Skoda has revealed the Peaq, its first seven-seat all-electric SUV and the most expensive car in the Czech automaker’s 130-year history. Built on the Volkswagen Group’s MEB platform at Skoda’s home plant in Mladá Boleslav, the Peaq stretches nearly 4.9 metres long and is designed to compete directly with the Kia EV9, Hyundai Ioniq 9, and Volvo EX90. The difference is price, with Skoda targeting a starting point of around €50,000 to €55,000, compared to roughly €66,000 for the EV9 and €70,000 for the Ioniq 9.

The lineup will launch with three variants. The Peaq 60 pairs a 150kW rear motor with a 63kWh battery for more than 460km of WLTP range, while the Peaq 90 steps up to a 210kW motor and a 91kWh pack for over 600km. The range-topping Peaq 90x adds a second motor for all-wheel drive and 220kW of total output, keeping the same 91kWh battery and 600km-plus range.

All three variants support DC fast charging at up to 200kW, which Skoda says will take the battery from 10 to 80 percent in approximately 28 minutes. The Peaq also supports bidirectional charging, meaning it can feed power back to a home through the VW Group’s Moon Power Ambibox DC wallbox. Vehicle-to-load capability is included as well, letting owners run external devices directly from the car’s battery.

Inside, the third row folds flat to open up 890 litres of boot space. Options include a Sonos sound system, a panoramic glass roof, and massaging front seats. The design follows Skoda’s Modern Solid language, which debuted with the Vision 7S concept that previewed the Peaq’s shape back in 2022.

Skoda confirmed the Peaq name in January 2026 and showed a near-production version on March 30. The world premiere is set for June 23 in Monnetier-Mornex, France, with deliveries expected from mid-2026. Production will run alongside the Enyaq at Mladá Boleslav, making the Peaq the second MEB-based model built at the plant.

The pricing strategy is the Peaq’s sharpest weapon. Skoda has historically positioned itself as the VW Group’s value brand, and the Peaq extends that logic into the seven-seat EV segment where competitors have priced themselves into premium territory. The Kia EV9 starts at roughly €66,000 in Europe, the Hyundai Ioniq 9 at around €70,000, and the Volvo EX90 higher still.

That positioning matters at a time when tariffs and trade barriers are reshaping which EVs are available in which markets. A seven-seat electric SUV starting under €55,000 from a European manufacturer built in Europe avoids the import exposure that has forced several Korean and American models out of certain markets or into higher price brackets.

The Peaq also arrives into a segment that is still thin on options. The Peugeot E-5008 offers seven seats at a lower price but with less range and a smaller footprint. Above the Peaq, the choices jump quickly into luxury pricing. Skoda is betting that families shopping for a large EV want the space and capability of a premium model without the premium itself, and the Peaq’s spec sheet suggests it can deliver that.

Audi has revealed the Nuvolari, the fastest and most powerful production vehicle in its history. The hybrid supercar produces 1,001 PS (736 kW) from a 4.0-litre V8 biturbo paired with three axial flux electric motors. Only 499 will be built, starting at €600,000.

The V8 alone delivers 800 PS and revs to 10,000 rpm, territory previously reserved for motorsport. Each of the three electric motors adds 110 kW. Combined, the powertrain launches the car from 0 to 100 km/h in 2.6 seconds and 0 to 200 km/h in 6.8 seconds, with a top speed above 350 km/h.

The Nuvolari shares its platform with the Lamborghini Temerario, which produces 920 PS. But Audi pushed the output higher and added its own tech, including a system called quattro predictive ride. It processes steering angle, acceleration, yaw rate, and grip level in real time, coordinating the electric motors, brakes, and aerodynamic surfaces as a unified network.

The body is almost entirely carbon fibre reinforced polymer, built on an Audi Space Frame. Active aerodynamic surfaces, inspired by Formula 1, adjust position to generate downforce on demand. A vertical frame made of 64 individually angled tiles channels air through a concealed S-duct.

It is a plug-in hybrid, not a pure EV, at a time when Europe’s cumulative EV investment has passed €200 billion. Weighted fuel consumption sits at 11.3 l/100 km combined with 7.8 kWh/100 km of electric use. CO2 emissions land at 270 g/km. Those are preliminary figures, but they make clear this car is built for performance, not efficiency.

The timing is notable. Audi had signalled a push toward full electrification, but the Nuvolari is a combustion-led halo car arriving as the brand enters Formula 1 in 2026 and works to rebuild its performance credentials. It also comes as foreign automakers struggle to compete in China, where domestic brands now control 70% of the market. CEO Gernot Döllner said the car shows how Audi is “taking ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ into a new era.”

The name honours Tazio Nuvolari, one of the most celebrated racing drivers to represent the four rings. Ferdinand Porsche once called him “the greatest driver of the past, the present and the future.” Order books open in late 2026, with deliveries beginning in the first half of 2027.

Hidden among the architectural landmarks of General Motors’ sprawling Warren Tech Center outside Detroit is a new cornerstone of the automaker’s $900 million bet on its electric future.

The nondescript 500,000-square-foot pair of off-white boxes, which house GM’s new Battery Cell Development Center, might not look like much. But locked inside is the key to GM’s plan to slash the cost of its EVs by nearly 10%. 

At a time when some car companies are pulling back on EVs, GM’s new Battery Cell Development Center is part of a reboot. And it’s one that GM told TechCrunch will allow it to bring a new slate of lower-cost batteries to market a year faster than planned.

GM hasn’t been immune to the malaise in the U.S. EV market. Last year, the automaker took a $1.6 billion charge as it reconfigured its EV production capacity, laying off thousands of workers in the process. It has also reportedly shelved, if temporarily, a refresh of its full-size EV trucks and SUVs.

To get its EV strategy back on track, Kurt Kelty, vice president of battery and sustainability at GM, is pinning the company’s success on a new battery chemistry known as LMR. Kelty, who previously led battery technology at Tesla, has made it his signature product in the two years he’s been with the company.

“That is really going to be our bread and butter,” Kelty told TechCrunch. “That is going to be our main product line.”

Battery reboot

GM’s halting rollout of EVs has mirrored the wider battery industry in the U.S., which over the last couple of decades has developed in fits and starts. Early startups haven’t lived up to their promise, and more recently, intense competition from Chinese companies has pushed automakers and battery manufacturers to rethink the plans they made five years ago.

At GM, that pressure led to the shortened life of Ultium, the branded battery platform that underpins its current EVs. Like much of the industry, the automaker had bet heavily on a pricey yet powerful battery chemistry known as NMC (nickel-manganese-cobalt). Rising materials costs and China’s dominance of key critical minerals have kept EV prices higher than expected. NMC won’t disappear, but at GM, it’ll be restricted to GM’s high-end vehicles.

In its place, GM has been developing LMR (lithium-manganese-rich), which it says is almost as energy dense as NMC but at a cost that’s comparable to cheaper chemistries like LFP (lithium-iron-phosphate) that power low-end models like the Chevrolet Bolt.

When GM introduced LMR last year, it said that, in a truck like the Chevrolet Silverado EV, the new chemistry should preserve most of the vehicle’s more than 400-mile range while slashing costs by at least $6,000. For a mid-range model, that would bring it within spitting distance of the gas version.

Discovering a new battery chemistry is one thing. Manufacturing gigawatt-hours’ worth of it is another, especially at the pace the EV industry is moving. Facing pressure from automotive giants like BYD and battery titans like CATL, GM says it wants to get LMR vehicles on the road by 2028. GM needs the new Battery Cell Development Center to deliver if it wants to hit that deadline.

The new building serves as the keystone of GM’s battery strategy. The company opened its Wallace Battery Cell Innovation Center and its first gigafactory in 2022. What was missing was a way to connect the breakthroughs that emerged from Wallace to the factory floors in Tennessee and Ohio.

The BCDC, as insiders call the facility, is something like a pilot line, but bigger. When fully operational, it will be capable of producing about 2,500 cells per day, or about half a gigawatt-hour per year. It will take batteries developed in small batches — about 30 to 50 per day — at the Wallace Battery Cell Research Center next door and determine if they’re ready for production. 

Mastering the battery recipe

Many recipes for new batteries fail to deliver when they’re spun up to commercial scale, and companies don’t have years to work out the kinks. If a new chemistry can’t hit 85% yield within 18 months on a production line, it shouldn’t be considered commercially viable, according to a McKinsey report.

The challenges are similar to using a recipe intended for a family of four and scaling it up to a wedding reception with 400 guests. It’s not just the sheer throughput of the factory, either. Batteries that emerge from the research center are small coin cells, but the cells in an EV pack look more like a small cutting board.

“Once you learn how to make the recipe in Wallace, then you’ve got to figure out, well, how do you make this in high volume?” Kelty said. “You really learn a lot going from that coin cell to the large format because it doesn’t transfer perfectly.”

The BCDC is intended to make that step less painful. 

A test run at the facility costs about $200,000, which is far less than at the full-size Ultium plant. When the BCDC team is confident it has the process nailed down, the transition to full production should be easier, Kelty said. “The equipment is almost the same between them, and so it shouldn’t be as hard of a handoff.”

The BCDC is one or two orders of magnitude smaller than the 2.8 million-square-foot Ultium battery factory in Tennessee. The Ultium plant makes about 300,000 cells per year, or 45 gigawatt-hours’ worth. The BCDC has fewer production lines, makes about a hundredth the number of cells, and its mixing tanks, where battery materials are blended, hold 40 liters instead of 2,000. Though smaller, the BCDC is still an order of magnitude larger than the Wallace Center next door. 

“The BCDC is intended to bridge the gap,” Mo Gallegos, head of BCDC at GM, told TechCrunch. 

Turning to AI models

To cut costs further, GM has been working to simulate as many processes as possible using a variety of AI models. The company has invested heavily in computing power, and while no one would put a number on it, I’m told it’s “national lab-scale.”

The automaker has developed physics-based models to simulate how changes to a chemistry or production process will affect the performance of a battery cell. 

“On LMR, we’ve logged over 150 million CPU hours,” Radu Theyyunni, director of global virtual electrification and powertrain at GM, told TechCrunch. “Most engine programs do not use that many core hours.” 

There’s also a digital twin of the entire BCDC, including equipment control boards, wiring, and even the blades in the mixing tanks. Before I set foot in the BCDC, the team had me don a VR headset and walked me through the digital twin, where I was able to follow the production line from start to finish.

As the BCDC has taken shape, the digital twin has been used for a range of tasks. In one instance, the team used it to determine if the plans left enough clearance around equipment for regular operations and repairs. In another, they simulated the equipments’ control systems to ensure everything would behave as intended. 

“Does the equipment run how it’s supposed to? Does it run safely? Is it doing all the things we think this control system is going to do? That shortens our debug and ramp up time,” Gallegos said. Altogether, GM says the simulations have saved it millions of dollars.

GM needs all the speed it can get. 

While the EV market in the U.S. has softened recently, globally, it grew 20% last year. The looming specter of high oil prices coupled with declining battery costs suggests the transition away from fossil fuels will happen eventually, if not sooner. 

If LMR is ready in time, it could help GM offer cost-competitive EVs with enough range to placate anxious Americans. But first LMR needs to pass through the BCDC. Gallegos expects the first batches to roll off the line later this year.

In the coming decade, battery development will be as important to automakers as engine development was over the last century. GM’s EV future hinges on its ability to shepherd new chemistries from R&D through to production. 

Kelty is fond of saying that GM is developing “the right battery for the right application,” perhaps echoing an old company slogan, “a car for every purse and purpose.” 

LMR might be the BCDC’s first test, but it’s unlikely to be its last.

In 2025, one in four cars sold anywhere in the world was electric. However, in the US, that figure is closer to one in ten, and it is not moving in the right direction. 

The falling EV prices globally have pushed sales to record levels. American buyers, on the other hand, are marching through 2026 with fewer incentives, higher prices, and a shrinking selection of affordable options. 

How bad is the EV situation in the US?

The IEA’s Global EV Outlook 2026, released May 20, puts the global picture in sharp relief.

Electric car sales exceeded 20 million units in 2025, growing 20% from 2024. On average, EV battery prices dropped 8% due to lower raw material costs and wider adoption of lithium iron phosphate chemistry. 

Contrary to the global trends, US sales went the other way, slightly down year-on-year. But it is when you look at the last quarter of 2025, which recorded 45% lower new EV sales than the same period in 2024, that you realize how grim the picture is. 

Why is the US falling behind on EV affordability?

The biggest reason behind the declining sales is the recent policy changes. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act eliminated tax credits for new and used EV purchases after September 2025. It also removed penalties for automakers that fail to meet fuel efficiency standards, essentially reducing the industry’s financial incentive to prioritize EVs. 

Then there’s the 100% important duties on Chinese EVs, even the affordable ones, which are among the world’s most affordable and dominate sales across Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Europe. These are practically unavailable to American buyers. 

Finally, it’s the preference for large vehicles that is keeping prices out of reach for many buyers. The report mentions that more than 85% of EV models available in the US are SUVs or other large vehicles. These come with bigger batteries, which cost more, pushing the average EV price higher. 

The US seems to be doubling down on premium and heavy EVs, but in other markets like Europe, small EVs are expanding rapidly. Vietnam, where EV penetration exceeded 40% in 2025 driven by VinFast’s affordable small models, illustrates exactly what accessible pricing can achieve. 

The impact is also visible is the Big Three’s EV strategy

Faced with slower-than-expected consumer demand, shifting federal policy, and profitability pressures, the Big Three automakers have already scaled back their fully electric vehicle plans. Instead, they’re pivoting toward plug-in hybrids, traditional gas-electric hybrids, and ICE trucks.

For instance, Ford scrapped its three-row electric SUV, absorbing a $400 million write-down. The company has also pulled the plug on its all-electric F-150 Lightning. Instead, it is reinventing it as a range-extended electric vehicle (EREV), that will provide over 700 miles of range.

Automaker	Previous Ambition	Current Strategy
Ford	Aggressive EV scaling (Three-Row EV, T3 Truck)	Scrapped 3-row EV; hybrid options for all gas models
General Motors	All-electric lineup focus	Reduced EV production; reintroducing plug-in hybrids (PHEVs)
Stellantis	Rapid transition to pure BEV platforms	Focus on gas-extended EVs (Ramcharger) and 4xe plug-in hybrids

General Motors has also reduced its short-term EV production target, abandoning its goal of reaching a one-million-unit EV manufacturing capacity. The automaker is redirecting its manufacturing capacity to prioritize the production of gas-powered trucks and SUVs. 

Stellantis is also focusing on multi-energy vehicles. While the IEA report highlights how consumers are responding to the less favorable scenario in the EV market, the Big Three’s pivot away from pure EVs reflects the shift in demand.

Toyota and Lexus may have just shelved one of the most exciting electric vehicle concepts shown in recent years. According to reports from Automotive News and Nikkei Asia, Toyota has halted development of the next-generation Lexus EV that was expected to be based on the futuristic LF-ZC concept.

For EV enthusiasts and Lexus fans, the news is particularly disappointing because the LF-ZC represented one of the clearest signs that Lexus was finally preparing to make a serious leap into the premium electric future.

One of Lexus’ most ambitious EV projects has reportedly been paused

The Lexus LF-ZC concept was first revealed in late 2023 as part of Toyota’s next-generation EV strategy. The sleek fastback sedan featured aggressive aerodynamic styling, an ultra-modern cabin, steer-by-wire technology, and promises of significantly improved battery efficiency and range.

Toyota had originally planned to launch a production version around 2026 as one of the brand’s most advanced EVs yet. The vehicle was also expected to introduce several next-generation manufacturing technologies, including giga-casting and advanced software-driven architecture.

Now, however, reports suggest the automaker has suspended development of the project while reassessing EV demand, production priorities, and broader market conditions. Toyota reportedly told suppliers that the LF-ZC-based EV program was being halted while the company reevaluates future plans. According to Automotive News, Toyota cited fluctuations in EV demand and the workload tied to vehicle planning and manufacturing as key reasons behind the decision.

The move comes during a complicated moment for the global EV industry. While electric vehicle adoption continues growing overall, several automakers have recently slowed or delayed EV expansion plans amid softer-than-expected demand growth in some markets, rising production costs, and uncertainty around charging infrastructure.

Why this matters

The cancellation or delay matters because the LF-ZC was not just another concept car. It represented Lexus’ attempt to redefine itself for the electric era.

Compared to Lexus’ current EV lineup, which has often been criticized for being conservative or late compared to rivals, the LF-ZC looked genuinely futuristic. It promised longer range, lighter construction, more efficient batteries, and software-focused features designed to compete directly against premium EV brands.

The decision also reinforces Toyota’s much more cautious approach toward full electrification compared to companies like Tesla, BYD, and even traditional rivals rapidly expanding EV lineups. Toyota has consistently argued that hybrids, plug-in hybrids, hydrogen, and EVs should coexist rather than pushing aggressively toward fully electric vehicles alone.

What happens next

Toyota has not officially killed the LF-ZC entirely, meaning the project could still return later in revised form. The company is still expected to continue developing next-generation EV technologies, including solid-state batteries and new software platforms for future Lexus vehicles.

But for now, one of the most visually striking and technologically ambitious Lexus EVs appears stuck in limbo. And honestly, that is frustrating. Because in a market increasingly crowded with similar-looking electric crossovers, the LF-ZC actually felt bold, futuristic, and different – exactly the kind of EV many enthusiasts hoped Lexus would finally build.