All Access

Pro Rata Premium

Axios Pro Rata Premium

Standard

Axios Pro Rata: Non-Premium Subscribers

Other

The week that was

Deals of the week

Temperature check

Photo of the week: Paranormal activity

Subaru's first EV was a teetotaling scold, with schoolhouse-stiff seats and literal alerts to "sit up."

The automaker's new Uncharted and Trailseeker EVs still play the schoolmarm, but at least the Uncharted sugars it with a smile. 

The big picture: The Uncharted is a sinuous riff on Subaru's compact Crosstrek: a lifted hatchback that replaces the Crosstrek's hard angles with lithe curves.

The Trailseeker, a cousin of Subaru's Outback wagon, resembles a big rectangle and lumbers like one.

💡 The Engine is building an online repository to share data and lessons from climate tech startups that shuttered or pivoted. Go deeper

🔋 Scoop: Shadow Power is planning to raise up to $100 million in equity and debt to install and manage distributed battery systems. Go deeper

🪖 Investment is surging in dual-use and defense tech, both in dollars raised and the types of companies getting funded. Go deeper

⚡️ Exclusive: Veir, a developer of superconducting power delivery systems, raised $110 million in Series C funding. Go deeper

🌎 Scoop: Lgnd AI, which is developing software to provide near-instant analysis of satellite images of Earth, is raising $20 million in Series A funding. Go deeper

🛤️ Parallel, a developer of autonomous electric freight rail, raised $100 million in Series C funding. Go deeper

🪑 Exclusive: Outer Spaces, a startup developing outdoor furnishings embedded with solar tech and batteries, launched with $8 million in pre-seed funding. Go deeper

⚛️ Scoop: fusion energy developer Gauss Fusion has started meeting with investors about raising $150 million in Series A funding. Go deeper

📈 Google and Constellation Energy announced an energy deal that will fuel $4.3 billion in investments from Constellation to upgrade 11 existing nuclear units in three states. Go deeper

1 big thing: The week that was

A gray Subaru Trailseeker and red Subaru Uncharted, both electric SUVs, parked in a suburban setting. 

The Subaru Trailseeker, left, and Uncharted are reasonably spacious. Photo: Alan Neuhauser

👉 GO HERE TO CATCH UP on this week's energy and climate deals.

• Atlas Atomics, a nuclear startup founded by Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, has raised $400 million in an ongoing Series A valued at $1.9 billion, per Bloomberg. Go deeper

•  Voltus, an SF-based flexible energy platform, raised $225m in Series D funding. Generation Investment Management led, joined by Activate Capital, Vitol, Broadscale Group, Climate Investment, NGP Energy Capital, Salix Ventures, and All Aboard Fund. Go deeper

• Type One Energy, a Knoxville, Tenn.-based fusion developer, raised $200m co-led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Clutterbuck Capital, with participation from Lowercarbon Capital, Siemens Energy Ventures, and SiteGround Capital. Go deeper

2. Deals of the week

Illustration of an electric plug in the shape of a lasso around the words "Energy and climate deals roundup"

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

🚗 China 1, Germany 0: Cheap and well-made Chinese EVs are eroding global demand for once-dominant German cars, such as VW, BMW and Mercedes.

"For anybody who's competing on a global scale, every single one of them sees Chinese EVs as the largest threat to their existence," Edmunds analyst Ivan Drury tells our colleague Nathan Bomey.

🏛️ Congress takes on data centers: Lawmakers are considering forcing data centers to shoulder new costs and restrictions while speeding up the energy infrastructure needed to power the AI boom, Amy Harder writes in Future of Energy.

The draft legislation, unveiled last week, represents the most aggressive response yet from Washington to data centers amid growing backlash over their energy and environmental impacts.

🐘 Haves > have-nots: Large, seasoned venture firms are dominating fundraising this year, per PitchBook data.

Megafunds with $500 million or more drew 78.1% of the $108.5 billion raised by U.S. venture firms through the first three quarters of the year. Veteran firms — raising a fourth fund or later — accounted for 88.2% of capital raised.

⚛️ Upgrade U: The Energy Department announced an up-to $4.2 billion conditional loan commitment to boost electricity production at two Vistra nuclear plants.

The project would add 443 MW to the combined 4 GW plants: Beaver Valley in Pennsylvania and Perry in Ohio.

3. Temperature check

Illustration of an earth in space covered in red and blue meteorological color lines.

Alan doesn't usually have patience for Ecto-1 knockoffs — either you've got a 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor or you don't.

Yes, but: Rivian's Halloween tribute to the iconic "Ghostbusters" vehicle is pretty neat, plus the themed software to go with it.

Alan's thought bubble: Anyone want to turn EV skateboard chassis into customized rides? We're all ears.

4. Photo of the week: Paranormal activity

White Rivian R1S SUV with Ghostbusters logo and rooftop equipment, blue emergency lights, parked on a wet street at night. Fog swirls near a lit porch house in the background.

Rivian pretty much nailed the light package on its "Ghostbusters" Ectomobile tribute. Photo: Courtesy of Rivian

topics

politics-policy

epstein-files

donald-trump

2026-midterm-elections

immigration

behind-the-curtain

race-and-equity

technology

privacy-tech-regulation

automation-and-ai

tiktok-news

big-tech

social-media

cybersecurity

economy

social-security

inflation

tariffs

federal-reserve

transportation

business

c-suite

retail-news

October 10, 2026

1 big thing: The week that was