2025 Round-up: Are EVs Still the Future?

Electric vehicles (EV) were once seen as the inevitable future of mobility. In 2025, that assumption was tested.

A major theme of US President Donald Trump’s 2024 election campaign was reviving the US automobile industry. He argued that electric cars would “kill” the sector, called climate change a “hoax” and slammed former president Joe Biden’s climate and energy policies.

When Trump became the 47th US president in January 2025, he did exactly what was expected — roll back the $7,500 tax credit for buyers of electric cars.

The expiration of tax credits at the end of September hit EV sales in the US. According to Cox Automotive, estimated sales of new EVs in October dropped 48.9% month-over-month to 74,835 units, while their share of total vehicle sales fell to 5.8% from a record 11.6% in September.

Cox Automotive also told Reuters that Tesla’s [TSLA] US sales fell to a four-year low in November, despite the launch of cheaper versions of its best-selling models.

Now the Trump administration is planning to remove Biden-era fuel-efficiency standards that had forced automakers to increase the distance internal combustion engines (ICE) could travel on a gallon of gas. 

The move is expected to bring the focus back onto creating ICE vehicles due to lower development costs. It could also encourage automakers to sell more pickups and sport utility vehicles, which are among the more profitable but also more fuel-consuming vehicle types.

As a result, US automakers are pivoting away from aggressive EV expansion. In December, Ford [F] said it would scale back EV production, citing “lower-than-expected demand, high costs and regulatory changes”, and announced a $19.5bn charge for it. 

Ford now sees hybrid vehicles as the way forward.

The Dearborn, Michigan-based company cancelled plans for an electric commercial van and several large EV models. Furthermore, the F-150 Lightning, which is the best-selling electric pickup in the US, will no longer be fully electric and will have a gas generator backup for extended driving range.

“The operating reality has changed, and we are redeploying capital into higher-return growth opportunities,” said Ford CEO Jim Farley.

Ford is not alone in absorbing a huge loss for misjudging the pace of EV adoption. 

Earlier in October, General Motors [GM] reported a $1.6bn charge and said it expected “future charges” after reassessing its EV manufacturing plans.

“With the evolving regulatory framework and the end of federal consumer incentives, it is now clear that near-term EV adoption will be lower than planned,” said General Motors CEO Mary Barra.

Jeep and Dodge owner Stellantis [STLA] has also pulled back, abandoning plans to go fully electric by 2030 and canceling its Ram 1500 electric pickup amid slowing US demand.

The situation for the EV industry in the US is in stark contrast to foreign markets such as China and Norway, where EV sales are increasing thanks to consistent policy support, mature charging infrastructure and competitive pricing.

Ironically, legacy automakers’ retreat from EVs could create space for pure-play manufacturers to consolidate share in a less crowded market.

As of Q3 2025, Tesla was the top-selling EV brand in the US. Data compiled by Cox Automotive showed that Q3 sales increased 7.5% to 179,525 units compared to the previous quarter in anticipation of the EV tax credit expiry, but sales in the first nine months (9M) fell by 4.3% compared to the same period in 2024.

Smaller rivals Rivian [RIVN] and Lucid [LCID] have plenty of room to catch up, as Tesla was the only EV pure-play in the top 10 best-selling EV brands in Q3, which was dominated by legacy automakers such as Ford, Hyundai [HYMLF], Honda [HMC], Audi and Volkswagen [VWAGY].

Let’s compare Tesla, Rivian and Lucid to learn more about these EV pure-plays.

Tesla

In 9M 2025, Tesla’s total revenues fell by 2.86% year-over-year to $69.93bn due to lower vehicle deliveries.

Lower regulatory credit revenue also weighed on results after the Trump administration eliminated emissions fines for ICE manufacturers. Previously, legacy automakers would buy environmental assets known as regulatory credits from EV makers to avoid fines.

For 9M 2025, the US contributed about 52.5% and China about 20.4% to Tesla’s total revenue.

Tesla launched its robotaxi business in the US in 2025 and is developing commercial humanoid robots.

Rivian

Rivian’s 9M revenue increased by 26.7% year-over-year to $4.10bn. Net loss for the period widened to $4bn from $2.82bn a year ago.

Outstanding debt stood at $4.44bn at the end of Q3. Cash-in-hand stood at $4.44bn after Volkswagen Group invested up to $5.8bn in the company.

The deal brought in much-needed cash after the company lost about $16.9bn over the past three years.

Lucid

Lucid’s 9M revenue jumped nearly 45% year-over-year to $831.06m. Net loss for the period narrowed to $1.88bn from $2.32bn a year ago. 

Total long-term debt stood at $2.06bn at the end of Q3, while cash-in-hand stood at $1.67bn.

Lucid plans to launch self-driving EVs using Nvidia’s [NVDA] chips. Uber [UBER] invested $300m in the company in a deal which will see the ride-hailing firm acquire and deploy more than 20,000 Lucid Gravity SUVs, starting in 2026.

LCID stock tumbled in 2025 as the company grappled with disappointing earnings, slashed production targets and top management changes.

Here is a table comparing key financial and valuation metrics of TSLA, RIVN and LCID:

Source: Yahoo Finance

Conclusion

Tesla remains the dominant EV player among its peers, supported by scale, brand strength and optionality in software and autonomy. However, its premium valuation leaves little room for error in a slowing EV market.

Rivian and Lucid trade at far lower valuations, but both remain cash-intensive and loss-making. Their long-term survival depends on funding access, disciplined capital spending and the ability to scale profitably as EV demand recovers.