BYD’s cheapest electric car just got even more affordable. The EV maker is fueling its price war with gas-powered cars with the launch of its newest “mini Lamborghini” electric car. The BYD Seagull EV Honor Edition starts at $9,700 (69,800 yuan), 5% cheaper than the previous model.
A new era of electricity is cheaper than oil
After surpassing Tesla to become the largest EV maker globally late last year, BYD is carrying the momentum into 2024.
BYD kicked off a price war with gas-powered cars last month with the launch of its Qin Plus EV, starting at $15,200 (109,800). The Chinese automaker said the new EV officially opened “a new era of electricity is lower than oil. “
The DM-i model (PHEV) is even cheaper, starting at 79,800 yuan ($11,000) with up to 74 mi (120 km) NEDC all-electric range.
The EV version is offered with either a 48 kWh or 57.6 kWh battery pack for up to 261 mi (420 km) or 316 mi (510 km) CLTC range, respectively.
Last year, BYD introduced the Qin Plus Champion Edition (DM-i model) priced below 100,000 yuan ($13,900) for the first time. BYD claimed with the same price as gas-powered cars, the new model was “directly destroying the moat of joint venture vehicles.”
BYD Dolphin EV Honor Edition (Source: BYD)
A few days later, BYD followed it with the new Dolphin EV Honor, starting at $13,900. The new BYD Dolphin features more performance and an improved design at a lower price tag.
Last week, BYD fueled the price war by cutting the prices of its new Tang and Han models. Then, earlier this week, BYD cut the price of its best-selling electric SUV, the Yuan Plus, to $16,600 (119,800 yuan).
BYD new Seagull EV (Source: BYD)
BYD unveils cheaper Seagull EV starting under $10,000
BYD introduced the cheaper Seagull EV (Honor Edition) in China Wednesday with a “shocking price starting from 69,800 yuan.” That’s about $9,700 USD.
The new Seagull is available in 30.08 kWh and 38.88 kWh BYD Blade battery packs for 190 mi (305 km) or 252 mi (405 km) CLTC range, respectively.
BYD’s new Seagull is available in three trims.
BYD Seagull Honor Edition trim
Starting Price
Range (CLTC)
Active
$9,700 (69,800 yuan)
190 mi (305 km)
Free
$10,500 (75,800 yuan)
190 mi (305 km)
Flying
$12,000 (85,800 yuan)
252 mi (405 km)
BYD Seagull Honor Edition prices and range
Inside, the new EV features a 10.1″ rotating center infotainment. DiLink’s intelligent network connection allows users to interact with the vehicle and play videos.
The new Seagull EV can fast charge from 30% to 80% in 30 mins. According to local reports, BYD’s Seagull is being called “Lamorghini mini” because former Lamborghini designer, Wolfgang Egger led the project.
BYD recently launched the Seagull EV in South America. It will be known overseas as the Dolphin Mini and will have a starting price in Brazil of around $20,000 (99,800 BRL).
Electrek’s Take
BYD is launching an attack on gas-powered vehicles with an EV priced below $10,000. The Seagull (Dolphin mini) is quickly expanding overseas, stealing market share from mass-market automakers like Toyota.
Over 280,000 Seagull EVs were sold in China last year, topping the Dolphin and Yuan Plus (Atto 3). Although this is BYD’s cheapest car, it’s still a decent EV compared to many low-cost electric cars in China.
BYD’s aggressive price cuts are worrying automakers like Ford. Ford’s CEO Jim Farley said if you cannot compete with Chinese OEMs, “then 20% to 30% of your revenue is at risk.”
For this reason, Ford is developing a low-cost EV platform to prevent falling further behind Chinese EV makers and Tesla.
BYD is also expanding into new markets like Luxury and mid-size SUVs. Last month, the automaker introduced its $233,000 (1,680,000 yuan) Yangwang U9 electric supercar with a 0 to 62 mph sprint in 2.36 seconds.
The launch follows two mid-size electric SUVs, the Sea Lion 07 and Song L, aimed at the best-selling Tesla Model Y.
If you want to ditch snow blowing and shoveling forever, Yarbo’s got just the solution. The robotics company that took home a 2023 CES Innovation Award is redefining what it means to have a “smart yard” in all four seasons. Yarbo’s autonomous outdoor robots use advanced sensors, cameras, and algorithms to do the heavy lifting – literally. From snow blowing to mowing to leaf clearing, these machines handle tough jobs with precision, safety, and zero supervision.
Yarbo’s innovative “1+N” design is centered around one core unit (“1”) that can be expanded with multiple modular attachments (“N”) to meet a variety of yard care needs. This design allows users to save space and cost by owning a single core robot instead of multiple separate machines. Customize functionality by adding modules such as Lawn Mower, Snow Blower, Plow Blade, Cutting Disc, and more. Easily upgrade or adapt to different seasons and tasks without replacing the entire system.
And right now, you can snag a fantastic discountof up to $1,200 at Yarbo’s biggest sale of the year. Check out the official Black Friday launch deals below – you won’t want to miss these!
❄️ Yarbo Snow Blower: The robot that eats snow for breakfast
Yarbo has you covered this winter with the only fully autonomous, 24/7 snow blower on the market, featuring smart scheduling that clears your driveway and sidewalks automatically – with zero human intervention. Once you’ve drawn the areas you want cleared in the app, it requires zero human intervention. The Yarbo 2-stage Snow Blower remembers your layout, wakes up on its own as soon as the flakes fall, and tackles dry, wet, and packed snow with ease.
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Its 38.4 Ah lithium battery clears up to 6,000 square feet of light snow (or 2,000 square feet of heavy snow) per charge. When the battery drops below 20%, the snow blower robot automatically returns to the charging dock to recharge in just over an hour, and then picks up where it left off. This prevents snow buildup with 24/7 autonomous clearing and recharging.
This robot is rugged. With a 12-inch intake,24-inch clearing width, 40-foot throwing distance, and a rugged 200+ lb track drive with traction spikes, deep-bite tread, and anti-slip control, the Yarbo Snow Blower clears deep snow in layers and grips icy slopes and gravel like a pro. It can even raise its intake to glide over uneven terrain. With a Q355 steel frame, it’s tough enough for -13°F winters and has an IPX5 waterproof rating for use in wet conditions. It can also clear some serious footage – 6,000 square feet, to be exact.
If heavy, wet snow falls, attach the snow blade to push through it. If the snow is packed, then the two-stage intake breaks it up and clears it in passes. And if powder is coming down, then a 6- to 40-foot throw keeps the drive clear.
In short: You stay inside with cocoa, while the Yarbo Snow Blower clears the storm.
And here’s the good news: From November 20 to December 1, the Yarbo Snow Blower is $700 off.
🌿 Yarbo Lawn Mower: A perfectly cut lawn, hands-free
When spring and summer roll around, the Yarbo Lawn Mower makes traditional mowing look like ancient history. With dual 20-inch cutting discs and up to 210 minutes of runtime per charge, it covers up to six acres.
It uses binocular cameras, ultrasonic radar, and bumper sensors to dodge obstacles and mow right to the edge. Define up to 150 zones in the app to customize cutting heights and schedules for each part of your yard. The Yarbo Lawn Mower Pro glides smoothly over various terrains while maintaining a consistent cut. Set it once, and it takes care of your lawn for the season.
If you purchase a Yarbo Snow Blower, you get a free Yarbo Lawn Mower during the Black Friday sale!
🍂 Yarbo Blower: Meet your all-season cleanup crew
The Yarbo Blower isn’t just for autumn leaves; it’s for all-around yard cleanup. Its 21-newton blowing force means this robot can clear driveways, yard waste piles, help with post-project cleanup, and can even remove light snow.
Powered by RTK-GPS, Stereo Vision, and ODOM navigation tech via app activation or remote control, it moves precisely even under trees or around tricky terrain. You can track the Yarbo Blower in real time with GPS, set geofences, and control it from the Yarbo app. It’s as close to a self-thinking yard assistant as it gets.
From November 20 to December 1, the Yarbo Blower is $1,000 off.
A smarter winter starts with Yarbo on Black Friday
Yarbo’s lineup isn’t just about robots – it’s about giving you your precious time back. Whether clearing snow before your morning commute, mowing a picture-perfect lawn, or keeping your property spotless, Yarbo’s robots handle it all without supervision.
Ready to give your yard an upgrade? Visit Yarbo’s website and take advantage of Yarbo’s Black Friday discounts before they melt away!
Yarbo offers free and fast shipping, a warranty of up to five years, and 0% financing is available.
Hyundai’s electric vehicles, like the IONIQ 5, are among the fastest charging EVs, but the company says it’s still not quick enough. To match a typical gas fill-up, Hyundai believes 3 minutes is the magic number for EV charging times.
Hyundai aims for 3-minute EV charging
Built on the E-GMP platform, the Hyundai IONIQ 5 and IONIQ 6 can recharge from 10% to 80% in as little as 18 minutes using a 350 kW DC fast charger and 800V system.
Although that’s already among the best in the industry, Hyundai is pushing for even faster charging. According to Tyrone Johnson, head of Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Center, drivers are looking for EV charging times of around 3 minutes.
“The expectation from customers is that it will take three minutes to fill a car, the same as it does with an internal-combustion engine,” Johnson told Auto Express, even if it’s only for their own reassurance.
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Hyundai’s exec explained that “It’s maybe perception rather than reality, but they worry about range anxiety and whether they will suddenly need to drive 200 miles,” adding the ultimate goal “is to get to the same speed as ICE.”
Hyundai IONIQ 5 at a Tesla Supercharger (Source: Hyundai)
Drivers who can’t charge at home need to know how quickly they can recharge at public fast charge stations, Johnson said. The biggest hurdle is to deliver faster charging speeds, without just plugging in bigger batteries.
To achieve 3-minute charging times, Hyundai is working to bring 400 kW charging to market. By doing so, Hyundai will not only cut EV charging times to match the time it takes to fill up a gas tank, but also provide a longer driving range without using a bigger, more expensive battery.
SK Innovation executives drive the Hyundai IONIQ 9 and Genesis electrified G80 equipped with SK On batteries (Source: SK Innovation)
Although Hyundai promotes 350 kW charging, actual charging rates are typically closer to 250 kW, depending on factors such as battery temperature and charging station speed.
The Porsche Taycan is currently the fastest-charging EV, capable of up to 320 kW. Several new EVs, including the Lucid Gravity and Porsche Cayenne Electric, are rolling with peak charging power of 400 kW as charge times continue to improve.
Interested in testing one out for yourself? With leases starting at just $189 per month, the Hyundai IONIQ 5 is hard to pass up right now. Check out our links below to find Hyundai’s EVs in your area.
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Tesla CEO Elon Musk has confirmed that the automaker’s next-generation self-driving computer, known as AI5, will not be available in volume until mid-2027.
The new timeline confirms that Tesla’s upcoming Cybercab, scheduled for 2026, will launch on current-generation AI4 hardware – raising more questions about the capability of the vehicle, which isn’t supposed to have pedals or a steering wheel.
As usual with Tesla timelines, we are seeing a significant slip from the previously promised timeline.
For the past year, Musk has been hyping “AI5” (formerly known as Hardware 5, or HW5) as the key to unlocking the next phase of Tesla’s self-driving capabilities. The new computer is expected to be significantly more powerful than the current Hardware 4 (AI4) in Tesla vehicles today and produced since 2024.
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Back in June 2024, Musk officially renamed HW5 to AI5 and gave a specific timeline for its release, stating it would be “applied to autos in the second half of next year [2025].”
He also claimed at the time that the new system would be “10x” the power of the current hardware, creating the impression that the current computers might soon be obsolete for the true “unsupervised” autonomy Tesla has been promising for a decade, but as yet to achieve.
However, Musk took to X (formerly Twitter) this weekend to provide a “clarification” that effectively pushes that timeline back by nearly two years.
When discussing the production ramp of the new chip, Musk stated:
“AI5 will not be available in sufficient volume to switch over Tesla production lines until mid 2027, as we need several hundred thousand completed AI5 boards line side.”
This is a massive delay from the “second half of 2025” timeline provided just last year.
Perhaps more importantly, this delay creates a conflict with Tesla’s product roadmap. Tesla has scheduled the production of its dedicated robotaxi, the Cybercab, for 2026 (Musk recently cited Q2 2026 as the target).
Suppose the Cybercab enters production in 2026 and AI5 isn’t ready until mid-2027. In that case, the purpose-built robotaxi will have to launch on AI4 hardware, the same computer currently in the cars Tesla is selling today, which can’t achieve an unsupervised level of autonomy.
Musk seemed to confirm this implementation path, noting that while “samples” of AI5 might exist earlier, the volume needed for a vehicle launch won’t be there.
Musk shut down this idea, which came from his board chair, just days later – claiming that Cybercab won’t have pedals or a steering wheel.
Electrek’s Take
There’s good news and bad news here.
The good news is that AI4 will remain on top for an extended period of time, which means that Tesla will have to keep working the software to fit the computer rather than take advantage of the higher compute power of AI5.
However, it’s also bad news because Tesla is delaying another tech improvement, and Tesla is still not capable of delivering unsupervised self-driving on the hardware.
I have a feeling that Cybercab is going to have a steering wheel and pedals. It’s too big a risk otherwise to launch a vehicle program that would be virtually worthless beyond a very limited use case in some geo-fenced area.
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