Shift: A podcast about mobility

Bob Lee, the North American president of LG Energy Solution, details how the ongoing tariff turmoil has both helped and hindered the company’s long-term planning efforts.He details how the company’s decision to invest in a variety of battery chemistries, produced at eight different North American factories, has brought a growing number of interested customers, despite a more tepid electric vehicle market. Further, he discusses what happens next now that LG has bought General Motors’ stake in a former joint venture.

Steven Jenkins, vice president of technology strategy at Magna Electronics, discusses how partnerships with the likes of Nvidia spur progress and sophistication in driver-assistance systems.Further, he explains how suppliers remain central in the commercialization of vehicles while working with tech companies and traditional automakers.Finally, he offers firsthand observations on China’s automated-driving future, and shares thoughts on how Western carmakers can keep pace.

Grayson Brulte, founder and CEO of The Road to Autonomy, discusses recent developments in autonomous driving, including Sterling Anderson’s departure from Aurora for a new job at General Motors.Brulte details Aurora’s driverless launch and a short-seller report that has since detoured the self-driving truck startup.He further surveys Waymo’s progress, sizes up Tesla as a potential robotaxi rival and — finally — ponders a doomsday scenario for the city of Detroit.

The executive vice president and chief technology officer at Oshkosh Corp. details the company’s efforts to infuse automated driving technology into work vehicles with niche applications.Those applications range from airport baggage trolleys to garbage trucks — and even autonomous garbage cans that bring themselves to and from the curb. Iyengar explains the compelling business propositions behind those products.Further, she outlines Oshkosh’s defense business and discusses the state of the company’s work on electric vehicles with the U.S. Postal Service.

Benchmark Mineral Intelligence principal analyst Bryan Bille assesses policy changes in the first 100 days of President Donald Trump’s second term that affect critical mineral developments, batteries and the electric vehicle supply chain.Amid tariffs and a geopolitical rivalry with China as the backdrop, Bille compares and contrasts Trump’s plans to develop domestic mining and processing options with those of former President Joe Biden. Further, Bille details new seabed mining developments and the ripple effects of America’s search for rare-earth metals around the globe.

McKinsey’s partners Philipp Kampshoff and Patrick Hertzke break down results from the consulting firm’s annual global consumer pulse survey.They detail improvement in owner experiences with electric vehicles in the U.S. and the reasons driver-assist systems will likely become a “clear differentiator” with consumers in the years ahead.

Fischer, vice president of commercial and operations, discusses the tech startup’s new partnership with Nissan, which is Wayve’s first public tie-up with a global automaker.She details how Wayve’s end-to-end AI models help drive the company’s ability to rapidly scale, deliver on its global aspirations and forge an “AV 2.0″ era. Further, she discusses the allure of Level 3 automation and talks about what it’s like to transition from a traditional auto supplier to a tech startup.

On this week’s podcast, the chief technology officer and director of Woven by Toyota details the latest developments at Woven City, the company’s technology and mobility test bed located at the foot of Mount Fuji in Japan.He discusses Woven’s ongoing work with the Arene operating system and its role in accelerating the maturity of software-defined vehicles. Further, Absmeier explains Woven’s self-driving strategy and how it fits within the broader Toyota ecosystem.

The author of “Are We There Yet?: The American Automobile, Past, Present And Driverless” examines the effectiveness of efforts to improve road safety with automated-driving technology.In a wide-ranging discussion, he further discusses the appeal of Kei trucks, General Motors’ 1939 Futurama exhibit, Peak Auto, and the virtues of tech-free road trips.

Self-driving tech company Aurora Innovation plans to launch commercial service with its driverless trucks in April.In this episode, Nat Beuse, Aurora’s head of safety, and Gerardo Interiano, senior vice president of government relations, preview the launch and delve into the details of how the company prepared to safely deploy trucks with no humans aboard on public roads in Texas.