Welcome back to the latest episode of The Future of Automotive on CBT News, where we put recent automotive and mobility news into the context of the broader themes impacting the industry.
I’m Steve Greenfield from Automotive Ventures, and I’m glad that you could join us this week.
There’s been a lot of speculation about what President Trump’s tariffs really mean for automakers and for you, the consumer. Will it raise prices? Will it cut demand? And how long can the industry absorb the hit?
So far, automakers are feeling the pain. Toyota — the world’s largest automaker — has already warned of nearly a $10 billion hit from tariffs on vehicles shipped into the U.S. That’s the single largest estimate we’ve heard so far.
But here’s where things get striking: a new report out this week from the Center for Automotive Research says Trump’s tariff plan could cost the U.S. auto industry a staggering $188 billion over the next three years. And they believe that’s probably a conservative number.
To put that into perspective: that’s more than the combined market value of General Motors, Ford, Stellantis, Honda, and Mazda. In other words, five of the world’s biggest car companies combined.
This year alone, CAR says automakers will be paying $56 billion in added costs just from tariffs. That number rises to $61 billion in 2026… and $72 billion in 2027.
The truth is, affordability was already a crisis even before tariffs. Analysts say as many as 2 million potential new-car buyers have already been priced out of the market. And now? According to Experian, nearly 1 in 6 buyers this year are taking on car payments of more than $1,000 a month. A decade ago, those kinds of payments were reserved mostly for luxury and exotic cars. Today, almost 90 percent are SUVs and pickups.
So while the tariffs are hitting every brand and every new vehicle sold in America, the bigger concern may be what happens if these costs become permanent — baked into car prices for years to come. That would mean higher costs for the industry… and for consumers already stretched to the limit.
So, with that, let’s transition to Our Companies to Watch.
Every week we highlight an interesting company in the automotive technology space to keep an eye on. If you read my weekly Intel Report, we showcase a company to watch, and we then take the opportunity here on this segment each week to share that company with you.
Today, our new company to watch is Upwell.
Upwell allows logistics operators to transform their accounts receivable workflow with the power of AI.
Upwell solves the challenges of AR for logistics. This includes: improving cash flow, automating legacy processes and enhancing customer experience.
Leverage Upwell to use AI to quickly resolve invoice exceptions that are keeping you from getting paid.
It allows you to accept payments and access extra capital when you need it.
And finally, you can analyze your data to predict future cash flow and know who is going to pay when.
If you’d like to learn more about Upwell, you can check them out at www.upwell.com
So that’s it for this week’s Future of Automotive segment.
If you’re an AutoTech entrepreneur working on a solution that helps car dealerships, we want to hear from you. We are actively investing out of our DealerFund.
Don’t forget to check out my first book, “The Future of Automotive Retail,” and my new book, “The Future of Mobility”, both of which are available on Amazon.
Thanks (as always) for your ongoing support and for tuning into CBT News for this week’s Future of Automotive segment. We’ll see you next week!
