international strategy.
The company now offers blockchain-based assets in Europe that give users synthetic exposure to private firms like OpenAI and SpaceX through special purpose vehicles, or SPVs.
An SPV is a separate entity that acquires shares in a company. Users then buy tokens of the SPV and don’t have shareholder privileges or voting rights directly in the company.
OpenAI has publicly objected, warning the tokens do not represent real equity and were issued without its approval. In an interview with CNBC International, CEO Vlad Tenev acknowledged the tokens aren’t technically equity shares, but said that misses the broader point.
“What’s important is that retail customers have an opportunity to get exposure to this asset,” he said, pointing to the disruptive nature of AI and the historically limited access to pre-IPO companies.
“It is true that these are not technically equity,” Tenev added, noting that institutional investors often gain similar exposure through structured financial instruments.
The Bank of Lithuania — Robinhood’s lead regulator in the EU — told CNBC on Monday that it is “awaiting clarifications” following OpenAI’s statement.
“Only after receiving and evaluating this information will we be able to assess the legality and compliance of these specific instruments,” a spokesperson said, adding that information for investors must be “clear, fair, and non-misleading.”
Tenev responded that Robinhood is “happy to continue to answer questions from our regulators,” and said the company built its tokenized stock program to withstand scrutiny.
“Since this is a new thing, regulators are going to want to look at it,” he said. “And we expect to be scrutinized as a large, innovative player in this space.”
SEC Chair Paul Atkins recently called the model “an innovation” on CNBC’s Squawk Box, offering some validation as Robinhood leans further into its synthetic equity strategy — even as legal clarity remains in flux across jurisdictions.
Despite the regulatory noise, many investors remain focused on Robinhood’s upside, and particularly the political tailwinds.
The company is positioning itself as a key beneficiary of Trump’s newly signed megabill, which includes $1,000 government-seeded investment accounts for newborns. Robinhood said it’s already prototyping an app for the ‘Trump Accounts‘ initiative.
WATCH: Watch CNBC’s full interview with Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike