13 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Andrew J. Hawkins

Andrew J. Hawkins

Transportation editor

Transportation editor

    More From Andrew J. Hawkins

    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Ford teases its next-gen EV project.

    On X, Ford CEO Jim Farley posted several photos of the automaker’s Universal EV Project, calling it “one of the most audacious and important projects in @Ford’s history. American innovation is how we compete and win against China and the rest of the world.” The first EV, expected in 2027, will be a four-door, midsized $30,000 pickup truck.

    <em>‘The team is spending countless hours getting every last drop of aero efficiency on the mid-size electric pickup,’ Farley says. </em>
    <em>‘The best part is no part, but the second-best part is one that serves multiple functions.’</em>
    <em>‘A Ford team member working on the front end of a prototype - one of the hundreds of prototypes the team has designed and developed to shape the face of the truck over the last few years.’</em>
    <em>‘Ford will use large unicastings for the first time on the Universal EV Platform. The radically simplified aluminum unicastings condense over 146 parts into 2 and enable the assembly tree method at the Louisville Assembly Plant.’</em>
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    ‘The team is spending countless hours getting every last drop of aero efficiency on the mid-size electric pickup,’ Farley says.
    Image: Ford
    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Ford eyes Geely for tech team-up.

    Of all the Chinese automakers, Geely seems best positioned to sell its cars in the US. That may explain why Ford is considering a technology partnership with the parent company of brands like Polestar and Volvo. Reuters reports that Geely could use Ford factory space in Europe to produce vehicles for the region.

    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Tesla drops ‘Standard’ from its cheapest models.

    Four months after launching “Standard” versions of the Model 3 and Model Y, Tesla is dropping the trim description. The move comes as the automaker introduces a more affordable all-wheel drive version of the Model Y in the US.

    Elon Musk is merging SpaceX and xAI to build data centers in space — or so he says

    SpaceX is profitable, while xAI is burning about $1 billion a month. Is this another case of Musk bailing out himself?

    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Elon Musk’s Boring Company is going to Dubai.

    The tunnel-digging venture says it will build “a cutting-edge passenger transport tunnel project” that’s “4 miles (6.4km), comprising four stations, linking the Dubai International Financial Centre and Dubai Mall.”

    The Boring Company opened its first “loop” in Las Vegas in 2021, where it uses a fleet of human-operated Tesla vehicles to transport people across the city’s convention center. Musk’s previous business dealings with Dubai include a $700 million investment from a secretive VC firm to fund his acquisition of Twitter.

    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Andrew J. Hawkins
    Toyota teases three rows.

    The Japanese automaker has a new SUV coming, possibly an EV. Last week, we saw the rear end; today, we’re getting a glimpse of the interior, which appears to have three rows of seats. We still don’t have any details about the powertrain, although Toyota characterized the new vehicle as “big energy” — whatever that means.

    1/2Image: Toyota