Max speaks to Quincy Lee, founder and CEO of Electric Era, a charging business that's integrating high-quality hardware with smart software and batteries to deploy rapidly at retailers like Costco for low cost. It's a story of entrepreneurship, quality-obsession, and paving the infrastructure for the future. Electric Era's Site Quincy's Twitter Quincy's LinkedIn American EV Jobs Alliance Messaging Campaign Subscribe to Directly Current

Electric towing is hard, particularly when you're hauling a big family-sized camper that can halve a Rivian's range. Lightship is a startup that's laser-focused on solving that pickle by engineering a smart trailer that not only makes itself more aerodynamic in motion, but also pulls its own weight with an e-axle and independent battery system. It's a clever piece of tech but it also costs a pretty penny. Max speaks with Toby Kraus, the CEO of Lightship, on what it's like building EV hardware in Colorado and how he and the team are dealing with challenges like unpredictable tariff policy. He also hints at some future developments that might drive down the price tag much as EVs themselves have gotten cheaper and more accessible. Lightship's Website for the AE.1 Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

Long before the Tesla Roadster or GM EV.1 were a twinkle in engineers' eyes, there were people hard at work making whacky electric cars in their garages. Declan Kavanaugh, a college student and budding engineer interning at startup Telo Trucks, is one such enthusiast, taking pride in buying cheap EV curiosity projects from the 1970s and restoring them with modern-day battery technology and upgrades. He documents his efforts in entertaining fashion on YouTube. This episode is a fun one for the nerds among you, and if you're still unsure what a kilowatt is worry not, Max and Declan break down some of the jargon as they dive down the messy history of electric cars into our present day. In the present, they discuss the buzz around Telo as well as Slate Auto's cheap mini electric pickup, examining how new niches are starting to become possible with better commoditized technology that can (hopefully) be built for affordable prices in America. Mentioned Links: Declan's YouTube Channel TELO TRUCK's Website Follow The Podcast: Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance Reach Out to Max with Feedback: max.patten@colorado.edu

Harbinger Motors is making medium-duty electric trucks in America, which believe it or not, almost no one else is. While Rivian, GM, Ford, and Daimler have rolled out light duty vans for deliveries, John Harris wants to make chassis for vehicles with higher gross vehicle weight ratings for delivery customers with those needs. Of course, we talk tariffs—an ongoing and changing development for the auto industry—and how his company is dealing with them through vertical integration. Mentioned Links: Harbinger Motors' Website Follow The Podcast: Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance Contact Us: max.patten@colorado.edu

Andrew Lambrecht owns a Tesla Model 3, freelance writes for several EV publications, and is a graduating engineering student who's interned at startups like Lucid Motors. Max speaks to him to get a sense of where Tesla lies as a company in 2025 amidst a chaotic and unpredictable CEO, global headwinds, an aging product lineup, and revolt among some of its most formerly loyal customers. While we've explored the polling data behind this at EV Politics (and will continue to do so!) it's worth hearing from an educated expert on the company and someone invested in its product on where they stand. Even if you hold your nose and decide to buy a Tesla, how competitive are they when you can buy a Hyundai IONIQ 5, Mustang Mach-E, or even lightly used older Tesla for less? Max and Andrew also go over the story by analyzing their colleague John Voelcker's excellent piece on Tesla's messy, seemingly unbreakable bond with Elon Musk. Mentioned Links: Andrew's Podcast, The Current Review John Voelcker's Article For InsideEVs on Tesla and Musk Follow The Podcast: Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance Contact Us: max.patten@colorado.edu

Max, Mike, Joe, and Sarah from the EV Politics team break down the goings-on at the EV Charging Summit and Expo live from Las Vegas. They also react in real time to the 25% imported car tariff. Special guest star Tom Moloughney! Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

EV charging is a hard business, and it's only gotten tougher with the federal axing of incentive programs like NEVI. But Rohan Puri, CEO and co-founder of Stable, thinks there's a way to make it sustainable in the long term. His company uses data analytics so that site hosts can have happy accounts and keep deploying electrons to a growing population of EV drivers. Check out Stable's Site and Data Insights Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

Max speaks with Mike Colias, WSJ autos reporter and author of "Inevitable: Inside The Messy, Unstoppable Transition to Electric Vehicles" about his just-published book and the stories of American innovation and manufacturing he encountered along the way, from the booming low-interest early 2020s to the messy reality of today's EV transition amidst a hostile Trump administration. Order Mike's Book Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

Tom Moloughney—who hosts State of Charge on YouTube, maintains an EV charging news site, and cohosts the Batteries Included Podcast—is the go-to guru for EV charging. He's covered EVs since the BMW Mini E program in the late 2000s. Max speaks with him on developments in DC fast charging as well as how normal people can know how to pick a good "Level 2" charger for their home. Subscribe to State of Charge:  @StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney Read His Charger Reviews and News Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

Ro Khanna is the Democratic House representative of CA-17, better known as Silicon Valley. He's a popular progressive candidate, serving his fourth term, but he's also moderate and pro-business. He wrote a book on American entrepreneurship and manufacturing, has taught at Stanford, and been close with tech leaders like Elon Musk. Max speaks with the vocal and talented Congressman to get an idea of how Democrats can seize the moment, and message the future to weary Americans in the wake of Trump's comeback and regressive chants like "Drill, Baby Drill!". Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

EVs may be on a mission to save the planet, but they could also save some of our country’s most frequent drivers by being much cheaper to run. Matthew Metz, founder of data and policy firm Coltura, joins the show to talk how gasoline superusers can save on EVs and give Max some legislative and political insights into how battles over electric car policy at the state level might play out. Calculate EV Savings on Coltura’s Site Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

Max goes over how to bargain hunt for a new, or used, or even leased EV with the looming death of the Inflation Reduction Act's clean vehicle tax credit. Eligible New Cars Eligible Old Cars Learn More About the American EV Jobs Alliance

Happy post-Thanksgiving season! Max sits down with Doron Myersdorf, CEO of Israeli battery startup StoreDot, to talk battery technology and what the US can learn from the rest of the world when it comes to industrial policy. Subscribe to Directly Current Learn More about The American EV Jobs Alliance

Max picks the brain of White House and Tesla alum Rohan Patel, who pivoted from advising Obama on climate policy to working at the world's leading EV player for eight years making pivotal business and policy decisions. With the state of the Inflation Reduction Act in question given a new administration and Republican control of Congress, what does Rohan think of the US' current place in the race to transition to green energy and EVs against China—even if not everyone's on board? Follow Rohan on X Find out more about the American EV Jobs Alliance

Max is joined by Mike Murphy as well as Executive Editor of Automotive News, Jamie Butters, to talk EVs in the wake of a big Election night for Republicans across the board. Trump and Elon's alliance looms large, as do headwinds for EVs in the US amidst the march of ever more available and cheaper vehicles. It's not all doom and gloom, we promise! Listen to The Daily Drive Podcast Learn More about The American EV Jobs Alliance

Max speaks to John Heilemann, journalist with Puck News and analyst with NBC to discuss how the candidates are treating (or not treating) EVs in the final sprint to election day, and WTF is going on with Elon Musk and Trump. Listen to John's Podcast at Puck Find out more about the American EV Jobs Alliance

There’s no question when it comes to selling EVs in the US, or making a profit on them, Tesla is king. But between an erratic CEO, public scrutiny over delay after delay on self driving promises, and signs of flagging demand in key markets like California, there’s some reason to have doubts. Nonetheless, their recent Q3 results exceeded expectations and saw an ambitious growth forecast. To break it down, I needed someone who has a handle on not just Tesla as a stock, but the auto industry at large in this strange but precipitous moment. On this episode, Max speaks with Bloomberg’s Corey Cantor, who works for their NEF division specifically covering electric vehicles and the auto market. Let’s talk Tesla, emerging competition from Hyundai Motor Group and General Motors, and the long-term future of the EV market in the US amidst booming hybrid sales. Learn More About The American EV Jobs Alliance Subscribe To Us In Your Podcast App

Max speaks with Secretary of the DOT, former South Bend Mayor, and 2020 Demoratic primary candidate Pete Buttigieg to talk EVs, jobs in the USA, and improving infrastructure with NEVI. Spoiler: his office doesn’t think every American needs to get an EV tomorrow, but he wants to set the US up for success in the global stage so that we don't fall behind. Learn More About The American EV Jobs Alliance: https://evpolitics.org  Subscribe To Us In Your Podcast App: https://audioboom.com/channels/5137915-directly-current-the-ev-politics-podcast

EVs and Chinas have become intertwined, mostly because China has developed an unassailable lead in making the most important, and most expensive component of any electric car. They aren’t just a political target just of Donald Trump, who led the charge on an all-out trade war in his first term in office. The current Biden administration is imposing a 25% tarriff on any vehicle with a Chinese battery pack, and it’s unlikely a Harris successor White House would change that. Either way, the best batteries are being made in China, and it’s an all out race between the United States and our allies like South Korea to compete while stalling the damage from their China’s lead. For this episode Max speaks with The Information’s Steve LeVine, who runs their reporting on the battery arms race and EVs at large, aptly branded The Electric. Steve is a career journalist who’s covered international affairs in countries like Russia and Kazakhstan, the market for oil in the wake of the soviet union, and most recently, the chaotic new economy and arms race happening with batteries. He even wrote a book about it in 2015. The story of EV batteries is also the story of the world’s greatest superpowers duking it out. Let’s get up to speed with him. Steve's newsletter The Electric: https://www.theinformation.com/features/the-electric Steve's 2015 Book, The Powerhouse, on How US Labs Invented The Modern Rechargeable Battery: https://www.amazon.com/Powerhouse-America-China-Great-Battery/dp/0143128329/ Learn More About The American EV Jobs Alliance: https://evpolitics.org Subscribe To Us In Your Podcast App: https://audioboom.com/channels/5137915-directly-current-the-ev-politics-podcast

Max speaks to Elena Ciccotelli of the EVs 4 Everyone Podcast to get some insights on the industry and how EVs are being sold, as well as break down some of the more common social media misconceptions that is virally spread about them. EVs 4 Everyone: https://evs4everyone.com Learn More About The American EV Jobs Alliance: https://www.evpolitics.org/

The show returns with a headline guest! Political guru and Obama shaman David Axelrod joins Directly Current to weigh in electric vehicle's polarized politics and Max helps recommend him a suitable EV — that isn't a Tesla! Learn More About EV Politics and the American EV Jobs Alliance: https://evpolitics.org Email Us For Feedback! - Max.Patten@colorado.edu

Max sits down for a nerdy chat with young engineer and Clemson student Andrew Lambrecht, who's already making waves in the EV industry hot off the heels of a summer internship at Lucid and freelance writing extensively on EV bargains and market watch for outlets like Business Insider and InsideEVs. Let's learn how EVs are truly better from a technological point of view and why young talented people like Andrew want to work on them! Andrew's Podcast: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-current-review/

EVs need DC fast charging to work for long highway trips, but retailers and merchants need to know it's worth their time and energy to install them. In this episode Max sits down with Karl Doenges, EV charging liaison at the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), and John Eichberger, who works for their Transportation Energy Institute (TEI), to understand how fuel retailers can play a major role in expanding the country's immature and sometimes unreliable network of DC fast chargers for electric cars—just like they've done with gas before. Learn About TEI's Research: https://www.transportationenergy.org/ Email For Feedback: max.patten@colorado.edu

In the first episode of Directly Current, Max sits down with venerable Republican political strategist Mike Murphy, who's worked on many high-profile campaigns since the Reagan days, to discuss why conservatives dislike EVs and what the national climate for them looks like in the US amidst a turbulent election year. Learn More About EV Politics and EV Jobs For America: https://www.evpolitics.org

Welcome to the EV Politics podcast, Directly Current.