Welcome to the January issue of Automotive World Magazine, which kicks off the new year with a close look at what to expect on the mobility front. Nothing went quite to plan in 2020 as the novel coronavirus dramatically altered transport priorities and corporate investment strategies. With both governments and automakers determined to build back better, the industry finds itself poised on the threshold of a new norm.
Start-up companies continue to play a key role in catalysing the trends around autonomous driving, electrification, connectivity and shared mobility. While COVID has killed off some start-ups, others have weathered the storm much better than the incumbents. This issue takes a deep dive into how to spot the next mobility unicorn in 2021 and the question of whether tech giants could ever become automakers.
In addition, battery company QuantumScape opens up on potentially revolutionary advances in solid-state technology while Polestar’s Chief Executive weighs in on the increasingly polarising carbon footprint debate around EVs.
In this issue:
- Life after COVID: mobility hits the reset button
- Micro-machines: one start-up’s plan for scalable EV production
- Nikola-GM’s groundbreaking deal dwindles to mere supply contract
- Public transport operators a pivotal piece of the electric bus puzzle
- Where does GM stand in the electrification race?
- How to spot the next mobility unicorn in 2021
- Polestar’s guiding light on EVs untarnished by greenwashing
- Shared mobility success will depend on diversification
- Could tech giants become automakers?
- EV-heavy policy prompts technology ban debate
- Solid-state batteries near production following ‘incredible’ test results
- Payment infrastructure critical in scaling mobility businesses
- Trucks provide growth in ‘otherwise calamitous’ 2020, says EIU
- 3D printing: a blessing or a threat to company value?
