Tesla's AI, GM and Hyundai partnership, and Stellantis EV investment: Auto roundup

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Image for article titled Tesla's AI, a GM and Hyundai partnership, and Stellantis' EV investment: Auto news roundup — Graphic: Images: Bill Pugliano, Stellantis, John Ricky/Anadolu

The automotive industry is, well, kinda tough. That’s something that just about every carmaker is remembering this week, as markets remain messy and consumers are always looking for better vehicles.

That’s part of why General Motors and Hyundai Motor Co. announced Thursday that they might team up to make new vehicles, and why Volkswagen is pondering factory closures for the first time in decades. It’s also why Stellantis is dumping more cash into making new EVs — and batteries — in the U.S., and why automakers are focusing on making cheaper electric cars and eyeing hybrid strategies.

Catch up on these stories — and anything else you may have missed — in this week’s auto news roundup.

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General Motors and Hyundai might team up

A General Motors vehicle on the production lines in Lansing, Michigan, in 2010. The Detroit automaker has signed a deal with Hyundai Motor Co. to explore working together to make new gas, electric, and hydrogen-powered vehicles.

General Motors (GM) and the Hyundai Motor Co. said on Thursday that they had agreed to explore a partnership to slash costs and make new clean-energy vehicles amid a tough market.

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Stellantis is investing $235 million to make its first fully-electric truck in the U.S.

The 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger will be Stellantis’s first full-electric vehicle made in the U.S.

Stellantis (STLA) on Wednesday said it would invest $406 million to upgrade three Michigan plants to build electric vehicles, including the automaker’s first fully-electric car made in the U.S.

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Will robots take over Tesla factories? They could save Elon Musk’s company $500 million a year, analysts say

Tesla’s Optimus robot on display during the 2024 World AI Conference & High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance at Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center on July 7, 2024

Elon Musk’s Tesla (TSLA) may have an easy way to save a lot of cash, according to analysts — just replace a bunch of workers with robots.

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Volkswagen faces an ‘alarming’ situation but won’t abandon Germany, CEO says

“We have employees whose grandfathers also worked at Volkswagen. I want their grandchildren to be able to work here, too,” said Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume.

Volkswagen (VWAGY) isn’t planning on abandoning its home country, even as it eyes its first factory shutdown since the 1980s amid a shrinking auto market, CEO Oliver Blume says.

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Tesla doesn’t need xAI’s help to improve its self-driving tech, Elon Musk says

Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has denied a report that his automaker has considered sharing revenue with his artificial intelligence startup, xAI, so that it can use its models.

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Hybrid cars are having a moment as Americans fear EVs just aren’t reliable

Toyota Motor Co. and other automakers have looked to hybrid vehicles as electric car sales growth slows.

Hybrid vehicles are all the rage right now, as American consumers look for cars that offer some of the environmental benefits of going electric, without relying entirely on battery power.

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Ford is paying EV owners to send power back to the grid

Ford (F) is continuing its push into making vehicle-to-grid technology more mainstream. The automaker’s latest partnership is teaming up with a Southern California utility provider to pay EV owners a pretty nice amount for helping to bolster the grid. — Lawrence Hodge / Jalopnik

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EV makers have a new strategy to boost sales: Make cheaper electric cars

Lucid Air Sapphire — Photo: Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik

Electric vehicles aren’t cheap yet. I mean, to be fair, no cars are cheap anymore with an average transaction price above $48,000, but now “luxury” EV makers are looking to capitalize on a market looking for cheaper all-electric vehicles. Tesla, Rivian, Lucid, and even VinFast are planning on bringing cheaper offerings to the U.S. as more and more people are turned away by high-priced electric vehicles. — Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik

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Stellantis recalls 1.2 million Ram 1500 pickup trucks

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recalled more than 1.2 million RAM pickup trucks in the U.S. for a software malfunction that could lead to crashes. — Ben Kesslen

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Tesla workers trained Autopilot to ignore road signs

Photo: Smith Collection/Gado (Getty Images)

In order for its Autopilot driver assistance system to work, Tesla fits cameras to every corner of its electric vehicles to monitor surroundings and assess the road ahead. While the car’s internal computers make on the fly decisions about how to respond to things like road signs and parked cars, Tesla (TSLA) has a whole team of researchers programming Autopilot to respond to different situations that may arise on the road. — Owen Bellwood / Jalopnik

Tesla's AI, a GM and Hyundai partnership, and Stellantis' EV investment: Auto news roundup

Plus, automakers are eying a hybrid hedge, and Tesla's robots could save it hundreds of millions of dollars