eVTOL

Big News for the Next Generation of Electric Vehicle Batteries

September 21, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

It’s been a while since we had a look at the backlog of container ships waiting to unload their cargo at the Port of Los Angeles. The Pacific Ocean near Los Angeles, and San Francisco for that matter, looked like a parking lot during the pandemic… I saw it with my own eyes flying overhead to/from the West Coast.

I thought it might be interesting for us to check in and see what things are like today…

Not surprisingly, there has been a long decline in the queue of container ships since February of this year. The pandemic is clearly over, and logistics teams got back to work clearing out containers on the dock and returning to more normal operations.

August was still busy, with a queue of about 25 ships, but what happened in the last few weeks has been striking. At the start of this month, the queue had dropped to just eight ships, an all-time record low.

That might sound like a good thing. After all, the queue was a symptom of the lack of labor to both unload containers from ships, clear those containers through customs, and haul them out of the port via trucks to distribution centers. Finally, it appears that this backlog has cleared… which means that lead times for goods coming from Asia should quickly return back to pre-pandemic levels.

But the busy August masked what’s really going on. Container imports to the U.S. have collapsed 36% year-over-year. The rapid decline began in May, and it’s really starting to show in the numbers.

What does it mean? There’s an excess in inventories in consumer goods in the U.S., which make up more than 75% of all imports. With “real” inflation much higher than the consumer price index (CPI), discretionary spending has collapsed… and with it, demand.

Imports are suffering as a result. And it’s easy to see the weakening economy now that the Port of Los Angeles has cleared out its container backlog. There’s no hiding it now.

Sadly, even with excess inventories and rapidly declining freight costs, prices for goods and services will remain at elevated levels well into 2023. But on the bright side, the days of 6-month lead times, or not being able to find that PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, should be well behind us.

[Nomi Prins: 10x Gains on a Small Firm Disrupting a Critical American Industry]

A new player enters the fray to power EVs…

A very interesting company in Utah just came out of stealth mode – Ionic Mineral Technologies. This one caught my eye because it could be big news for the next generation of electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

Ionic Mineral Technologies mines halloysite – a mineral it uses to produce “nano-silicon.”

That’s possible because halloysite is an aluminum-silicate clay that naturally occurs with a nano-tubular structure. This quality makes it a great resource for producing high-quality nano-silicon as a material input for EV batteries.

We’ve written a lot in The Bleeding Edge about solid-state batteries. There is an extensive list of companies working on that technology. And most design their batteries with silicon anodes instead of graphite ones (the typical approach for lithium-ion batteries).

This is important for two big reasons…

First, compared to graphite, silicon anodes provide greater energy density (i.e., charge capacity).

This is key for solving a major issue holding back EV ownership – limited range. Silicon anodes enable people to travel further with these batteries before needing to recharge.

And second, a big EV owner complaint is the 30-45 minutes it takes for their cars to charge. The reality is that most EV owners don’t have access to a 240-volt charger at their home or apartment.

With silicon anode batteries, it’s possible to charge an EV to 80% capacity in about five minutes… a fraction of the time.

But these silicon anodes aren’t perfect. They suffer one major challenge. Silicon swells and contracts during the charge and discharge stages. And dendrites are formed during this process which can, in the worst case, lead to fires.

That’s where Ionic comes into play. It believes its nano-silicon will be a game changer with solid-state batteries. This nano-silicon material has the potential to address this swelling problem.

That’s why I’m going to be keeping an eye on Ionic. I’ll be watching in particular to see if any of the leading-edge EV battery companies begin to adopt the nano-silicon material.

Ionic is unique in that it owns the resource for producing nano-silicon. The company controls 2.4 million tons of halloysite resources in Utah. This is the world’s largest deposit of high-purity halloysite.

The company expects its Utah-based manufacturing plant will be up and running by the end of Q2 next year. Then it will have the capacity to produce tens of thousands of tons of nano-silicon a year that it can sell to battery makers.

And since Ionic is building its plant on U.S. soil, this will help domestic supply chains secure materials. It’s yet another piece in the Great Recalibration I’ve been writing about in these pages, and it’s potentially great news for domestic EV makers.

So this company could be revolutionary for solid-state EV batteries, especially if designs start incorporating its nano-silicon material.

[Breakthrough Tech: New Vehicle Shocks EV Market]

eVTOL technology continues gaining momentum…

We’ll continue with another frequent topic in these pages – electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles (eVTOLs).

United Airlines just stepped up and made a firm commitment for purchasing more electric air taxis.

Last year, we covered its $1 billion order for eVTOLs from Archer Aviation. This August, United paid out $10 million of that payment for the first 100 eVTOLs from Archer Aviation.

Well, now United is upping the ante for its electric air taxi fleet. The airline just ordered another 200 taxis from Eve Air Mobility, with an option to buy 200 more.

This order came as United invested $15 million into Eve Air. So it clearly sees something it likes… and is hedging its bets.

Now, keep in mind that this is not a recommendation for Eve Air (EVEX). Currently, it has an enterprise value of $2.9 billion, yet it’s years away from any kind of material revenue. It’s currently trading at a valuation that reflects about 63 times forward 2025 annual revenue estimates. And it’s going to be bleeding cash until that time. It will most certainly require additional financing that will further dilute shareholders.

So while this isn’t an interesting investment opportunity right now, it is still a company to watch. Major airlines are pairing up with their eVTOL partners in preparation for what they believe is coming.

The future of transportation includes how air transportation is changing. It’s not just about supersonic aircraft like the kind of technology that Boom Supersonic is pursuing. It’s also about the kinds of short hops that eVTOLs can support.

These air taxis can carry three or four passengers about 150 miles. This could enable people to commute to work from a rural area into a city.

Or people could use them to travel from one part of a city to another. Los Angeles or New York City are perfect examples. They have so much traffic, it can be miserable and inefficient getting around.

So people could opt for eVTOLs for convenience in congested cities. We could take an eVTOL right to JFK airport, bypassing all the traffic.

And these electric vehicles are emission-free, which will make them attractive to some. Once we have clean energy generation to power them, these aircraft could be a “green” option for transportation.

Regardless, this is yet another example of the gaining momentum in eVTOL technology. We’ve come a long way in a few short years…

And it won’t be long until we could start seeing more of these aircraft in the skies where we live. I doubt we’ll have to wait much longer than 2025-2026 before there is widespread use of this technology.

[Don't Miss: Enrique Abeyta Prediction – My #1 EV Stock for 2022]

Starlink goes live in Antarctica…

A couple weeks ago, we had another look at Starlink – a division of SpaceX – partnering with T-Mobile in enabling remote cell phone coverage.

Now, Starlink has launched service availability in all seven continents.

That’s because its service just arrived at McMurdo Station on the coast of Antarctica, delivering high-speed broadband to the outpost.

That’s huge because McMurdo historically hasn’t had enough bandwidth to run all its scientific programs. Internet bandwidth has been rationed and in high demand at such a remote location.

What’s interesting about the deployment in Antarctica isn’t just Starlink’s availability. It’s actually how SpaceX is making it happen.

The issue at hand is that there aren’t any ground stations connected to fiber optic networks in Antarctica. So SpaceX is accomplishing this high speed broadband internet connection using space lasers. Cool, right? The lasers allow for high-speed connections between satellites.

So rather than beaming up from a ground station to a Starlink satellite and back down to Antarctica, Starlink uses space lasers to send data back and forth between other Starlink satellites until it is in range of a ground station (for example in Australia).

While the world sees Starlink has a satellite-based internet provider, I believe that the endgame is to create a space-based, interplanetary, body backhaul network. That’s the big play.

The backhaul network is only possible with a laser-enabled communication system from satellite to satellite. That way, Starlink will need fewer ground stations and be able to provide coverage to places where ground stations aren’t an option or simply don’t make any sense.

Is this the beginning of interstellar broadband infrastructure? Musk is crazy enough, and smart enough, to put something like that together.

This will be a vast improvement for people who live in rural areas and developing countries – as well as remote locations like Antarctica… or even the Moon. And needless to say, it will put Starlink and SpaceX in an enviable position.

Regards,

Jeff Brown
Editor, The Bleeding Edge.

[Exclusive: 1st Gas Station In America To No-Longer Offer Gas]

Read more from Jeff Brown at BrownstoneResearch.com

(TAAS) Transportation As A Service – The Future of Transportation

March 29, 2021 By admin Leave a Comment

Transportation as a Service (TaaS) is rapidly growing and is considered by many to be the future of transportation. Through TaaS, car ownership rates will eventually decline. Instead of owning a car, people will be able to buy trips, miles or experiences without having to maintain their own vehicle.

What is TaaS – Transportation as a Service?

Not long ago, owning a car was a mark of adulthood. It was a sign of independence, as well as a way to get to and from work. Over the years, this situation has gradually started to change. Urban areas have grown, which has made public transportation more common. Thanks to carbon dioxide levels, mankind is now searching for ways to reduce climate change. TaaS is one potential solution.

TaaS is a new mindset. Instead of focusing on car ownership, TaaS involves renting vehicles and similar practices. For instance, Uber and Lyft are both examples of TaaS. Instead of having to own your own car, you can use a ridesharing app to hire a car when you need a ride.

TaaS is also called Mobility as a Service (MaaS). While TaaS may involve an app like Uber and a human driver right now, this will not always be the case. In just one to two years, Goldman Sachs expects the first semi-autonomous car to become commercially available.

TaaS is important because today’s cars waste most of its time. Across the globe, the typical vehicle is idle during 95% of the day. Connected cars and rideshares can get rid of this idle time. Instead of multiple people using their cars to commute to work each day, the same people could rent a car and forego car ownership.

What Are the Advantages of TaaS Technology?

In many cities, TaaS vehicles will be available 24 hours a day. While the average person only uses their car about 4 percent of the time, a TaaS vehicle will typically be used for 10 times more minutes each day. TaaS will work like public transportation does today, but it will blend private transportation providers into a gateway like an app. Then, people can access the gateway whenever they need to reserve and pay for a ride.

If you drive 15,000 miles per year, you can expect to spend an average of $8,469 a year on your vehicle. You have to pay for car insurance, gas, maintenance costs and car payments. By switching to TaaS, you could save hundreds or thousands of dollars per year.

Other than saving money, many people choose TaaS to get more free time. If you do not have to drive on your commute, you can work on something else. Then, you can enjoy spending time with your family once you return home. During your commute, you can also spend time learning a language, reading a book or enjoying your favorite hobby. In 2018, the average American spent 225 hours commuting. To put this in perspective, it only takes 480 hours to learn Spanish. It takes around 45 hours to drive from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

TaaS has already been adopted by a wide variety of companies. DoorDash, GrubHub, Amazon Prime Delivery and Postmates already deliver products to homes across the country. Through WaiveCar or Turo, you can even lease your personal vehicle or find a vehicle you can lease. Other car rentals like Getaround, Zipcar and aGo will let you rent a vehicle whenever you need it. Meanwhile, Ridesharing, GoNanny, Uber, Zimride and Lyft offer rideshare services.

What Are the Consequences of Transportation as a Service?

The first car dealership in the United States was established in 1898. Since that time period, dealerships have followed a fairly basic business model. To prevent automobile manufacturers from competing with dealerships, many states required dealerships to serve as the middleman. Through TaaS and self-driving cars, this entire business model may change. Eventually, manufacturers may sell vehicles directly to consumers.

If consumers purchase a vehicle at all, it will only be for a short period of time. While there are many ways that TaaS could be implemented, one option is for a self-driving car developer like Tesla or Google to own an entire fleet of self-driving cars. Then, the customer can pay per mile or minute. Because self-driving cars do not require a human driver, the cost of renting a vehicle will drop significantly.

Lower demand for vehicles means that there will be decreased demand for parking lots and garages as well. Normally, parking lots earn money by renting out parking spaces by the hour, day or month. If people pay for rides instead of owning cars, they will not need parking lots.

Is TaaS a Good Investment?

Companies that sell self-driving cars are likely to perform well. Other manufacturers may struggle because fewer people will be purchasing cars. Additionally, companies that run parking lots and garages will end up earning less. Eventually, many parking lots and garages in big cities may be sold and converted.

[Revealed: Legendary Investor’s #1 Pick in Tech Trend that No One’s Talking About]

TaaS is conveniently built around four macro trends. Other than environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) investing, it incorporates connectivity, the gig economy and electric vehicles. Eventually, the TaaS industry will become an $8 trillion marketplace as it expands into areas like drone delivery, freight, distribution, food delivery and personal transport.

These trends are already taking place. As more people turn to TaaS options, car sales have fallen. Global vehicle sales dropped by 22% in 2020. Even without the pandemic, auto sales fell by 4% in 2019. This decline was the first time in a decade that vehicle sales dropped.

TaaS Could Be 10x Cheaper

According to some estimates, TaaS will be 10 times cheaper than traditional car ownership. Unlike traditional car ownership, you will not have to change the oil or look for a parking spot. Already, the market is responding to these changes. In 2009, Uber initially opened up. Within just seven years, Uber was already booking more rides than the entire American taxi industry.

The iGeneration has fueled the surge in TaaS usage. Back in 1983, more than 50% of teenagers had a driver’s license by the age of 16. In 2016, only 25 percent of teenagers had a license by the same age. These young people are using TaaS to hang out with friends, go to restaurants and visit their favorite shops.

Ultimately, the biggest takeaway is that investors and cities need to prepare now. As the transportation industry adapts and changes, everyone else will have to adjust as well. From fewer parking garages to reduced vehicle sales, TaaS is going to have a major impact on specific industries. While the overall impact of TaaS is going to be positive, there will be significant growing pains along the way.

Disrupters Reshape Industries

The following ideas come from Trends Expert Matthew Carr who has been closely following (TaaS) technology as a service and its broader impact.

Over the past couple of decades, we’ve witnessed disrupters completely reshape industries. Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) and Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) launched new ways for humans to communicate and interact. Social media is now one of the most powerful advertising platforms in the world.

The streaming service Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) not only created a model that dozens of other companies now emulate but also produces some of the best content out there. The studio receives scores of Oscar and Golden Globe nominations and awards each year.

E-commerce giants Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) and Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) are the templates that the whole retail industry looks to replicate. Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) is pulling the entire automotive industry toward mass electric vehicle adoption.

In real estate, there’s Opendoor Technologies (Nasdaq: OPEN) and Zillow Group (Nasdaq: Z). And in finance, there’s Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Not to mention the potential for blockchain. The list goes on and on. Many early investors in each of these disrupters have been rewarded with life-changing returns.

TaaS Technology Stocks to Buy (or sell)

Now, in TaaS, Uber (NYSE: UBER) and Lyft (Nasdaq: LYFT) have flipped the ride-hailing industry on its head. In fact, long-coveted taxi medallions in New York and other cities have plummeted in value. And these two stand to benefit in the continued expansion of TaaS over the next couple decades.

In the near term, both of these companies will see their ride hailing segments return to full force in 2021. At the moment, nearly 21% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. That’s more than were infected with the deadly virus. And the percentage of new cases are in sharp decline across the country.

But these companies are far from equals. Lyft is projected to see 2021 revenue grow 29.7% to $3.07 billion and then leap more then 41% to $4.33 billion in 2022.

Uber – thanks to Uber Eats and its recent acquisition of Drizly – is expected to see 2021 revenue surge 45.8% to $16.24 billion and then see 2022 revenue jump 37.5% to $22.32 billion.

And in the American ride sharing market, Uber is the more dominant force. It currently controls 68% of the market, while Lyft holds the rest.

[Opportunity: This Could Put an Extra $5,600 in Your Pocket Each Year]

But what’s amazing is, that very few consumers use both. This is an interesting data point. You see, many Americans rely on subscriptions to Netflix, Hulu, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video. Though, when it comes to ride-sharing, only 10% of consumers use both Uber and Lyft.

Latest TaaS Technology Companies to Watch

But there’s a new disrupter about to go public. Joby Aviation is hoping to bring some of this sci-fi magic to millions of commuters. Over the past 10 years, the company has developed a zero-emission, all-electric, vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft designed to leapfrog traffic congestion.

Each aircraft will carry one pilot and four passengers for journeys of anywhere from 5 to 150 miles at a top speed of 200 mph. These are the taxis of the future. The next evolution in ride-hailing after Uber and Lyft. In fact, Uber was working on this idea but sold its segment to Joby in December. And it agreed to make a $75 million investment in the company.

Last year, Joby’s eVTOL taxi concept received a $394 million investment from Toyota (NYSE: TM) as well. The company’s goal is to save 1 billion people an hour of commute time each day and to accomplish this in an environmentally friendly way.

Joby plans to have commercial passenger aircraft in operation as early as 2024. And once these are up and running, its business will, literally, take off.

Revenue Forecasts

The company forecasts it will make $721 million in revenue by 2025. And it projects that number will more than double by 2026. By then, the company believes each aircraft will generate $2.2 million in annual revenue with roughly 850 plans in service.

Over the next decade, Joby plans to have a total of roughly 14,000 vehicles generating $20 billion in revenue. It expects to have a presence in at least 20 cities worldwide, with recurring revenue from its aircraft segment accounting for more than 50% of annual sales.

These are lofty forecasts. But Joby is further ahead than its competitors are. Joby will go public through a merger with the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Reinvent Technology Partners (NYSE: RTP).

This deal values the company at $6.6 billion. That seems steep considering there is no real revenue yet. But the opportunity for the air mobility market is upward of $500 billion in the U.S. Globally, this opportunity is forecast to top $1 trillion.

TaaS is not only the future of transportation, it’s one of the most dominant forces in the market right now. But over the next couple of years, it’s going to evolve rapidly. And investors need to be prepared.

The Investment U Team

[Breakthrough: This Will Create More New Millionaires than Anything Else on the Planet]