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The Electric

By Steve LeVine

The Electric is a publication from Steve LeVine and The Information focused on crucial industries for the energy transition, including next-generation batteries, electric vehicles and autonomous driving. The newsletter is only for subscribers of The Information.

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Recent Editions

In Natron Energy's Holland, Mich. factory. Photo: Courtesy Natron Energy
The Electric

Exclusive From The Electric: The Battery Industry Crisis Catches Up To Natron, Until Now a Rare Winner

By Steve LeVine · Jun 30, 2025 4:30am PDT
Natron Energy’s unusual battery provides a jolt of electricity that boosts the performance of chips used in artificial intelligence data centers, an ability that made it appear to be a rare winner in the crisis-ridden U.S. battery industry. But right now, Natron is pretty much out of cash, according to people familiar with the situation. Natron Energy’s unusual battery provides a jolt of electricity that boosts the performance of...
The Electric: In the Budget Brawl, Ford Reminds Trump That He Risks Job Cuts
The Electric

The Electric: In the Budget Brawl, Ford Reminds Trump That He Risks Job Cuts

By Steve LeVine · Jun 26, 2025 4:30am PDT
The effort to rewrite President Donald Trump’s budget bill gained a big public backer this week, and one that holds some real power over the members of Congress who are voting on the measure. Ford publicly joined the fight to save electric vehicle and battery tax credits that would be cut or sharply reduced in the bill under consideration.... The effort to rewrite President Donald Trump’s budget bill gained a big public backer this week,...
Apptronik co-founders Nick Paine, left, and Jeff Cardenas, along with Apollo, their humanoid robot. Photo: Courtesy Apptronik.
The Electric

The Electric: Tesla's Optimus Hype Has Pumped Up the Nascent U.S. Humanoid Battery Industry

By Steve LeVine · Jun 23, 2025 4:30am PDT
U.S. researchers invented the electric vehicle battery, but Chinese companies have swallowed up the business of making them. Now a new technological race has emerged, this time in humanoid robots: As in batteries and EVs, U.S. companies are in tough competition with Chinese rivals that already control much of the supply chain for motors and... U.S. researchers invented the electric vehicle battery, but Chinese companies have swallowed up...
Solar array atop an AI data center in Centennial, Colo. Photo: RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post/Getty
The Electric: Fear of Trump's Wrath Kept Industry From Lobbying to Save AI Data Center Subsidies—Until Now
By Steve LeVine · Jun 12, 2025 4:30am PDT
Solar array atop an AI data center in Centennial, Colo. Photo: RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Fear of Trump's Wrath Kept Industry From Lobbying to Save AI Data Center Subsidies—Until Now

By Steve LeVine · Jun 12, 2025 4:30am PDT
After sitting on the political sidelines for months, tech, utility and energy companies—panicked that the repeal of tax credits threatens the expansion of artificial intelligence data centers—have gone on a massive, late lobbying campaign to persuade Congress to preserve the subsidies.But with President Donald Trump at the spearpoint of the... After sitting on the political sidelines for months, tech, utility and energy companies—panicked...
LG Energy Solution's LFP battery plant in Holland, Mich. Photo: Courtesy LGES
The Electric

The Electric: South Korea's LG Challenges China's Grip On Iron-Based Batteries

By Steve LeVine · Jun 9, 2025 4:30am PDT
The battery that would go on to power most Western electric vehicles was first produced 15 years ago in a plant in Holland, Mich., run by South Korea’s LG Chem.Last month at the same factory, the company began the West’s first commercial-scale production of the lithium-iron-phosphate battery that’s behind China’s dominance of the global... The battery that would go on to power most Western electric vehicles was first produced 15 years...
The Electric Newsletter
An exclusive publication covering the nascent battery and electric vehicle revolutions.
By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy
Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Photo: Getty
The Electric

Exclusive From The Electric: A Critical Minerals War Game Signals How China May React to Trump

By Steve LeVine · Jun 5, 2025 4:30am PDT
Fast-forward to November, five months from now. The U.S. and China have escalated their tit-for-tat attacks in the trade war ignited by President Donald Trump. Trump has reimposed 145% tariffs on Chinese goods and China has tightened its choke hold on rare earth minerals and magnets, barring their reexport from third countries to the U.S. Fast-forward to November, five months from now. The U.S. and China have escalated their...
One possible target for the new LMR battery is GM's electric Cadillac Escalade. Photo: Courtesy GM.
The Electric

The Electric: With a Manganese War, GM and Ford Take Aim at China’s Battery Grip

By Steve LeVine · May 15, 2025 4:30am PDT
In a surprising dual strike at China’s grip on the global electric vehicle battery industry, General Motors and Ford have both unveiled manganese-led batteries that could shoulder aside incumbent chemistries dominated by China’s behemoths. In a surprising dual strike at China’s grip on the global electric vehicle battery industry, ...
Tesla's Nevada Gigafactory, run in partnership with Panasonic. Photo: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty
The Electric: Three Gigafactory Experts Weigh In on What the West Needs to Do
By Steve LeVine · May 12, 2025 4:30am PDT
Tesla's Nevada Gigafactory, run in partnership with Panasonic. Photo: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Three Gigafactory Experts Weigh In on What the West Needs to Do

By Steve LeVine · May 12, 2025 4:30am PDT
In 2014, Tesla CEO Elon Musk contracted with Japan’s Panasonic to make batteries for his next electric vehicle, the Model 3, at a new plant outside Reno, Nev. It was a big get for a relatively unproven automaker: Panasonic had been making lithium-ion batteries for two decades and was one of the world’s top producers. In 2014, Tesla CEO Elon Musk contracted with Japan’s Panasonic to make batteries for his next...
Coreshell Technologies headquarters in San Leandro, Calif. Photo: Courtesy Coreshell
The Electric

Exclusive From The Electric: With a Poached Gigafactory Veteran, Coreshell Looks for Manufacturing Street Cred

By Steve LeVine · May 8, 2025 4:30am PDT
Asia’s battery powerhouses have frightened many next-generation Western startups into abandoning their ambitions to manufacture electric vehicle batteries. But California-based silicon anode developer Coreshell Technologies is pushing ahead with a well-tested survival strategy: It has poached a key South Korean gigafactory expert to help take on... Asia’s battery powerhouses have frightened many next-generation Western startups into abandoning...
Rendering of Epsilon's planned synthetic graphite plant in North Carolina. Photo: Courtesy Epsilon.
The Electric

The Electric: These U.S. Battery Companies Think Full-Throttle Tariffs Are Great

By Steve LeVine · May 5, 2025 4:30am PDT
A lot of companies and investors are predicting a bottom-line disaster if President Donald Trump doesn’t seriously scale back or—better yet—eliminate the double- and triple-digit tariffs he has tacked onto imports. But Vikram Handa, managing director of Epsilon Carbon, isn’t one of them. Handa, whose India-based company is building a $650... A lot of companies and investors are predicting a bottom-line disaster if President Donald Trump...
The Electric Newsletter
An exclusive publication covering the nascent battery and electric vehicle revolutions.
By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy
Polymetallic nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific. Photo: Courtesy The Metals Co.
The Electric

The Electric: In His First Months, Trump Has Built on Biden’s Battery Policy

By Steve LeVine · May 1, 2025 4:30am PDT
Since taking office, President Donald Trump has denigrated electric vehicles and imposed tariffs on EV and battery parts that will make it far harder for carmakers to earn profits on the sale of the vehicles. But his first 100 days in power have been a clear winner for one segment of the industry—the miners and processors of the handful of... Since taking office, President Donald Trump has denigrated electric vehicles and imposed tariffs...
Ford's electric F-150 Lightning. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty
The Electric: With a Big Battery Claim, Ford Tries to Compete With the Chinese
By Steve LeVine · Apr 28, 2025 4:30am PDT
Ford's electric F-150 Lightning. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: With a Big Battery Claim, Ford Tries to Compete With the Chinese

By Steve LeVine · Apr 28, 2025 4:30am PDT
Ford has thrown its hat into the high-stakes global contest to shake up the electric vehicle industry, unveiling a battery that in just a few years’ time—if it can be scaled up cheaply—would challenge the primacy of nickel-based batteries that power most EVs in the West. Ford has thrown its hat into the high-stakes global contest to shake up the electric vehicle...
Elon Musk and his son X Æ walk off Marine One. Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: A Reset for Tesla? Musk Pledges Focus But Robotaxi Remains Fuzzy

By Steve LeVine · Apr 24, 2025 4:30am PDT · 1 comment
The market-moving news from Tesla’s earnings call was Elon Musk promising to spend more time at the car company and less in Washington. It helped send the stock up nearly 8% on Wednesday, and it turned the outlook of even recently critical analysts positive again. Among them was Wedbush Securities’ Dan Ives, who said the damage Musk had... The market-moving news from Tesla’s earnings call was Elon Musk promising to spend more time at...
Bedrock Materials headquarters, Chicago. Photo: Courtesy Bedrock
The Electric

The Electric: Why Bedrock Materials Returned Its Seed Funding to Investors

By Steve LeVine · Apr 21, 2025 6:22am PDT
In a Linkedin post early this month, Bedrock Materials CEO Spencer Gore announced he was shutting down less than two years after launching the sodium-ion battery startup. He will return most of the $9 million in seed round funds he had raised back to investors. In a Linkedin post early this month, Bedrock Materials CEO Spencer Gore announced he was shutting...
Tesla's Robotaxi. Photo: Sjoerd van der Wal/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Inside Tesla, Analysts Predicted the Robotaxi Could Lose Money

By Steve LeVine · Apr 17, 2025 4:30am PDT · 2 comments
A little over a year ago, Tesla CEO Elon Musk killed the mainstream $25,000 crossover SUV for families and pivoted the company to driverless Robotaxis and other artificial intelligence products. That decision has continued relevance for investors who are looking for Tesla—its share price down 36% this year amid declining vehicle sales—to release... A little over a year ago, Tesla CEO Elon Musk killed the mainstream $25,000 crossover SUV for...
The Electric Newsletter
An exclusive publication covering the nascent battery and electric vehicle revolutions.
By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy
A Clarios battery manufacturing plant. Courtesy: Clarios
The Electric: Some Investors Are Using IRA Tax Credits to Pay Themselves
By Steve LeVine and Ken Brown · Apr 14, 2025 4:30am PDT
A Clarios battery manufacturing plant. Courtesy: Clarios
The Electric

The Electric: Some Investors Are Using IRA Tax Credits to Pay Themselves

By Steve LeVine and Ken Brown · Apr 14, 2025 4:30am PDT
Since 2021, lead-acid battery maker Clarios has been talking about going public. But in January, the company said it was scrapping its plans for an initial public offering. That would normally have been a blow to the company’s owners, private equity firm Brookfield Asset Management and Canadian pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du... Since 2021, lead-acid battery maker Clarios has been talking about going public. But in January,...
Byd founder Wang Chuanfu. Photo: Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Battery Hands Are Skeptical of Byd’s Claim of Five-Minute Charging

By Steve LeVine · Apr 3, 2025 4:30am PDT · 1 comment
Last month, China’s Byd said it would soon release two electric vehicles capable of charging in five minutes—not much longer than the time it takes to fill a gas tank. The assertion caught rivals uncomfortably off guard, especially companies in the West, where the fastest competing EVs charge to 80% of capacity in roughly 20 minutes. Last month, China’s Byd said it would soon release two electric vehicles capable of charging in...
Photo: Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Why Trump’s Directives Will Likely Hurt EVs

By Steve LeVine · Mar 31, 2025 5:53am PDT
In a pair of sweeping directives involving the auto industry the past two weeks, President Donald Trump did not attack electric vehicles, as he has in the past. But the moves nonetheless seem likely to hobble Western-made EVs. Already priced higher than most buyers are willing to pay, they likely will become far more expensive. In a pair of sweeping directives involving the auto industry the past two weeks, President Donald...
Asma Sharafi, U.S. CEO of VW's PowerCo.
The Electric

Exclusive From The Electric: An Interview With the New U.S. CEO of VW’s PowerCo

By Steve LeVine · Mar 27, 2025 4:30am PDT · 1 comment
For 15 years, QuantumScape has struggled to develop a next-generation lithium-metal battery that would substantially increase the driving range of electric vehicles. Now its top investor—Volkswagen—has brought in its own lithium-metal expert to help push the battery into commercial use by the end of the decade. For 15 years, QuantumScape has struggled to develop a next-generation lithium-metal battery that...
In 2023, China's JAC Group released the Yiwei, powered by a sodium-ion battery. Photo: Courtesy JAC
The Electric: Sodium Ion Batteries Only Seem Cheaper Than Traditional Lithium Ion
By Steve LeVine · Mar 24, 2025 4:30am PDT · 1 comment
In 2023, China's JAC Group released the Yiwei, powered by a sodium-ion battery. Photo: Courtesy JAC
The Electric

The Electric: Sodium Ion Batteries Only Seem Cheaper Than Traditional Lithium Ion

By Steve LeVine · Mar 24, 2025 4:30am PDT · 1 comment
In a drive to cut costs and their reliance on China’s supply chain, Western startups have been developing batteries using cheap and abundant sodium in place of lithium, today’s standard. But an extended plunge in the price of the fastest-growing type of lithium-ion battery has flipped the script, making it far cheaper to snub sodium for now. In a drive to cut costs and their reliance on China’s supply chain, Western startups have been...