Every Monday and Thursday

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

Jeff Dahn at his Dalhousie University lab. Photo: Courtesy Dalhousie University
The Electric

The Electric: The Battery That Could Move Motorists to Connect to the Grid

By Steve LeVine · Aug 28, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Save the date: Our 1-year anniversary is coming up. As a thanks to you, we are celebrating with a special subscribers-only event on perhaps the most important challenge facing the industry—building a battery supply chain not reliant on China. Our guest for this September 8 live chat is Bob Galyen, a foremost leader of the U.S. effort to... Save the date: Our 1-year anniversary is coming up. As a thanks to you, we are celebrating...
Thacker Pass, Nev., the site of a four-year struggle by Lithium Americas to develop a lithium mine. Photo: Suzanne Featherston/The Daily Free Press/AP
The Electric

The Electric: The Climate Bill Sparks Two New Political Battles

By Steve LeVine · Aug 25, 2022 4:00am PDT
Save the date: On September 8, we celebrate our first anniversary with a special event on perhaps the most important challenge facing the industry—building a battery supply chain independent of China. Our guest for this 3 p.m. ET live chat will be Bob Galyen, former chief technology officer of China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd., the... Save the date: On September 8, we celebrate our first anniversary with a special event on perhaps...
In a shot over the bow, Toyota—after decades of watching U.S. automakers—became the third best-selling auto line in the U.S. with the $1,780 Corona. Photo: AP
The Electric

The Electric: To Get Its Battery Supply Chain, the U.S. Will Have to Mimic China

By Steve LeVine · Aug 21, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Save the date: A year ago, we launched The Electric to cover one of the most important—and least reported—new sectors in technology: batteries and electric vehicles. On September 8, we’ll celebrate our anniversary with a special event on perhaps the most important challenge facing the industry—building a battery supply chain independent of... Save the date: A year ago, we launched The Electric to cover one of the most important—and least...
A cell stacker in the Enovix factory. Photo: Courtesy Enovix
The Electric: A Next-Gen Battery Maker Ignites an 82% Stock Price Runup With Real Revenue
By Steve LeVine · Aug 17, 2022 4:00am PDT
A cell stacker in the Enovix factory. Photo: Courtesy Enovix
The Electric

The Electric: A Next-Gen Battery Maker Ignites an 82% Stock Price Runup With Real Revenue

By Steve LeVine · Aug 17, 2022 4:00am PDT
Save the date: A year ago, we launched The Electric to cover one of the most important—and least reported—new sectors in technology: batteries and electric vehicles. On Sept. 8, we’ll celebrate our anniversary with a special event on perhaps the most important challenge facing the industry—building a battery supply chain that’s not reliant on... Save the date: A year ago, we launched The Electric to cover one of the most important—and least...
The Voyah Free SUV is among the challengers to Tesla's luxury crown in China. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Electric

The Electric: Homegrown Brands Challenge Tesla’s Lock on China’s Luxury EV Market

By Steve LeVine · Aug 15, 2022 5:00am PDT
Today's column is by Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies. Since 2017, he has focused on the Chinese EV market, as well as smart cities, urban logistics and battery recycling management. The emergence of electric vehicles in the past decade offered Chinese automakers—viewed as producing low-quality... Today's column is by Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies....
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 nickel mine in Indonesia, which is not among the countries included in a bill that attempts to create a non-Chinese supply chain for EV batteries. Photo: Bloomberg.
The Electric

The Electric: The U.S. Finally Gets Serious About the EV Battery Supply Chain

By Steve LeVine · Aug 7, 2022 2:00pm PDT
I am on vacation next week. The Electric will be dark next Sunday, Aug. 14, and return Aug. 21.As China has increasingly bolstered its lead in the global electric vehicle and battery race, it has seemed as though the U.S. is standing still: While Chinese companies have added every more battery manufacturing capacity, U.S. automakers and... I am on vacation next week. The Electric will be dark next Sunday, Aug. 14, and return Aug. 21.As...
Rivian delivery vans built for Amazon. Photo: Jamie Kelter Davis/Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: Amid the Carnage of EV Startups, New Funds for Battery Makers

By Steve LeVine · Jul 31, 2022 2:00pm PDT
We’re planning our first major event for The Electric, a half-day of hard-core battery discussion before the end of the year. If you’re interested in sponsorship, please contact my colleagues at [email protected]. After a heady two years, electric vehicle and battery stocks have plunged in value as investors have shunned them.... We’re planning our first major event for The Electric, a half-day of hard-core battery discussion...
A Byd showroom in Beijing. The company led all automakers in sales in China in the first half of 2022. Photo by Bloomberg
The Electric: Foreign Automakers Prepare to Challenge Chinese Brands on Their Home Turf
By Steve LeVine · Jul 28, 2022 11:37am PDT
A Byd showroom in Beijing. The company led all automakers in sales in China in the first half of 2022. Photo by Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: Foreign Automakers Prepare to Challenge Chinese Brands on Their Home Turf

By Steve LeVine · Jul 28, 2022 11:37am PDT
Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies. Since 2017, he has focused on the Chinese EV market, as well as smart cities, urban logistics and battery recycling management.Chinese makers of electric vehicles are enjoying their best year for domestic sales in three years, as foreign EV... Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial...
Goodenough, seated, last Friday at his birthday celebration. Photo: Venkat Viswanathan
The Electric

The Electric: The Battery Industry Threw a 100th Birthday Party For Its Father

By Steve LeVine · Jul 24, 2022 2:00pm PDT
In 1991, the first portable electronic device hit the market. It was a Sony hand-held video camera, and it was an immediate sensation. The secret behind the camera was a powerful new battery—lithium-ion. Since then, the battery and others like it have revolutionized how we live, enabling devices like the iPhone, laptops, ear buds, and of course... In 1991, the first portable electronic device hit the market. It was a Sony hand-held video...
Starting late next year, Ford will introduce a lithium-ion-phosphate battery with cell-to-pack technology in its flagship electric Mustang Mach E SUV. Photo: Courtesy Ford
The Electric

The Electric: Ford Tries to Allay Supply Chain Worries, but Some Are Skeptical

By Steve LeVine · Jul 22, 2022 4:00am PDT
Amid an acute shortage of key metals for electric vehicle batteries, Ford wants to show that it has assured its needed supplies. But many of its key deals are a lot less than certain. In a call with analysts and reporters on Thursday, Ford announced a slew of signed and potential supply chain deals—negotiations for nickel from Indonesia, a... Amid an acute shortage of key metals for electric vehicle batteries, Ford wants to show that it...
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
The Hongguang Mini is one of the world's best selling electric vehicles.
The Electric

The Electric: China Tweaks Its Incentives for EVs

By Steve LeVine · Jul 21, 2022 5:00am PDT
Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies. Since 2017, he has focused on the Chinese EV market, as well as smart cities, urban logistics and battery recycling management. China looks like a success story in the global move to electric vehicles. More EVs were sold in China last year... Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial...
Much of Indonesia's nickel processing is conducted at Morowali Industrial Park on Sulawesi island. Photo: Dimas Ardian/Bloomberg
The Electric: Playing Unapologetic Hardball, Indonesia Creates a Global Battery Hub
By Steve LeVine · Jul 17, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Much of Indonesia's nickel processing is conducted at Morowali Industrial Park on Sulawesi island. Photo: Dimas Ardian/Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: Playing Unapologetic Hardball, Indonesia Creates a Global Battery Hub

By Steve LeVine · Jul 17, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Welcome back to The Electric! On Thursday: The auto and battery industries have been struck by a stark shortage of lithium and nickel, so how will they make enough lithium-ion batteries to meet anticipated demand for their electric vehicles? One option is a different kind of battery—such as a surprising one containing Prussian blue... Welcome back to The Electric! On Thursday: The auto and battery industries have been struck...
How China Outmaneuvered the West to Control the EV Battery Industry
The Electric

How China Outmaneuvered the West to Control the EV Battery Industry

By Steve LeVine · Jul 14, 2022 4:00am PDT
Next week: When we speak of batteries, we usually mean lithium-ion powered by nickel- or iron-led cathodes. But the yearslong metals shortage ahead of us means the industry must broaden its outlook beyond the usual metals. That's why I'm excited about the next Live Chat, in which I'll host Colin Wessells, CEO of Stanford spinoff Natron... Next week: When we speak of batteries, we usually mean lithium-ion powered by nickel- or...
Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Drew Baglino, senior vice president for power train, introduce dry battery electrodes on Battery Day in September 2020. Photo: Tesla
The Electric

The Little-Known U.S. Company Challenging Tesla on Batteries

By Steve LeVine · Jul 10, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Welcome back to The Electric!Save the date: Three centuries ago, Prussian blue was a revolutionary hue for painters. Now it’s the main component of one of the most interesting new batteries. For the next Live Chat,  I’m excited to host Colin Wessells, CEO of Stanford spinoff Natron Energy, to discuss the past and future of Prussian blue,... Welcome back to The Electric!Save the date: Three centuries ago, Prussian blue was a...
China wants to increase production of lithium from Qinghai province, shown here. Photo by Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: How China Responded to EV Supply-Chain Problems

By Steve LeVine · Jul 7, 2022 11:37am PDT
Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies. Since 2017, he has focused on the Chinese EV market, as well as smart cities, urban logistics and battery recycling management.Supply chain disruptions over the past two years have prompted big changes in China’s market for electric vehicles and... Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial...
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
The Electric Quarterly: Should the West Subsidize LFP Production?
The Electric Quarterly: Should the West Subsidize LFP Production?
By Steve LeVine · Jul 3, 2022 2:00pm PDT
The Electric Quarterly: Should the West Subsidize LFP Production?
The Electric

The Electric Quarterly: Should the West Subsidize LFP Production?

By Steve LeVine · Jul 3, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Save the date: In the battery industry, attention is tightly fixed on nickel, manganese and iron as the basis for batteries, but now a very different material has pushed to the surface: Prussian blue, a material usually associated with famous paintings. To discuss this much-ignored electrode, I'm thrilled to host Colin Wessells, CEO of... Save the date: In the battery industry, attention is tightly fixed on nickel, manganese and iron...
A prototype nine-seat electric jet made by Eviation, an Israeli company. Photo: Courtesy Eviation
The Electric

The Electric: A Search For a Powerful New Battery To Help Electric Planes Fly

By Steve LeVine · Jun 29, 2022 4:00am PDT
Save the date: For three centuries, Prussian blue has been the hue behind some of the world's most famous paintings, including Gainsborough's The Blue Boy and Picasso's Blue Period works. Now, it's the material in one of the most inventive new batteries. For the next Live Chat With The Electric, I'm excited to welcome Colin Wessells, CEO of... Save the date: For three centuries, Prussian blue has been the hue behind some of the world's...
Byd's cell-to-pack Blade battery, clashing with the typical boxy or cylindrical cell shape. Photo: Kyodo/AP
The Electric

The Electric: China Engineers a Lead on an Important Battery Technology

By Steve LeVine · Jun 26, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Welcome back to The Electric! For years lithium-iron-phosphate was a has-been battery—once heralded by automakers but then left behind by nickel-based chemistries that delivered greater electric vehicle range. Then Chinese companies figured out how to pack LFP densely into cells, and the iron-based chemistry staged a comeback. This week, we... Welcome back to The Electric! For years lithium-iron-phosphate was a has-been battery—once...
Nio plans to offer a car with solid-state batteries by the end of the year. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Electric

The Electric: Solid-State Batteries Are All the Rage—Except in China

By Steve LeVine · Jun 24, 2022 5:00am PDT
Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a freelance researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies. Since 2017, he has focused on the Chinese EV market, as well as smart cities, urban logistics and battery recycling management.Investors worldwide are pouring billions of dollars into companies such as QuantumScape, Solid Power and... Today's column is from Dalibor Petkovic, a freelance researcher specializing in Chinese...
Buyers of the coming Sony-Honda electric vehicle should have access to Sony's film library, including the James Bond franchise. Photo: Courtesy MGM
The Electric: Inside the Battle Over the EV Dashboard
By Steve LeVine · Jun 19, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Buyers of the coming Sony-Honda electric vehicle should have access to Sony's film library, including the James Bond franchise. Photo: Courtesy MGM
The Electric

The Electric: Inside the Battle Over the EV Dashboard

By Steve LeVine · Jun 19, 2022 2:00pm PDT
Welcome back to The Electric! Automakers and tech companies are at war for who will control the profit from the sale of electric vehicles this decade. The assumption is that paid monthly subscriptions for software delivered over the air to EVs will generate much of the earnings. This week, we interrogate that assumption, and point out that... Welcome back to The Electric! Automakers and tech companies are at war for who will control...