Welcome to TechCrunch Mobility – a central hub of news and insights about the future of transportation. Sign up here for free – click TechCrunch Mobility!
For regular readers of TechCrunch Mobility, “Why did this newsletter land in my inbox on Friday?” People, we’re moving our days to bring you a more complete overview of this week’s news to you.
I spent last week at SXSW, Austin’s annual tech, film, comedy and music festival. I recommend scrolling through the live blog and catching up to all transport, AI, social media, and creator economy (basically technology).
I have seen Austin evolve over the years with some good and bad results. The protected bike lane was one positive development. This is a great thank you when I rode some lime scooters and two mod bike e-bikes in the city. Austin is also becoming the hub for self-driving cars, where Avride is headquartered, Zoox is testing on public roads and Waymo launches commercial Robotaxi services.
I was lucky enough to match two Waymo Robotaxis. All ride hale happened on the Uber app, so it’s not a guarantee at all. There was also one coordinated match courtesy of Waymo. As I wrote earlier this week, Waymo and Uber work together is absolutely wild. This is why.
Ah, here’s what I discovered on a Waymo-Uber Robotaxi ride. Tip: Some updates to the user interface.
Little bird
Any tips for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at [email protected], or email kkorosec.07, sean o’kane ([email protected], or rebecca bellan ([email protected]). Alternatively, check these instructions and contact us via an encrypted messaging app or SecureDrop.
Great deal!
Senior reporter Sean Okane has dived deep into a new venture called Leitmotif, which has quietly done lots of deals over the past 16 months. The company, which funds around 20 startups, focuses on decarbonisation through its portfolio, including EV companies, space and battery play and four fusion startups.
That’s not an interesting part. Here it is: All the money in that fund came from the Volkswagen Group. Check out the full story of why the German automotive giant committed $300 million to Leitmotif’s first fund.
Other deals that caught my attention…
Carpool Logistics, a vehicle logistics platform, raised $12 million in a Series A funding round led by Wavecrest Growth Partners, with participation from Carmax, Impel founders Devin Daly and Michael Quigley, and automotive veteran David Metter.
Daqus Energy, a startup working on battery materials, raised $6 million from a seed round led by Morningside, and joined by unknown individual investors.
Nirvana, an AI-based insurance platform that uses real-time driving telematics and 20 billion miles of truck driving data to build and manage truck driver insurance contracts, has raised $80 million in Series C round funding led by General Catalyst. Lightspeed Venture Partners and Valor Equity Partners also participated. The investment is valued by Nirvana as a post-money of $830 million.
Northbord filed for bankruptcy in Sweden. This is the latest blow to Europe’s attempts to create a battery-making juggernaut that could rival the Chinese giant.
Notable readings and other information
Adas
Libian deployed a hands-free version of the driver assistance system for highway driving, discussed by founder and CEO RJ Scaringe on the SXSW stage of Austin’s SXSW. With the new hands-free feature, Libian competes with Ford and GM. It features a similar hands-free system that controls steering, acceleration and braking in specific conditions and locations.
Self-driving cars
Hugging Face collaborated with AI startup Yaak to expand Lerobot. This is a collection of open AI models, datasets and tools that help build real-world robotic systems using training sets to enable robots and cars to autonomously navigate urban street-like environments.
Reilly Brennan, general partner at Trucks VC, had an interesting column. Don’t mismatch ride hurling with AV ride hale.
Travis Kalanick, former CEO of Uber, believes the company’s decision to abandon its autonomous driving program is a mistake. Reminder: The Uber ATG was burning in cash when it was sold to Aurora in 2020.
Waymo continues to expand – this time in Silicon Valley. And the expansion comes with hundreds of parking tickets.
Electric cars, charging, batteries
The Mint 400 Off-Road Race tested two EVs, the concept of the Libian R1T track and the Chevrolet Silverado EV ZR2 off-road race track.
Rad Power lost his CEO and within a few days he acquired CEO.
President Donald Trump said he would label violence against Tesla dealers as domestic terrorism. As reporter Sean Okane points out, the “Tesla acquisition” is erupting around the world at Tesla dealers in protest of what is considered a hostile federal takeover by Musk (the Tesla CEO and its largest shareholder) and the government’s Department of Efficiency. Some of the protests have brought graffiti to Tesla signs, ignited charging stations, and even Molotov cocktails are thrown into one dealer lot.
This week’s wheels
This week I tried two e-bikes from an Austin-based mod bike. We’ll focus on the latest Groove, which was released earlier this week.
I spent 24 hours in the groove. This is an all-electric step-through bike with the look and feel of a soupy beach cruiser. The grooves were previously present, but mod bikes have canceled it. Now it’s back and updated throughout, including frames, batteries, torque sensors, smart displays, motors and more.
The bike itself is sporty and refined with a lot of thoughtful details that seem to steal the $1,999 price. This design is thoughtful with easy-to-read, easy-to-surgical controls and integrated bike lock that folds neatly into the frame.
The groove is a throttle and pedal assist bike, and I found it easy to switch between different modes. As the assist provided a lot of energy, I rarely resorted to just throttle. The bike has a payload capacity of 275 pounds, reaching top speeds of 28 mph. The grooves range from 50 miles. However, there is a dual battery option that pops up to 100 miles.
However, one note: Wow, this bike is a lot of money. And, while that’s generally good, people should give them a little time to suit their weight.
I also tested Mod Connect. This allows users to wirelessly pair their Lumos Ultra-Smart helmets to synchronize and control signals directly from the bike. The connected bike helmet made the driver feel much more visible as he navigates the busy streets of downtown Austin.
What is “This Week’s Wheel”? This is your chance to learn about the various transportation products we are testing, electric and hybrid vehicles, e-bikes, and even self-driving vehicles.