Scooter Doll

As anticipated, Aptera Motors has shared its monthly progress update for April, complete with new progress across its business strategy. In the video you can view below, Aptera’s co-founder Chris Anthony details the progress of two more production-intent solar EV builds, including codename “Artemis,” and discusses the startup’s latest investment opportunities to secure one of the first production builds.

Seth and I recently traveled to China to attend the Shanghai Auto Show and used the opportunity to travel to Hangzhou with ZEEKR and test drive most of the automaker’s EVs. Even better, ZEEKR helped us acquire temporary driver’s permits in China, enabling us to test EVs like the new 007 GT on public roads. Read on and check out my full video below

Autonomous commercial technology developer Aurora Innovation, Inc., has successfully launched full-fledged freight services using self-driving trucks in the US. With the commencement of commercial trucking services, Aurora has become the first company to operate driverless services on public roads in the US. Check out Aurora’s self-driving truck navigating highways in the video below.

Canadian electric propulsion specialist Vision Marine continues to graduate beyond advanced outboard motors into a provider of all-electric boats. This month, Vision introduced two new electric pontoon boats – the 12-passenger V24 and 15-passenger V30, each capable of a range up to 90 nautical miles.

“The world’s first underwater jetpack?” Yes, please. A UK company called CudaJet is making sustainable sea exploration faster and more efficient with a revamped hydrodynamic underwater jetpack for 2025. We would love to get our hands on one, but we may need crowdfunding to afford one; learn more below.

As we’ve been briefly mentioning the past month or so, we got an opportunity to attend the 2025 Shanghai Auto Show in… you guessed it, Shanghai. Aside from taking place in an event center larger than many cities in the US, this annual event featured some of the most advanced tech we’ve ever seen and a glimpse into the future of electric mobility, as well as some of the strangest yet entertaining design and presentation.

After about a month of speculation and subtle hints from industry insiders, American EV startup Slate has emerged from stealth to share its flagship model with the world. This simplified all-electric pickup arrives with over 100 accessories, a five-seat SUV configuration kit, and get this… crank windows. Even better, this no-nonsense pedigree of EV is priced refreshingly low, starting below $20,000 after US tax incentives.

Imagine landing at JFK or LaGuardia after a fun but taxing vacation, and instead of hailing a two-hour cab ride or asking your brother-in-law to come and get you, you take to the skies in an eVTOL. You’re back on the ground in 15 minutes for a short trip back home to bed. What a time to be alive. eVTOL developer Archer Aviation is making this dream a reality alongside its business partner, United Airlines, offering travelers to NYC a new map of air taxi routes to travel to and from NYC airports.

EV tire specialist ENSO has launched a new premium range of ultra-high performance (UHP) tires designed for passenger electric vehicles. Soon, US drivers of EVs from Tesla and other high-performance models will be able to purchase this new tire range as ENSO significantly expands its product lineup.

Bear with me, as this one is a bit complicated and jargon-heavy. Lotus Technology Inc. announced that Geely, the majority owner of its vehicle manufacturing business Lotus UK, exercised its put option earlier this week to sell its 51% stake in the latter company back to the former company. In layperson’s terms, Geely is out, so Lotus Tech has to buy the 51% of Lotus UK back, putting all those respective businesses back under one umbrella. Still with me? More below.

A relatively young, handcrafted British EV automaker, RBW EV Cars, is celebrating an $8 million milestone as it expands its vehicle production to North America to deliver its two flagship models to US consumers. These bespoke BEVs with British design heritage in mind look like they are extremely fun to zip around in. See more below.

Four months after sharing a first look at a new GT shooting brake variant of its all-electric 007 sedan, ZEEKR has officially launched the 7GT in China, with initial deliveries to follow in less than a week. As shown in ZEEKR’s images below, this sporty GT variant was designed with several comfort features and impressive tech, including a fast-charging 800V platform and zippy acceleration.

Cutting-edge yacht and electric catamaran designer Sunreef Yachts has unveiled its latest generation of solar skin technology. The silicon solar cells, designed in-house by Sunreef, are now more efficient, durable, and bolstered by AI optimization. As such, Sunreef is calling its Solar Skin 3.0 technology a “visionary leap toward the future of yachting.”

EV charging solutions provider Chargetronix has unveiled a new state-of-the-art distribution system alongside its third-generation chargers. The 1,280 kW system can charge up to 16 electric trucks from each cabinet, and Chargetronix’s next-generation chargers will serve both fleet and passenger EVs.

Hands-free EV charging specialist Rocsys demonstrated its encouraging progress in enabling automated driving and charging in the commercial EV segment. As part of the MAGPIE initiative in Europe, Rocsys held a demonstration event in The Netherlands earlier today that showcased a fully electric autonomous truck navigating a port in Rotterdam before self-driving itself to a Rocsys robotic device, which began charging it automatically. You’re going to want to see the video below; it’s pretty awesome.

Three months after unveiling the production-intent design of its flagship Flow travel trailer, Pebble has commenced production in California. With Pebble Flow production now underway, the startup says it remains on track to begin initial deliveries very soon.

Remember Foxconn? It’s been years since we’ve spoken the name, so it was a big surprise that the automotive division of the behemoth electronics manufacturer would be one of the first Chinese (technically Taiwanese) brands to come to the States. A Foxconn executive recently detailed a full offensive of new BEV models in the works, two of which will hit the US market and one as early as late 2025.

EV charging veteran ChargePoint has unveiled its new charger product architecture, which is described as a “generational leap in AC Level 2 charging.” The new ChargePoint technology designed for consumers in North America and Europe will enable vehicle-to-everything (V2X) capabilities and the ability to charge your EV in as quickly as four hours.

Veteran energy management specialist Emporia Energy has launched its latest home EV charger called the “Pro,” complete with built-in load management and charging speeds 9x faster than a standard outlet.

Zoox is saying, “LiDAR, camera, action!” The autonomous robotaxi developer announced an expansion into Los Angeles, marking Zoox’s sixth testing location. The initial rollout around Hollywood will be small to begin as Zoox remains “thoughtful and measured” in its rollout approach.

Chinese auto conglomerate Build Your Dreams (BYD) has begun previewing its Q1 2025 financial results. Although its numbers have dipped compared to Q4 2024, the automaker’s net income continues to soar year over year. BYD expects that number to be up at least 86% but could be much higher.

Another fiscal year and another bold prediction that Tesla’s long-running reign as the global market share leader will end. As previously predicted, BYD is once again expected to usurp Tesla in total BEV sales in 2025, and it may actually happen this time.

Lotus has launched its 2026 model year versions of its Emeya and Eletre EVs and is changing things up a bit this year to provide a wider array of standard features for its customers. The automaker has introduced new “600” and “900” trim nomenclature and several variants within each of those badges to note performance and other key features. You can see the trim breakdown of Lotus’ revamped trims below.

XPeng Motors is touting a new record alongside its latest production milestone surrounding its new MONA M03 EV, launched less than a year ago. The company recently hit 100,000 builds of the M03 as demand for the new model continues to grow in China.