Daily Tech News Show Kilowatt Interviews Jeremy Michalek - DTNS Weekend
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Nov 8, 2025 Jeremy Michalek, a professor at Carnegie Mellon specializing in vehicle electrification and public policy, joins Bodie Grimm to explore the economics and environmental impact of electric vehicles (EVs). They dive into how China secured its EV dominance through subsidies and joint ventures. Michalek discusses the Inflation Reduction Act's effects, consumer attitudes toward EVs, and the importance of battery recycling. He also highlights innovations that could drive EV adoption, emphasizing the long-term cost benefits for consumers.
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How China Achieved EV Momentum
- China leveraged falling battery costs to leapfrog ICE engineering complexity and scale EV production quickly.
- Electric drivetrains are simpler to engineer, making rapid market entry easier once batteries got cheap.
State Backing Created Scale And Price Pressure
- China combined state support and heavy supply-chain investment to create overcapacity and drive global price pressure.
- That overcapacity makes it hard for competitors to match low prices without similar scale or subsidies.
Processing Power Creates Supply Vulnerability
- China dominates refining and processing even when raw minerals come from other countries, creating chokepoints.
- Events in China can broadly disrupt global EV supply chains because much processing happens there.