AC Future shares final design of its ‘AI-Transformable Home’ RV ahead of physical debut at CES
Young mobile home solutions developer AC Future has shared the final design of its flagship product – a solar-electric RV called the AI-Transformable Home or “Ai-TH” for short. Designed through a partnership with Hydra Design Labs, the Ai-TH has transcended beyond the concept phase and will be showcased as a physical demonstration unit at CES 2025 in Las Vegas next month.
AC Future is an Irvine, California, startup that emerged from stealth in 2023. According to the company, its mission is to “ignite a revolution in sustainable living by crafting innovative, transformable homes that seamlessly blend modern design, eco-conscious principles, and cutting-edge AI technologies.”
That journey begins with AC Future’s flagship product, a modular solar-electric RV called the AI-Transformable Home. The AI-TH project was launched in January 2024 to address the global crisis for affordable, sustainable, and mobile housing.
The RV is a zero-emissions housing solution that can transform into a 400 sq. ft. smart home at the push of a button. It offers its tenants complete off-grid capabilities, including solar charging, water generation, and internet connectivity.
AC Future initially unveiled its AI-TH RV concept at CES 2024, which caught the eye of Hydra Design Labs. The two companies would form a partnership to help bring the startup’s concept to fruition. As a result, the two companies have completed a final design, which you can see below before it makes its physical debut at CES 2025.
AC Future and Hydra to showcase electric RV at CES 2025
Per AC Future, its AI-TH electric RV concept has completed its final design, engineering, and fabrication with the help of Hydra Design Labs. The renderings above showcase the final design AC Future will now look to sell and produce.
AC Future shared that Hydra helped design the interior and exterior of the AI-TH RV and provided CAD surfacing, Class-A surfacing, color and trim design services, and UI/UX design. Through engineering and fabrication, Hydra was able to produce a functioning prototype that will be unveiled in Las Vegas next month.
According to AC Future, the latest renderings showcase the AI-TH electric RV’s new design direction and refinements that have evolved from the initial concept that debuted earlier this year. The images offer a first look at the final shape and functionality of the AI-TH prototype. Per Hydra Design Labs sounder and CEO Jon Hull:
Design played a foundational role in developing the AI-TH for AC Future, and optimizing the user experience guided every step of the process to maximize space and deliver efficient solutions. We are honored to work with the AC Future team and partners to turn this groundbreaking sustainable housing solution into a reality.
We don’t have any performance specs for the electric RV yet. Still, we can see that AC Future and Hydra have implemented an entire solar panel roof to enable off-grid living, which is perfect for mobile recreation. We also have yet to see what the interior will look like, but we will get a much better idea of the AI-TH’s design and capabilities at CES in January.
If you’re attending this year’s event, you can visit AC Future’s unveiling of the electric RV prototype on January 7, 2025, at 2 PM. Afterward, you can stop by the company’s booth #10515 in the North Hall to see it up close.
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Environment
U.S. crude oil falls below $60 a barrel to lowest since 2021 on tariff-fueled recession fears
A view shows disused oil pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau Region, Kazakhstan April 2, 2025.
Pavel Mikheyev | Reuters
U.S. oil prices dropped below $60 a barrel on Sunday on fears President Donald Trump’s global tariffs would push the U.S., and maybe the world, into a recession.
Futures tied to U.S. West Texas intermediate crude fell more than 3% to $59.74 on Sunday night. The move comes after back-to-back 6% declines last week. WTI is now at the lowest since April 2021.
Worries are mounting that tariffs could lead to higher prices for businesses, which could lead to a slowdown in economic activity that would ultimately hurt demand for oil.
Oil futures, 5 years
The tariffs, which are set to take effect this week, “would likely push the U.S. and possibly global economy into recession this year,” according to JPMorgan. The firm on Thursday raised its odds of a recession this year to 60% following the tariff rollout, up from 40%.
Fueled by incentives from the Illinois EPA and the state’s largest utility company, new EV registrations nearly quadrupled the 12% first-quarter increase in EV registrations nationally – and there are no signs the state is slowing down.
Despite the dramatic slowdown of Tesla’s US deliveries, sales of electric vehicles overall have perked up in recent months, with Illinois’ EV adoption rate well above the Q1 uptick nationally. Crain’s Chicago Business reports that the number of new EVs registered across the state totaled 9,821 January through March, compared with “just” 6,535 EVs registered in the state during the same period in 2024.
Those numbers represent more than 50% growth in EV registrations – far beyond the expected 12% first-quarter increase nationally being projected by Cox Automotive. (!)
What’s going on in Illinois?
While President Trump and Elmo were running for re-election, they campaigned on the threat promise of canceling the $7,500 federal tax credit for EVs. Along with California Governor Gavin Newsom, Illinois’ Governor JB Pritzker made countermoves – launching a $4,000 rebate for new electric cars and up to $1,500 for the purchase of a new electric motorcycle.
At the same time, the state’s largest utility, ComEd, launched a $90 million EV incentive program featuring a new Point of Purchase initiative to deliver instant discounts to qualifying business and public sector customers who make the switch to electric vehicles. That program has driven a surge in Class 3-6 medium duty commercial EVs, which are eligible fro $20-30,000 in utility rebates on top of federal tax credits and other incentives (Class 1-2 EVs are eligible for up to $7,500).
We covered the launch of those incentives when the program was announced at Chicago Drives Electric last year, but the message here is simple: incentives work.
SOURCES: Chicago Business, Ray Cunningham; featured image by the author.
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The electric construction equipment experts at XCMG just released a new, 25 ton electric crawler excavator ahead of bauma 2025 – and they have their eye on the global urban construction, mine operations, and logistical material handling markets.
Powered by a high-capacity 400 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery capable of delivering up to 8 hours of continuous operation, the XE215EV electric excavator promises uninterrupted operation at a lower cost of ownership and with even less downtime than its diesel counterparts.
XCMG is delivering on part of that reduced downtime promise with the lower maintenance and easier repair needs of electric equipment, and delivering on the rest of it with lickety-quick DC fast charging that can recharge the machine’s massive battery in 1.5-2 hours … but that’s not the slick bit. The XCMG XE125EV can be powered up without leaving the job site thanks to its BYD battery swap technology.
We first covered XCMG and its battery swap technology back in January, and covered similar battery-swap tech being developed by MOOG Construction offshoot ZQUIP, as well – but while XCMG’s battery tech has been in production for several years, it’s still not widely known about in the West (even within the industry).
XCMG showed off its latest electric equipment at the December 2024 bauma China, including an updated version of its of its 85-ton autonomous electric mining truck that features a fully cab-less design – meaning there isn’t even a place for an operator to sit, let alone operate. And that’s too bad, because what operator wouldn’t want to experience an electric truck putting down 1070 hp more than 16,000 lb-ft of torque!?
Easy in, easy out
The best part? All of the company’s heavy equipment assets – from excavators to terminal tractors to dump trucks and wheel loaders – all use the same 400 kWh BYD battery packs, Milwaukee tool style. That means an equipment fleet can utilize x number of vehicles with a fraction of the total battery capacity and material needs of other asset brands. That’s not just a smart use of limited materials, it’s a smarter use of energy.
You can check out all the XE215EV’s specs at this tear sheet, and get an in-person look at the Chinese company’s latest electric excavator this week in Munich, Germany.
SOURCE | IMAGES: XCMG.
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