Automakers’ New Drives: Volkswagen's Cheapest EV, GM's New AI Chief, Hyundai's Robotaxi, & More

While the world has been busy with the amazing innovations and industry-altering announcements revealed at World Mobile Congress (WMC) 2025—both consumer- and business-centric—the automotive industry has witnessed a few interesting updates itself.

Volkswagen announced its cheapest electric vehicle (EV) yet!

The ID EVERY1 is a small four-door hatchback that uses software and architecture from fellow automaker Rivian—leveraging a joint venture signed between the two companies. The car is expected to come in with a price tag of €20,000 or $21,500 (starting) and is expected to go into production in 2027.

Its production version will be the first model to use a fundamentally new, particularly powerful software architecture, enabling future entry-level Volkswagen to be equipped with new functions throughout its entire life cycle.

“In the future models, we talk about Customer Defined Vehicles. The ID. EVERY1 shows that we are putting our customers, their wishes, interests, and preferences at the center of vehicle development more consistently than ever,” said Kai Grünitz, a member of the Volkswagen Brand Board of Management responsible for Technical Development.

In addition to another EV called ID.2all—which is expected to cost somewhere around €25,000 or $27,000 and become available in 2026—Volkswagen plans to reveal a total of nine new models by 2027, which includes four electric models based on the new modular electric drive (MEB) platform with front-wheel drive.


Fresh from wrapping up its robotaxi dream with Cruise, General Motors revealed its new plan was to focus on developing its Super Cruise driver assistance technology—a rival to Tesla's Autopilot—with the expectation of raking in billions of dollars in revenue.

To help the company realize this dream, GM announced the appointment of Barak Turovsky as its first chief artificial intelligence (AI) officer. Turovsky is the former head of AI at Cisco and played a leading role in the technology for Google (which operated Cruise’s rival Waymo).

Turovsky will join the company’s software and services engineering team, and report to Dave Richardson—SVP of the department—who said, “Turovsky “will accelerate the team’s AI efforts, including enhancing products, optimizing operations, and improving the customer experience,” as “AI is central to GM’s EV, ICE, and autonomous future.”

Speaking about robotaxis, Texas-based autonomous vehicle/robot delivery startup Avride announced that it has partnered with globally renowned automobile manufacturer Hyundai to co-develop self-driving vehicles.

The company will also expand its fleet to 100 Hyundai IONIQ 5 cars this year and further in 2026, as it looks to further its reach across more regions.

Avride also plans to explore autonomous delivery services using Avride’s robots. The move follows similar steps taken by Stellantis, Lyft, Uber, and others.

“Our team has been working with Hyundai Motor Group since 2019, and we value the professionalism and collaboration that have defined this partnership,” said Dmitry Polishchuk, CEO of Avride.

“This new agreement with Hyundai Motor Company will help us scale our operations significantly, with plans to expand our fleet to up to 100 autonomous IONIQ 5’s in 2025, leveraging Hyundai Motor’s IONIQ 5 and our autonomous driving technology.”


Keeping to the topic of self-driving vehicles, British startup Wayve said it will establish a new testing and development hub in Germany, specifically in the Stuttgart region.

Vingroup, the maker behind VinFast, announced that it has signed an MoU (memorandum of understanding) with private equity fund JTA Investment Qatar. As per the agreement, around $1 billion will be directed to the automakers EVs. Alternatively, the investment could extend to Vingroup's hospitality business Vinpearl, which owns hotels and resorts in Vietnam.

To safeguard users from mishaps, China’s Xiaomi said it would partner with insurance institutions to launch a smart driving protection service with a maximum liability of 3 million yuan ($413,439). As a leader in the smartphone market, Xiaomi participated in the WMC 2025, displaying its sleek SU7 Ultra EV amidst its Xiaomi 15 Ultra smartphone and more.

What do you think about the latest developments in the automotive industry?

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