Alliance for Automotive Innovation

NEW sales and productions nos. from #ReadingTheMeter → Inventory, transaction prices, global forecasts, #EVs, more… Full report: https://bit.ly/3WWGiYn

Got out of Washington this week and headed to #Nashville for an auto meeting with Senator Marsha Blackburn, Senator Bill Hagerty, automakers, suppliers and state officials... I’ve gone to #Tennessee countless times during my 25 years in the business and watched the state emerge as an auto powerhouse. A true success story → ✅225,000 jobs ✅$16.8 billion in labor income ✅670,000 vehicles produced ✅$5 billion in parts and vehicle exports ✅$12.5 billion in #EV and battery manufacturing investments ALL things we’re proud of… But this was also a chance to get industry, policymakers and economic development officials around one table to talk about the future (and ask some tough questions): How do we keep Tennessee a place that attracts... and retains these massive auto investments? And remains a magnet for talent? Are auto regulations and the policy environment striking the right balance? What’s happening around the world... particularly in #China... that has a 15-year head start on electrification and dominates certain global #supplychains? No easy answers... but a necessary dialogue about an industry that underpins American economic and national security and supports auto communities across the country. Can’t wait to get back on the road and show more policymakers what we’re building in their state. Got an idea...? Hit me up here... Thanks again to Senator Blackburn, Senator Hagerty, Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development | Commissioner Stuart C McWhorter | Braden Stover, University of Tennessee System | Victoria Hirschberg, Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce | Ryan Egly, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, DENSO, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, American Honda Motor Company, Inc., LG Electronics Vehicle component Solutions, Magna International, Nissan Motor Corporation, Toyota Motor Corporation and Volkswagen Group.

In a fireside chat with Alliance for Automotive Innovation President & CEO John Bozzella and Jeff Marootian, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Jeff emphasized the crucial role of partnerships in driving the EV transition. It's clear that neither the private nor public sectors can achieve this alone. Collaboration is essential to advancing R&D strategies, strengthening supply chains, and deploying advanced technologies. #MBS24

I came across this recent article: WCBS Radio, the Soundtrack of Countless Cab Rides, Goes Quiet (The New York Times | https://bit.ly/46VKMDu) It details the struggles of an iconic #AMradio station in #NewYork and got me thinking about the ‘debate’ in Washington over a law requiring analog AM radio in all vehicles. I’ve talked a lot about why there’s no need – safety or otherwise – for that. (See HERE→ https://bit.ly/3Qp2uba and HERE→ https://bit.ly/3UYZp4T.) But I’m a New Yorker... so it stirred some nostalgia: “[𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛] ℎ𝑒𝑙𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑢𝑝 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑢𝑛𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑑𝑟𝑜𝑝 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒. 𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟, 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑘𝑓𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒, 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑏𝑠. 𝐼𝑡 𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑙𝑎𝑚𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑒𝑔𝑎𝑠. 𝐼𝑡 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑣𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑖𝑛𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑢𝑟𝑏𝑎𝑛 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔... 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑝𝑜𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑙 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑁𝑒𝑤 𝑌𝑜𝑟𝑘.” But nostalgia and sentimentality aren’t reasons for new government mandates... is it? Times and customer habits have changed... and there are lots of options now to get news and entertainment while driving (in fact, the station will broadcast over the app): “𝑃𝑟𝑒-𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑝ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑠, 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑑𝑛’𝑡 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑎 𝑇𝑉, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 ℎ𝑎𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑟 𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑜𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑦-𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑜𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑑... 𝑓𝑜𝑟 ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑠... 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡’𝑠 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑔𝑜𝑡 𝑖𝑛𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛𝑒𝑤𝑠 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑝𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐 𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑙𝑠.” Look, you can be an AM radio fan... (I am, and lucky the station will still carry my beloved Mets.) You can remember the ol’ days with affection... (I do.) And you can believe that Congressional intervention to prop up advertising supported analog AM broadcast is wrong... (It is.)

In #Nashville for auto industry roundtable with U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty -->    Automakers + suppliers + biz community + econ. development officials + University of Tennessee System...    #supplychain #infrastructure R&D #workforce #natsec #China #Tennessee #TN

Something significant at the intersection of transportation, #safety and connectivity to report→ I was at U.S. Department of Transportation HQ for the release of the agency’s new ‘Saving Lives with Connectivity: A Plan to Accelerate #V2X Deployment.’ A big deal... and a major RESET moment in the long and winding road to get this lifesaving technology deployed. V2X (aka vehicle-to-everything) holds a lot of promise... but it’s been held back by regulatory uncertainty. Ahhh, yes... the dreaded regulatory uncertainty. But it’s true... calls for a policy and regulatory environment to support widescale V2X deployment (including from Alliance for Automotive Innovation) have gone largely unanswered. Until now. Some great leadership and lots of credit to Administrator Shailen Bhatt of the Federal Highway Administration and USDOT Research and Technology’s Dr. Robert C. Hampshire for getting this national strategy across the finish line. It tells me this: We can work as partners – government and industry – and use cutting-edge technology to SAVE LIVES. Read the national V2X plan→ https://bit.ly/3WPx800 NPR: U.S. presses the ‘reset button' on technology that lets cars talk to each other→ https://n.pr/4fT7DTW Watch my remarks on C-SPAN→ https://bit.ly/4dR55Uv

Saving Lives w/ Connectivity → This U.S. Department of Transportation #V2X plan is a big deal. John Bozzella: "We can do this... we can work as partners... government and industry... and we can use cutting edge technology to SAVE LIVES..." #safety

Welcome Lindsay Abate → Director, Technology Policy 👋 https://bit.ly/474egiB

👀EV sales and public charging data for ALL 50 states →   ✅#EVs = 9.3% of new light-duty vehicle sales in Q1 2024…   ⬆️from 8.6% in Q1 2023 and 5.9% in Q1 2022.   #GetConnected #ElectricVehicles https://bit.ly/3W1Fa6A

Just returned from a few days in #Michigan at the Center for Automotive Research’s #MBS2024. (Next year is the 60th anniversary of this annual event...) Great to see #MBS back as a destination for auto insiders focused on the industry’s future. CAR really delivered this year with important new research on #EV affordability and the economic impact of the industry... networking... and lots of A-list speakers. Who? Glad you asked... Mark Reuss, President of General Motors went behind the headlines (and the handwringing) with perspective on consumer demand for electrification and other market trends... We also heard from: Allan Swan of Panasonic Energy of North America and Robert H. Lee of LG Energy Solution on advanced #battery technology and manufacturing... Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation on auto manufacturing and workforce development in Michigan... Shailen Bhatt, Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration on saving lives on the roads plus transportation systems of the future (#V2X, #AI, automation)... Toyota Motor Corporation, Rivian, #MEMA and the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) on the election and what a swing of the policy pendulum means for automakers... Joe Hinrichs, CEO of CSX on his jump from the auto industry to the railroad business... Just to name a few... Alliance for Automotive Innovation also hosted its first #ElectricVehicle #SupplyChain Summit with officials from the National Economic Council, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), U.S. Department of the Treasury, Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) and government of #Canada. I’m a big (big) believer in CAR’s mission: independent, nonpartisan and timely research... that benefits the *entire* auto industry, policymakers, investors and the media... It’s the kind of data-driven analysis we need now more than ever. Great to see you there. Hit me up here to continue the conversation... ICYMI... check out my interview with Automotive News on the #DailyDrive podcast: https://lnkd.in/etJHrEH3