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Episode #1203: Autonomy expands its EV subscription fleet with new brands, Foxconn doubles down on becoming a global EV battery powerhouse, and the U.S. labor market enters a “Great Freeze” that’s keeping both hiring and firing on ice. 

Show Notes with links:

• EV subscription company Autonomy has secured $25 million to add more than 1,200 vehicles and broaden its lineup beyond Tesla.
  • Autonomy operates a subscription-based model where customers choose an EV in the app, pay by credit card, and receive delivery through dealer partners.
  • New funding brings in Polestar and Volvo models, plus updated Tesla Model 3 and Model Y variants.
  • Recent model-year and off-lease CPO EVs are being added to offer more price points for subscribers.
  • Dealer partners handle delivery—Galpin Motors will lead the Polestar rollout in L.A. using a Deloitte-built digital experience.
  • “Our goal is to make getting a car as easy as streaming a movie… on the customer’s terms,” said founder & CEO Scott Painter.

• Foxconn—the same company that builds your iPhone—is rapidly reinventing itself again, this time as a global battery supplier capable of powering future cars, buses, and data centers.
  • A new $193M battery plant in Kaohsiung is ramping from 0.5 GWh to 1.2 GWh next year, supplying commercial vehicles now and passenger EVs in 2025.
  • Foxconn says it can replicate its full, automated, 85% in-house battery supply chain anywhere in the world, creating local supply for OEM partners.
  • Its EV lineup is expanding (Model C, B, D, E, A), and the company has its first U.S. customer for the Model C—awaiting North American certification.
  • Partnerships are multiplying, including a new electric-bus venture with Mitsubishi Fuso using Foxconn-built battery packs.
  • “We can duplicate this anywhere and scale up,” said Troy Wu, global battery strategy lead. “Customers are looking for one-stop shopping.”

• A chill has settled over the American labor landscape as companies avoid both layoffs and hiring, creating what economists are calling the “Great Freeze.” It’s a market stuck in neutral—good for job security, not so great for career mobility.
  • Layoffs remain low, but hiring has also slowed as companies cling to workers while avoiding expansion during economic uncertainty.
  • Tariff questions, AI impact, supply constraints, and weak pockets like construction are all contributing to hesitancy in adding headcount.
  • Companies are holding onto workers for stability, but a recession could break that trend. Unemployment is still low, yet job openings have fallen to 7.2 million.
  • Career growth is stalling as workers struggle to move roles or negotiate raises in a low-turnover environment.
  • “We’re seeing employers and job seekers both trying to wait out any of t

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