Volkswagen Negotiations With IG Metall To Begin November 24, Audi Factory In US Rumored

cleantechnica.com Oct 26, 2026

Volkswagen Negotiations With IG Metall To Begin November 24, Audi Factory In US Rumored

Curated by Shubham · TechCapsules · Oct 26, 2026

AI-summarised brief · reviewed before publication

Volkswagen Group announced on September 30 that it would terminate wage provisions agreed with IG Metall in December 2024, affecting more than 100,000 German factory workers. The move follows a steep profit decline from €22.6 billion in 2023 to an expected €8.9 billion in 2025, prompting a plan to cut up to 100,000 jobs worldwide and shut four German plants. Management says the cancellations are needed to achieve €20 billion in savings by 2030 and to keep the company “fit for the future.” IG Metall condemned the action, warning of strikes after its no‑strike clause expires on January 1 2027 unless Volkswagen withdraws the termination by October 31. Collective‑bargaining talks are scheduled to start in Emden on November 24 and continue in Zwickau on December 15 in Germany next year ahead.

💡 Why It Matters

· The dispute pits Volkswagen’s survival strategy against hard‑won worker rights, setting a flashpoint that could reshape labor‑management dynamics in Europe’s largest automaker.

Capsules Transport

Read full article on cleantechnica.com

TechCrunch Mobility: Blue-green is the color of autonomy

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued a proposal that would require autonomous vehicles to display cyan‑colored lights when operating without a human driver, offering a visual cue to other road users. The guidance outlines equipment specifications, including steady illumination visible from all angles, and would eliminate the need for manually operated turn signals, high beams and hazard lights while the vehicle is in autonomous mode. The agency’s broader effort aims to modernize federal motor‑vehicle safety standards that were written for conventional cars, facilitating faster AV adoption. In parallel, General Motors announced a 2028 rollout of a new electrical and computing architecture for its Cadillac Escalade IQ, featuring accelerated software updates, advanced driver‑assist capabilities and a conversational AI that will replace OnStar. Rivian also disclosed the acquisition of UK‑based Third Dimension, a startup that uses AI to generate photorealistic 3D simulations, aiming to narrow the “sim‑to‑real” gap for autonomous‑driving data.

💡 Visible cyan lights could become the universal traffic language that instantly tells humans and machines an AV is in self‑driving mode, reducing uncertainty and improving safety on mixed‑traffic roads.

cleantechnica.com · Oct 26

New Li Auto i6 Goes 811 km (504 Miles)

Li Auto unveiled the i6, a futuristic‑styled MPV that achieved an 811 km (504 mi) real‑world range in a livestreamed test. The vehicle’s CLTC rating is 780 km, but the 96 kWh pack delivered 11.8 kWh per 100 km, allowing the extended distance. Li Auto replaced CATL cells with in‑house batteries produced with CALB and Sunwoda, adding 3 kWh of capacity and new SiC power modules that cut losses and boost winter range by 30 km. The Lian Shan pack supports 5C charging and is marketed with a no‑self‑ignition guarantee, offering a free replacement car if a fire occurs. The test around Lake Tai involved four passengers, luggage, 50 kg of gear, air‑conditioning on, and city speeds of 40‑80 km/h in 13‑20 °C weather. The i6 will join Li Auto’s lineup this year.

💡 By pushing real‑world range past 800 km, Li Auto forces rivals to rethink battery architecture and safety guarantees, accelerating the race for truly long‑distance EVs in China’s massive market.

teslarati.com · Oct 26

Tesla makes good on its Cybercab promise in just two weeks

Tesla has added a live rear‑camera feed and a full‑screen quiet mode to its Cybercab robotaxi service. Passengers can now tap the central display to view a strip of video from the vehicle’s rear camera, swipe to hide it, or expand to see additional exterior feeds, giving them visual awareness that was previously unavailable in the cabin. The quiet mode darkens the screen for riders who wish to rest or avoid glare at night. The updates, rolled out within two weeks of a request, required only software changes, leveraging the eight cameras already used for autonomy and Tesla’s Grok AI for camera‑view tuning. Tesla has not released notes and has not confirmed if the features will appear on Model Y robotaxis.

💡 Enabling passengers to see behind a driverless cab instantly addresses a safety blind spot inherent to mirror‑less designs, reinforcing user confidence as Tesla expands robotaxi deployments.

cleantechnica.com · Oct 25

Canada And EU Are Slip Sliding Away On Vehicle Emissions

Canada announced a three‑year freeze on its vehicle‑emissions standards, keeping the fleet‑average limit at 172 g CO₂ per mile (107 g/km) through 2029 before a gradual reduction to 74 g per mile (46 g/km). The government reiterated its target of 75 % electric new‑car sales by 2035 and pledged $2.5 billion in auto‑industry support. Ontario’s premier and the prime minister said the pause gives manufacturers flexibility amid trade pressures and allows generation of future greenhouse‑gas credits. Critics, including Clean Energy Canada and the Pembina Institute, warned the delay will hinder EV adoption, fuel‑cost savings and health benefits, while industry groups welcomed the certainty for jobs and investment. The policy also opens the market to up to 49,000 Chinese EVs with a 6.1 % tariff.

💡 The freeze reshapes Canada’s climate roadmap, giving domestic automakers breathing room but risking slower EV uptake and associated economic and health gains.

cleantechnica.com · Oct 25

Volkswagen Unleashes Wicked ID. Unyx 09 in China for $27,000

Volkswagen has launched the ID. Unyx 09 in China, the first model produced through its partnership with Chinese EV maker XPeng. The midsize‑to‑large sedan is offered in single‑motor and dual‑motor versions and priced between 179,900 yuan ($26,939) and 249,900 yuan ($37,421). It boasts a CLTC‑rated range of 755 km (469 mi) and is equipped with a 91.963 kWh lithium‑iron‑phosphate battery from CATL, 5C ultra‑fast charging, and a dual‑chamber air suspension. Exterior highlights include a closed grille, slim headlights and DLP matrix projection lamps that can display lane‑guidance light carpets. Inside, the vehicle uses XPeng’s Vision‑Language‑Action (VLA) intelligent driving assistance system for custom parking, remote parking and trace‑back reversing. Volkswagen hopes the model will revive its fortunes in the world’s largest auto market today.

💡 Leveraging XPeng’s AI‑driven assistance lets Volkswagen directly challenge domestic EV leaders on technology and price, testing whether a foreign brand can regain relevance in China’s fast‑evolving market.

cleantechnica.com · Oct 25

If Tesla’s Robotaxi Miles Keep Compounding at 20% a Week, the Math…

Tesla’s driverless fleet logged 438,000 unsupervised miles in the week to Oct. 18, edging past Waymo’s 406,000 miles for the same period in Austin. Company data show a jump from 250,000 miles last quarter to 1.7 million, then to 3.3 million within days, implying roughly 20 % weekly growth. At that rate, Tesla would surpass Waymo’s national weekly total of about 4 million miles in roughly 11 weeks and could reach 10 million weekly miles by week 16, overtaking half of Uber‑plus‑Lyft mileage in Austin, Dallas and Houston combined. Waymo’s growth has slowed to about 1.6 % quarter‑over‑quarter, with city‑level gains falling to single‑digit percentages, contrasting sharply with Tesla’s projected near‑970 % quarterly increase.

💡 Tesla’s accelerating unsupervised mileage could force a reassessment of LiDAR‑centric strategies and accelerate its push into the core ride‑hail market, challenging Waymo’s dominance in autonomous mobility.