Highway Charging Plan To Stay, Super Cruise Subscriptions, Klarna Hires AI?

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8 days to Christmas, and we’re covering how Biden’s plans to add highway charging infrastructure will continue under President Trump. Plus, we look at GM’s latest subscription add-on and ask if it will work, and examine a company that claims it has stopped hiring because AI can do all the work.

Show Notes with links:

• The Biden administration’s plan to blanket U.S. highways with federally funded EV chargers will keep moving forward – no matter who sits in the Oval Office come next year.
  • The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program has already allocated about half its funding to states, with the rest preapproved.
  • So far, 11 states have opened 30 federally backed sites with more than 130 ports, aimed at creating chargers every 50 miles along major highways.
  • States manage their own programs, though 10 states have yet to submit project proposals, potentially slowing progress in certain regions.
  • Once the initial 50-mile network is complete, funds can go toward chargers in cities, suburbs, and rural areas, with faster, high-powered stations expected to follow.
  • Atlas Public Policy’s Nick Nigro says Congress doesn’t need to act: “Funding is already going out, and construction is underway.”
  • Loren McDonald, chief analyst of Paren said it’s too late to stop the momentum. “It would take almost an act of God for Trump or Congress to overturn it.”

• General Motors is facing a critical moment as introductory Super Cruise subscriptions start to expire, testing its long-term strategy to build a robust revenue stream from subscriptions.
  • Super Cruise is a Level 2 autonomy system and GM aims to generate $25 billion annually from subscriptions and services by 2030.
  • Our friend Jamie Butters wrote an op-ed about this for Automotive News and commented on the price point: ““At $10 a month, I’d consider it a no-brainer — even though I’m kind of a cheapskate and resistant to subscriptions. At $50 a month — as some Google searches indicate — it’s an easy no. The price listed on Cadillac.com is temptingly in between: $25 a month or $250 a year.”

• Klarna’s CEO, Sebastian Siemiatkowski, recently touted AI’s role in reducing the company’s workforce, but a closer look reveals the buy now, pay later giant hasn’t fully swapped humans for machines just yet.
  • Klarna reduced its workforce from 4,500 to 3,500 over the past year, largely due to natural attrition and a hiring freeze.
  • Siemiatkowski claims, “AI can already do all of the jobs that we as humans do,” crediting AI with enabling efficiency gains.
  • Klarna is still hiring, with 50+ open roles

Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

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