General Motors (GM) announced today that it would make an equity investment of $650 million with Lithium Americas to extract lithium at the Thackers Pass mine in Nevada.
GM has set a renewed and aggressive EV production goal by introducing its first EV models following the Chevrolet Bolt, Bolt EUV, and GMC Hummer EV. To achieve its ambitious EV production target for this year and beyond, it has not only planned four battery production locations through a partnership with LG, but it has also invested in North America’s largest lithium mining operations.
GM’s revised and far more aggressive EV goal comes from the company’s message to investors this morning. In which the company laid out that it plans to produce 400,000 EVs between now and the first half of 2024, keep pre-tax profit margins between 8 to 10 percent, and cut roughly $2 billion in costs over the next two years. But this comes with a recognition that EV production will only need to grow further and hence require more materials.
A fresh focus on verticle integration is key to achieving each of these goals, particularly concerning lithium batteries that will fuel the American auto giant’s transition to electric mobility. This began with the joint venture battery production company, Ultium, created with LG, and now involves acquiring a stake in lithium mining.
Credit: Lithium Americas
The lithium extraction deal announced today will not only fuel GM’s EV transition but is coming online precisely when it needs it. According to Lithium Americas’ website, its Thacker Pass mine in Nevada, the company’s sole location in North America, is set to come online in 2026. It will be North America’s largest lithium extraction location, capable of fueling an estimated one million EVs per year. The mine’s estimated production start date matches at least two of the Ultium battery plant production start dates as well, and it could potentially be the sole supplier of each of them, thanks to its massive reserves.
“GM has secured all the battery material we need to build more than 1 million EVs annually in North America in 2025, and our future production will increasingly draw from domestic resources like the site in Nevada we’re developing with Lithium Americas,” said GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra. “Direct sourcing critical EV raw materials and components from suppliers in North America and free-trade-agreement countries helps make our supply chain more secure, helps us manage cell costs, and creates jobs.”
Following record earnings announced in the investor letter, and the news of its lithium investment, GM’s stock skyrocketed in pre-market trading and continued its surge as the market opened, now up by nearly 9%.
GM is far from the only American automaker looking to gain renewed resource independence during the transition to EVs. GM’s chief competitor, Ford, has taken a similar tack as it plans to move production jobs back to the United States and is also in the process of establishing its first battery production location. Ford has yet to invest in lithium extraction, another chief competitor, Tesla, has lithium partnerships with Piedmont Lithium, patented a lithium extraction method in 2021, and is currently establishing a lithium refining plant in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The current trend in the auto industry is an increased focus on the domestic production of natural resources and an increased level of vertical integration, allowing for reduced costs and higher profits. However, as battery production leaves Asian markets, particularly China, it is unclear how the global market will react and redefine itself in the coming years and decades.
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Tesla has officially launched the Model Y L in the United States and Puerto Rico for $61,990. It is the longer-wheelbase version of the Model Y, and has been available in China since last year.
Tesla brings the Model Y L to the U.S. just months after it phased out the only pure SUV in its lineup, the Model X. It is slightly longer than the Model Y configurations that are already available in the U.S., and features a three-row, six-seat setup with Captain’s Chairs being among the many features that make this a truly fantastic offering.
The Model Y L is priced competitively at $61,990, and features 325 miles of range and a 0-60 MPH in just 4.4 seconds.
Tesla also added a handful of new features that are not available in even the Premium Model Y. Here’s a full list of its features:
- Heated/Ventilated Front Seats with Powered Thigh Cushion
- Heated/Ventilated Captain’s Seats in Second Row with Powered Armrests & One-Touch Fold
- Heated Third-Row Seats with Power Recline, One-Touch Fold & Child Seat Anchors
- Improved Airflow, Increased Efficiency, More Range
- 89 cubic feet of trunk space
- Upgraded Acoustic Glass and Suspension to Minimize Road Noise
- Adaptive Damping for a Smooth, Stable Ride
- Staggered Tires for Enhanced Grip
- Larger Tailgate for Better Rear Visibility and Bigger Windows Overall
- 16″ First Row and 8″ Second Row Touchscreens
- 19-Speaker Immersive Tesla Audio
- 50W Wireless Charging Pads with Active Cooling and Charging Ports for All Other Seats
- FSD Supervised and Integrated Grok AI
Tesla is also delivering these first units as a “Launch Series,” which comes with additional features, such as:
- Door Trim Puddle Lights
- Suede Dashboard Wing
- Exterior and Interior Badging
- Floor Mats
- Sill Plates
The launch of the Model Y L in the U.S. marks a huge offering from Tesla to U.S. consumers. People have been calling for Tesla to bring a larger car to the U.S., and it needed it more than ever now that the Model X is gone.
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- Credit: Tesla
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- Credit: Tesla
It is a huge accomplishment for Tesla to get the Model Y L to the U.S., and after reporting strong deliveries today, it will be interesting to see how this car impacts future quarterly delivery reports.
Deliveries for the Model Y L “Launch Series” are slated for September or October of this year.
Tesla just told us twice that the Model Y L is coming to the U.S., and two social media posts definitely just tipped the company’s hand, as if they wanted it to be any other way.
The two social media posts basically confirm that the slightly longer version of the Model Y will be heading to the United States soon, and many have speculated that the company could launch the vehicle as soon as this weekend.
The first post was directly from Tesla, and it showed an incredibly long Dachshund, with words above that said, “Looking forward to the long weekend.”
Looking forward to the long weekend pic.twitter.com/URzH6zOUdn
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 1, 2026
Anyone who knows Tesla knows the company loves to troll its fans and have fun, and this is a perfect example of that. While not a direct acknowledgement, Tesla is very involved on social media, especially CEO Elon Musk’s platform X, and the company is well aware of what is being discussed within the community.
With recent sightings of Model Y L test mules in California, peeks of the vehicle at Giga Texas, and a large call for the car to come to the U.S., Tesla is simply stoking conversation with this.
However, the company also made another move that was recognized on social media. Tesla has a large gallery that includes photos of its products so media and others can use them. This gallery applies to the U.S. market specifically, unless otherwise specified.
Tesla uploaded a Model Y L to the Gallery last night:
This looks like a Model Y L https://t.co/TpnBwrLmH9
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 2, 2026
This seems to be another indication that the Model Y L is coming to the United States.
Musk said last year that the Model Y L could make its way to the United States late this year, but it was not something that was set in stone by Tesla. The company definitely needs to establish something in the SUV market that is larger than the Model Y, and the Model Y L might be the answer.
Even still, there are consumers out there who would love Tesla to develop something even larger, like a competitor to the Tahoe or Expedition. Tesla has not really given much of an indication that it will go in that direction.
Tesla is using the vehicles’ internal microphones to improve build quality, Vice President of Engineering Lars Moravy revealed recently.
It’s no secret that Tesla is always finding ways to make its manufacturing operations more efficient, accurate, and valuable. Constantly trying to make its cars better, the company has never placed any restrictions on what it will do to improve everything from panel gaps to paint.
As Teslas have been driving autonomously on the property of the Gigafactory Texas plant for a while now, Moravy revealed to Herbert Ong in a new interview that cars rolling off production lines now autonomously navigate themselves through a bumps, squeaks, and rattles (BSR) portion of the line. This helps to identify any loose or improperly installed internal parts.
The cabin’s microphones, which are used for a variety of things in ownership, simultaneously monitor any noises inside the vehicle while it rolls through the BSR portion of the production line. Moravy actually revealed that Tesla is trying to build “Full Self-Hearing,” an AI system that will detect minor imperfections so they can be corrected before delivery.
It’s no secret that build quality is something that Tesla struggled with as it scaled to a fully massive production operation that manufactures over 1.6 million vehicles per year. However, in recent years, especially, there have not been as many complaints. Tesla has truly improved upon its build quality and paint quality over the past several years, especially in the U.S.
Tesla’s ‘megacasts’ are key to massive build quality improvements
While those improvements have been evident, there are still some complaints; no automaker is perfect with this. But this step will now ensure that every single car that rolls off the production lines at Gigafactory Texas will be void of any creaks, squeaks, or squeals when it leaves the factory.
This measure is one of the most unique we’ve seen in terms of a strategy to avoid build quality issues, but it is not exclusive to Tesla.
Ford uses acoustic analysis AI to find abnormalities in seat motors, climate control units, and other components. Suppliers and OEMs will also use microphone arrays or particle velocity sensors in end-of-line stations.
The full interview with Lars Moravy is available below:
🚨 If you’re a Tesla investor, this is one interview you don’t want to skip. The full video posted below.
Jeff Lutz @thejefflutz and I sat down with Tesla VP of Engineering Lars Moravy, and it was packed with insights!
A few of the biggest takeaways:
• Cybercab is expected to… pic.twitter.com/fhYSr2dCqP
— Herbert Ong (@herbertong) July 1, 2026
Tesla brings Model Y L ‘Launch Series’ to the U.S. at $61,990
Tesla just told us twice that Model Y L is coming to the U.S.
