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Stellantis has cut 400 salaried engineering, tech, and software positions

Credit: Stellantis

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Dodge and Chrysler’s parent company, Stellantis, has announced plans to lay off around 400 salaried workers from various positions across engineering, technology, and software.

In a statement on Friday, Stellantis said it was laying off roughly 2 percent of its jobs in engineering, tech, and software, largely due to “unprecedented uncertainties and heightened competitive pressures around the world,” along with “rigorous organizational reviews” (via Automotive News). The automaker also noted that it was looking to improve its overall efficiency as it hopes to main a competitive edge ahead of the launch of several electric vehicles (EVs) as part of its Dare Forward 2030 plan.

“Stellantis continues to make the appropriate structural decisions across the enterprise to improve efficiency and optimize our cost structure,” the automaker said in the statement.

Stellantis signs share buyback agreement with investment firm

The company also said the cuts were intended to “better align resources while preserving the critical skills needed to protect our competitive advantage as we remain laser focused on implementing our EV product offensive and our Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan.”

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The layoffs will take effect on March 31, and employees will receive severance, along with other assistance in the process of the job transition. Still, some expect more layoffs to come, with the number of workers laid off in this round being simply to get around regulations about layoff disclosures.

“This isn’t going to be the last,” said a person who was briefed on the situation to Automotive News on Friday. “They are going to be doing this in waves so they can game the WARN Act.”

The Worker Adjustment and Restraining Notification Act (WARN) is a federal requirement mandating that companies must provide 60-day advance public disclosure when laying off at least 500 workers within 30 days.

The news also comes about four months after the United Automotive Workers (UAW) successfully garnered record pay increases for workers, following historic six-week strikes against Stellantis, Ford, and General Motors (GM). The Stellantis Dare Forward 2030 plan is aiming for 100 percent of Stellantis auto sales to become battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) in Europe by 2030, targeting 50 percent BEVs in the U.S. by the same year.

What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send your tips to us at tips@teslarati.com.

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Zach is a renewable energy reporter who has been covering electric vehicles since 2020. He grew up in Fremont, California, and he currently lives in Colorado. His work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, KRON4 San Francisco, FOX31 Denver, InsideEVs, CleanTechnica, and many other publications. When he isn't covering Tesla or other EV companies, you can find him writing and performing music, drinking a good cup of coffee, or hanging out with his cats, Banks and Freddie. Reach out at zach@teslarati.com, find him on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.

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Tesla says Europe could finally get FSD in 2026, and Dutch regulator RDW is key

As per Tesla, a Dutch regulatory exemption targeted for February 2026 could very well be the key gateway for a Europe-wide rollout of FSD.

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Credit: Grok Imagine

Tesla has shared its most detailed timeline yet for bringing Full Self-Driving (Supervised) to Europe. The electric vehicle maker posted its update through the official X account of Tesla Europe & Middle East. 

As per Tesla, a Dutch regulatory exemption targeted for February 2026 could very well be the key gateway for a Europe-wide rollout of FSD.

Tesla pushes for EU approval

Tesla stated that it has spent more than 12 months working directly with European authorities and delivering FSD demonstrations to regulators in several EU member state. Tesla highlighted a number of its efforts for FSD’s release in Europe, such as safety documentation for FSD, which is now included in its latest public Safety Report, and over 1 million kilometers of internal testing conducted on EU roads across 17 countries.

To unlock approval, Tesla is relying on the Netherlands’ approval authority RDW. The process requires proving compliance with UN-R-171 for driver-assist systems while also filing Article 39 exemptions for behaviors that remain unregulated in Europe, such as hands-off system-initiated lane changes and Level 2 operation on roads that are not fully covered by current rules. Tesla argued that these functions cannot be retrofitted or adjusted into existing frameworks without compromising safety and performance.

“Some of these regulations are outdated and rules-based, which makes FSD illegal in its current form. Changing FSD to be compliant with these rules would make it unsafe and unusable in many cases. While we have changed FSD to be maximally compliant where it is logical and reasonable, we won’t sacrifice the safety of a proven system or materially deteriorate customer usability,” Tesla wrote in its post. 

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Tesla targets February 2026 approval

According to Tesla, real-world safety data alone has not been considered sufficient by EU regulators, prompting the company to gather evidence to get exemptions on a specific rule-by-rule basis. RDW has reportedly committed to issuing a Netherlands National approval in February 2026, which could pave the way for other EU countries to recognize the exemption and possibly authorize local deployment of FSD. 

“Currently, RDW has committed to granting Netherlands National approval in February 2026. Please contact them via link below to express your excitement & thank them for making this happen as soon as possible. Upon NL National approval, other EU countries can immediately recognize the exemption and also allow rollout within their country. Then we will bring it to a TCMV vote for official EU-wide approval. We’re excited to bring FSD to our owners in Europe soon!” Tesla wrote in its post. 

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Investor's Corner

Tesla stock lands elusive ‘must own’ status from Wall Street firm

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Tesla model y with FSD Unsupervised at Giga Texas
Credit: Tesla AI | X

Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) has landed an elusive “must own” status from Wall Street firm Melius, according to a new note released early this week.

Analyst Rob Wertheimer said Tesla will lead the charge in world-changing tech, given the company’s focus on self-driving, autonomy, and Robotaxi. In a note to investors, Wertheimer said “the world is about to change, dramatically,” because of the advent of self-driving cars.

He looks at the industry and sees many potential players, but the firm says there will only be one true winner:

“Our point is not that Tesla is at risk, it’s that everybody else is.”

The major argument is that autonomy is nearing a tipping point where years of chipping away at the software and data needed to develop a sound, safe, and effective form of autonomous driving technology turn into an avalanche of progress.

Wertheimer believes autonomy is a $7 trillion sector,” and in the coming years, investors will see “hundreds of billions in value shift to Tesla.”

A lot of the major growth has to do with the all-too-common “butts in seats” strategy, as Wertheimer believes that only a fraction of people in the United States have ridden in a self-driving car. In Tesla’s regard, only “tens of thousands” have tried Tesla’s latest Full Self-Driving (Supervised) version, which is v14.

Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.2 – Full Review, the Good and the Bad

When it reaches a widespread rollout and more people are able to experience Tesla Full Self-Driving v14, he believes “it will shock most people.”

Citing things like Tesla’s massive data pool from its vehicles, as well as its shift to end-to-end neural nets in 2021 and 2022, as well as the upcoming AI5 chip, which will be put into a handful of vehicles next year, but will reach a wider rollout in 2027, Melius believes many investors are not aware of the pace of advancement in self-driving.

Tesla’s lead in its self-driving efforts is expanding, Wertheimer says. The company is making strategic choices on everything from hardware to software, manufacturing, and overall vehicle design. He says Tesla has left legacy automakers struggling to keep pace as they still rely on outdated architectures and fragmented supplier systems.

Tesla shares are up over 6 percent at 10:40 a.m. on the East Coast, trading at around $416.

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Tesla on track to break Volkswagen’s historic record in Norway: report

As per Elbil Statistik, Tesla reached 26,127 Norwegian sales so far this year, without counting 13 imported Cybertrucks.

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Credit: Grok Imagine

Tesla is surging towards a historic milestone in Norway this month, putting the company on track to break Volkswagen’s long-standing annual sales record in the country. 

With 3,732 units sold in November alone and more than 26,000 delivered year-to-date, Tesla is poised to become one of the most successful car brands in Norway’s modern automotive history.

Tesla closes in on Norway’s all-time sales record

Norway’s demand for Tesla vehicles has intensified as drivers attempt to beat the incoming VAT changes on electric cars. Once the VAT changes take effect, the best-selling Model Y could become 50,000 kroner more expensive, as noted in a CarUp report. This has likely caused a rise in sales for Tesla in the country as of late. 

As per Elbil Statistik, Tesla reached 26,127 Norwegian sales so far this year, without counting 13 imported Cybertrucks. This places the brand just hundreds of units away from surpassing Volkswagen’s 2016 record of 26,572 annual registrations. With one month left in 2025, it seems all but certain that Tesla will overtake Volkswagen’s all-time record in Norway. 

Tesla sees challenges in Sweden

While Norway is delivering historic results, Tesla’s Swedish performance has moved in the opposite direction. Registrations have dropped 68% this year, totaling just 6,147 vehicles so far. November has seen only 291 deliveries, highlighting challenges in the domestic market’s momentum.

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Tesla Sweden is also still dealing with an increasing number of union-backed protests and blockades. Despite the pressure, however, Tesla Sweden has maintained its stance, IF Metall union chair Marie Nilsson to urge Elon Musk to reconsider his perception of organized labor. She also stated that Swedish unions are not like their American counterparts, as they are not as combative. 

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