Toronto, Ontario — In this week’s EV/AV report, Ford invests in electric vehicle production while Pierre Poilievre calls for the repeal of the EV sales mandate, Elon Musk will receive $29 billion from Tesla and Tensor announces that the first privately owned AV is now available.
EV Expenditure
A Ford factory in Michigan will produce the lower-cost batteries to power the trucks. According to Ford, the production of EVs will result in a 15 percent faster assembly line, with three sub-assembly lines operating simultaneously before being joined together.
Ford is investing nearly $2 million USD to convert its Louisville Assembly Plant into an EV manufacturing facility. The Louisville plant previously manufactured gas-powered vehicles for 70 years, and the first EV produced in 2027 will be a midsize, four-door electric pickup truck.
Cost of Compensation
Tesla chief executive officer Elon Musk is receiving a $29 billion pay package from the Tesla board as part of its effort to reinstate Musk’s 2018 pay package. The Tesla board wrote in a letter to shareholders that the award is a “first step, ‘good faith’ payment.
Musk would get 96 million shares of Tesla in the package. Each share trades at just over $300, and Musk would only need to pay $23.34 per share, an amount equal to what he was expected to pay when he was first awarded his 2018 compensation package. Musk is continuing to appeal Delaware Chancery Court Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick’s ruling rejecting his 2018 pay package.
AV Availability
The agentic AI company Tensor announced its Tensor Robocar, the world’s first privately-owned AV, is now available for purchase in late 2026. According to Tensor, the vehicle will be sold in the U.S., Europe and the United Arab Emirates. The cost has not been revealed yet.
Tensor is a Silicon Valley-based startup creating a future where individuals own their own artificial general intelligence. Every system of the robocar is designed from the ground up to provide AI perception, safety and reliability according to Tensor. Features of the L4 Robocar include a low hood profile, radar-transparent materials, unobstructed lidar sight-lines and 100 integrated sensors.
EV Exchange
Leader of the Opposition Pierre Poilievre announced on August 14 that his party intends to introduce motions, petitions and pressure campaigns to get Prime Minister Mark Carney to repeal the EV sales mandate.
When describing his nationwide campaign in a news conference in Corman Park, Saskatchewan, Poilievre stated that the EV mandate is a “complete and utter disaster” and that launching this campaign is to “force the Liberals to back down … on the gas vehicle ban.”
Last month, Carney met with three CEOs of major Canadian automakers who are lobbying for the removal of the EV mandate. The Liberals have not said whether or not the mandate will be kept or removed.
