ValueWorks founder Charles Lemonides: Rivian is one of the longterm winners in auto space
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Associated Press
22 minutes ago
- Associated Press
America's only rare earth producer gets a boost from Apple and Pentagon agreements
MP Materials, which runs the only American rare earths mine, announced a new $500 million agreement with tech giant Apple on Tuesday to produce more of the powerful magnets used in iPhones as well as other high-tech products like electric vehicles. This news comes on the heels of last week's announcement that the U.S. Defense Department agreed to invest $400 million in shares of the Las Vegas-based company. That will make the government the largest shareholder in MP Materials and help increase magnet production. Despite their name, the 17 rare earth elements aren't actually rare, but it's hard to find them in a high enough concentration to make a mine worth the investment. They are important ingredients in everything from smartphones and submarines to EVs and fighter jets, and it's those military applications that have made rare earths a key concern in ongoing U.S. trade talks. That's because China dominates the market and imposed new limits on exports after President Donald Trump announced his widespread tariffs. When shipments dried up, the two sides sat down in London. The agreement with Apple will allow MP Materials to further expand its new factory in Texas to use recycled materials to produce the magnets that make iPhones vibrate. The company expects to start producing magnets for GM's electric vehicles later this year and this agreement will let it start producing magnets for Apple in 2027. The Apple agreement represents a tenth of the company's pledge to invest $500 billion domestically during the Trump administration. And although the deal will provide a significant boost for MP Materials, the agreement with the Defense Department may be even more meaningful. Neha Mukherjee, a rare earths analyst with Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, said in a research note that the Pentagon's 10-year promise to guarantee a minimum price for the key elements of neodymium and praseodymium will guarantee stable revenue for MP Minerals and protect it from potential price cuts by Chinese producers that are subsidized by their government. 'This is the kind of long-term commitment needed to reshape global rare earth supply chains,' Mukherjee said. Trump has made it a priority to try to reduce American reliance on China for rare earths. His administration is both helping MP Materials and trying to encourage the development of new mines that would take years to come to fruition. China has agreed to issue some permits for rare earth exports but not for military uses, and much uncertainty remains about their supply. The fear is that the trade war between the world's two biggest economies could lead to a critical shortage of rare earth elements that could disrupt production of a variety of products. MP Materials can't satisfy all of the U.S. demand from its Mountain Pass mine in California's Mojave Desert. The deals by MP Materials come as Beijing and Washington have agreed to walk back on their non-tariff measures: China is to grant export permits for rare earth magnets to the U.S., and the U.S. is easing export controls on chip design software and jet engines. The truce is intended to ease tensions and prevent any catastrophic fall-off in bilateral relations, but is unlikely to address fundamental differences as both governments take steps to reduce dependency on each other. ___ Associated Press reporters David Klepper and Didi Tang contributed to this report from Washington D.C. Michael Liedtke contributed from San Francisco.
Motor Trend
24 minutes ago
- Motor Trend
Rivian Is Integrating Google Maps Into Its Native Navigation Software
Fresh off major upgrades to its R1S SUV and R1T pickup, Rivian is now set to launch a software update of its onboard navigation system to include Google Maps data—both for the new vehicles it's producing and its existing customer cars. This isn't simply Google Maps like the app on your phone, however. Leveraging Google's Automotive SDK, Rivian has, in effect, overlaid its existing navigation experience over that of Google Maps, taking advantage of the internet giant's superior "routing, estimated time of arrivals, traffic updates, search capabilities, and satellite imagery," as Rivian put it, in order to further augment its own in-house "EV-friendly navigation features." Rivian is updating its R1S SUV and R1T pickup navigation systems to integrate Google Maps, blending Google's routing, traffic, and imagery with Rivian's EV-specific features. The update includes a new interface and extends to the Rivian Mobile App, rolling out starting tomorrow. This summary was generated by AI using content from this MotorTrend article Read Next In other words, Rivian's navigation system will now blend Google's superior mapping capabilities with its proprietary charging information, including estimated range and battery capacity remaining at your destination, route planning, real-time charging info, and more. In addition, Rivian skins the whole interface in its own design, a new version of which will also debut with the Google Maps update. Even better, Rivian says the update will extend to its Rivian Mobile App (a 2025 MotorTrend Best Tech award winner), which benefits from Google-like photos and descriptions of searched destinations, as well as satellite map views and real-time traffic data. As before, users can send trips and navigation destinations from the app to their Rivians, and now they'll be able to use the "share" function via Google Maps to do the same. The rollout of the new Google-augmented system is imminent—Rivian says it'll begin doing so as soon as tomorrow via an over-the-air update for every all-electric R1S SUV and R1T pickup it has sold to date, and it will come already equipped with every new model it sells.
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Adams says Cuomo asked him to drop out of NYC mayor's race
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Andrew Cuomo asked him to drop his independent bid for reelection as the former New York governor considers whether to continue with his own candidacy. Adams said during an interview Monday on CNBC that Cuomo 'knew he was setting us up for this,' knowing that the incumbent mayor already chose to forgo the Democratic primary and run as an independent instead. Cuomo, who officially lost the Democratic nomination to state Assembly member Zohran Mamdani last week, had initially announced in May he would also run as an independent and confirmed after his primary loss that he secured a spot for himself on the general election ballot. 'I said, 'Andrew, are you that level of arrogance? I'm the sitting mayor,'' Adams said. 'I'm the sitting mayor of the city of New York, and you expect for me to step aside when you just lost to [Mamdani] by 12 points.' Cuomo was formally projected to have lost the Democratic primary last week after the New York City elections board completed the tabulation of the necessary rounds of ranked choice voting. Mamdani defeated Cuomo by about 12 points, 56 percent to 44 percent, in the third round. But Cuomo may face Mamdani again because of the independent ballot line he secured for himself under the Fight and Deliver Party. His name will be on the ballot, but he hasn't announced whether he will actively campaign, having said he wanted to analyze the final results of the primary and assess the landscape for whether to run. Adams faces a significant uphill battle as he tries to win reelection for a second term. His favorability rating has been significantly underwater amid the legal and political controversies that have surrounded him, and early polling of the general election has shown him well behind Mamdani. But a few prominent figures have called on Cuomo to leave the race for anti-Mamdani voters to unify around Adams, including hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman, who had donated a significant amount of money to Cuomo's campaign in the primary. 'They heard your message, and you lost,' Adams said. 'Now let a fresh set of legs that has produced for this city, and that's the highest level of arrogance.' Cuomo campaign spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said in a statement that all campaigns should consider a proposal from independent candidate Jim Walden for a poll to be taken in September to determine which candidate would be the strongest in a head-to-head matchup against Mamdani, a self-identified democratic socialist. Azzopardi said Walden is correct that he, Adams and Cuomo all running 'all but ensures a socialist victory.' He also said Adams chose not to run in the Democratic primary because he knows he's 'anathema' to Democratic voters and can't win. 'This is the time to put aside the usual political selfishness and agree to do what is truly best for all New Yorkers,' he said. 'While we review this proposal, we call on other candidates to do the same.' Also on the ballot will be Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa. Sliwa blamed Adams's tenure for Mamdani's win in the Democratic primary and vowed that he's 'not going anywhere' despite some suggestions that he drop out and get behind Adams. Updated at 1:35 p.m. EDT Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
