Governor Gretchen Whitmer has announced a collaboration with Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, and Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers to build America’s next iconic road trip route, specifically for electric vehicles. The Lake Michigan EV Circuit Tour will be a network of electric vehicle chargers spanning over 1,100 miles of drivable shoreline around Lake Michigan. 

“With this announcement, we are putting the country on notice that the Midwest is the place to be for clean energy and small business growth,” said Governor Gretchen Whitmer. “The circuit will allow travelers to experience Lake Michigan and visit countless communities in and around the route. I am so proud that we came together to forge this bipartisan agreement. Let’s keep Michigan-and the Midwest-moving forward.”

Gentex, a manufacturer of high-tech electronics for the auto, aerospace, and fire safety industries, is investing $300 million to expand in Zeeland, Michigan. The company, which currently employs more than 5,000 people in West Michigan, will add more than 500 new jobs as part of the investment.

The expansion includes three separate projects, all in Zeeland and Zeeland Township:

• A new 250,000-square-foot manufacturing facility on the company’s North Riley Campus in Zeeland Township
• A 350,000-square-foot expansion of the company’s distribution center at its North Riley Campus in Zeeland Township
• A 60,000-square-foot expansion of the company’s processing facility on State Street in Zeeland

Following LG Energy Solutions’ $1.7 million investment in a massive new plant, warehouse, and other buildings in Holland, this expansion is the latest in a series of investments that position Michigan as the epicenter of autonomous and electric vehicle manufacturing in the U.S.

Last week, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed into law first-of-its-kind legislation that will help enable the development and testing of dedicated autonomous vehicle (AV) roadways in Michigan. Thanks to the new law, Michigan will be able to set new global standards for automotive safety, mobility infrastructure, and smart cities – all while testing the latest AV technologies in real-world environments.

Additionally, the new law will set the stage for the development of a connected and automated vehicle corridor in Michigan. The Michigan Department of Transportation and Office of Future Mobility and Electrification will work jointly with the private sector to create and put into use the automated vehicle roadway technology in the state.

“Michigan put the world on wheels, but the automotive industry as we know it is beginning to take new forms. We need to solidify Michigan’s role in the future of vehicle technology as well, and this legislation does just that,” said Sen. Ken Horn, R-Frankenmuth, who sponsored the original bill. “Adapting and testing our roadways goes hand in hand with emerging vehicle technologies, and this law gives us the ability to test smart roads as well.”

Australian company Evenergi has chosen Ann Arbor as the site of its North American headquarters. The company, which helps its partners plan, implement, and manage zero emissions transport transitions, cited Michigan’s forward-thinking leadership in EVs and AVs as a reason for the move.

Ann Arbor is a familiar location for Evenergi – the company completed a bus propulsion study in February this year in partnership with the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority (AAATA). The study was designed to review propulsion options available for the greater Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti public transit system, including Battery Electric Buses, Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Buses, Trolley Buses, and Compressed Natural Gas.

Ultimately, it found that only 60 percent of AAATA’s services can be electrified using battery electric buses with depot-only charging, but that 95 percent could be electrified with hydrogen fuel cell electric buses.

Grand Rapids-based Ride YourWay, a wheelchair and ambulatory transportation provider, has launched a mobile app for on-demand rides in West Michigan, in partnership with Canadian technology startup MUVE. The app offers dispatch mapping, real-time information driver updates, rider on-demand bookings and fixed route scheduling, creating a refined mobility ecosystem that enables residents in Kent County to move where they need, when they need to.

“We’re extremely pleased to be working with the entire Ride YourWay team, supporting them in our collective quest to eliminate mobility barriers. In addition to e-reservations, the Go MUVE app includes a ‘tagging’ feature that enables users to identify various levels of accessibility within their community,” said Peter Grande, co-Founder of MUVE. “This feature lets users tag events, businesses, facilities, and public areas by answering a few simple questions related to mobility and accessibility, further enriching the value of the platform for Kent County.”

MUVE, a past recipient of a Michigan Mobility Funding Platform Grant, also released its mobility ecosystem suite of services in Washtenaw County in June of this year.

Natron Energy, Inc., a leading manufacturer of sodium-ion batteries, and Clarios International Inc., the global leader in low-voltage advanced battery technologies for mobility, have entered into a strategic agreement to manufacture the world’s first mass-produced sodium-ion batteries.

Center stage of this agreement is Clarios Meadowbrook, a Holland-based Clarios manufacturing plant. The site will take the lead on manufacturing efforts when mass production begins in 2023, becoming the world’s largest sodium-ion battery plant. With support from the U.S. Department of Energy, Natron will install new cell assembly equipment at Clarios Meadowbrook to enable mass production of sodium-ion cells.

Currently, Natron batteries are used primarily for critical power applications such as data centers and telecom networks. However, future applications may also include electric vehicles and grid energy storage.

The first ever cohort of Detroit Apple Developer Academy students graduated just this summer with newly honed app development and entrepreneurial skills. The 100 graduates range in age from 18 to 64 and come from diverse backgrounds with a variety of educational experiences. Following graduation, some students have already secured employment with top automakers in Michigan – including General Motors and Ford.

The academy is the first in the U.S., launched as part of Apple’s Racial Equity and Justice Initiative. The free program offers students an opportunity to become entrepreneurs and app developers by learning the fundamentals of coding, design, marketing, and project management – with an emphasis on inclusivity and making a positive impact in local communities. During the program, graduates developed new apps that are, or will be, available on the App Store that address a range of consumer needs, including travel, health and wellness, and augmented reality games.