Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S.

Workhorse on the bubble, or is it worse?

Less than three months after my generally upbeat visit to Workhorse Group’s refurbished plant near the Ohio-Indiana border, the electric truck maker’s situation appears dire.

Layoffs and furloughs

Workhorse has laid off 20% of its workforce. Much of the rest is on unpaid furlough and could be called back to work. 

The company is choked with inventory. It has less than $7 million in cash on the books and accounts payable for more than twice that amount. At a projected burn rate less than Q1’s $5.5...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/workhorse-on-the-bubble-or-is-it-worse

TuSimple begins catch-up on financial filings

TuSimple filed the first of four late financial documents this week. It’s easy to see why the autonomous truck software developer gave up freight hauling. It cost more than twice as much as it was seeing in revenue. And the company has just 250 U.S. employees after two rounds of layoffs and a refocus on Asian markets.

While other startups ran afoul of Nasdaq listing rules because their share price fell below $1 for more than 30 consecutive trading days, TuSimple found another way to get put on...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/tusimple-begins-catch-up-on-financial-filings

Exclusive: TuSimple needs to win markets, customers as it stabilizes

TUCSON, Ariz. — Cheng Lu mostly watched from the sidelines for seven months as autonomous trucking startup TuSimple nearly imploded from the pressure of internal politics and external investigations. Upon returning as CEO in November after being ousted in an awkward succession, Lu quickly assessed the state of affairs and moved to stabilize the company.

So how is that going?

In his first public interview since being rehired to the top management post, Lu told FreightWaves that TuSimple is making...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/exclusive-tusimple-needs-to-win-over-markets-customers-as-it-regains-stability

With $1B in the bank, reputationally dinged TuSimple looks ahead

TUCSON, Ariz. — TuSimple Holdings needs closure on a raft of investigations before it can reclaim technology leadership in the nascent autonomous trucking industry. But a balance sheet with nearly $1 billion is a big advantage.

“Our runway is three years, and that’s excluding any strategic decision on China,” TuSimple Chief Financial Officer Eric Tapia told FreightWaves in an interview at the company’s testing operations site. “China’s a great business. They have some interesting initiatives...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/with-1b-in-the-bank-reputationally-dinged-tu-simple-looks-ahead

Ousted TuSimple co-founder says frustrated employees came to him

TuSimple co-founder Xiaodi Hou claims his forced resignation from the autonomous trucking software startup came in retaliation for refusing to support the compensation package for Cheng Lu, the CEO he pushed out a year ago but who was rehired in November.

In a LinkedIn post, Hou claimed current and ex-employees of the autonomous trucking startup sought him. He did not go to them.

“It was time for me to step down from the board and move on with my life,” Hou wrote in the post on Tuesday. “And then...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/ousted-tusimple-co-founder-says-frustrated-employees-came-to-him

TuSimple denies report of push for espionage investigation

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At least one member of a federal watchdog group urged an espionage investigation into the founders...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/tusimple-denies-newspaper-report-of-push-for-espionage-investigation

TuSimple moves to fix its boardroom deficiencies

Autonomous trucking developer TuSimple Holdings moved Friday to fill corporate governance holes, naming two additional independent directors and making its interim CFO permanent.

The moves are necessary to ensure San Diego-based TuSimple regains compliance with the Nasdaq to retain its listing. The company was the first to remove the driver from a Class 8 cab last December.

“When I returned to lead TuSimple, I made a commitment to right the ship and set us on a path toward long-term stability and...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/tusimple-moves-to-fix-its-boardroom-deficiencies

Commentary: $1B balance sheet could help limit TuSimple’s reputation damage

 “When winter comes, I’ll keep on moving. Tell me where my friends go.” — Oingo Boingo

The abandonment of TuSimple Holdings by investors, its manufacturing partner and a host of others suggests the one-time leader in autonomous trucking has hit bottom.

It probably has. But its billion-dollar balance sheet suggests it can recover from its wounds, several of which are self-inflicted.

For example, had co-founder Xiaodi Hou resisted the temptation to take over as CEO in March, many of the problems...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/commentary-1b-balance-sheet-could-help-limit-tusimples-reputation-damage

Co-founder gets voting control of TuSimple

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After ousting its four independent directors a week ago, the co-founders of autonomous truck...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/co-founder-gets-voting-control-of-tusimple

Truck Tech: Startup strategies edition

Truck Tech logo on blue background

The ongoing shake-up at TuSimple suggests a co-founder’s impatience. Hyliion Holdings is already benefiting from support by an outsized rival. Plus, a war of press releases over reducing emissions and a plea for autonomous truck testing in California.

TuSimple intrigue

The shake-up at TuSimple that began in March has developed into a full-on house cleaning. Most notable is the departure of Pat Dillion. His Wall Street background brought investor relations credibility to the autonomous trucking...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/truck-tech-startup-strategies-edition

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