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Future Mobility News & Views: February 2026 Edition

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Stephen Robinson

Stephen Robinson

Director - Future Mobility
#ev
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Welcome back to the latest edition of Future Mobility News & Views.

Before diving in, a quick personal milestone to share. Yesterday marked seven years since I joined Hyperion Search to lead our EV & Future Mobility practice. It’s been a journey shaped entirely by the people in this sector - the leaders, founders, operators, investors, teams and colleagues (past & present) for which I’ve had the privilege to get to know and work alongside all these years. The Doers. The ones who show up, push things forward, and deliver genuine impact. Thank You.

I’m hugely grateful for the trust, the conversations, and the chance to play my small part in helping the right people find the right missions, and in turn, helping so many ambitious organisations realise their scale objectives. And even with a decade in #emobility under my belt, it’s clear we’ve still got a long way to go - in fact, we haven’t even scratched the surface.

But what a moment to hit that milestone 👇🏼

EV sales in Europe grew 30% last year, overtaking petrol for the first time. December alone saw a 51% year‑on‑year growth, with the likes of Denmark and the Netherlands pushing past 60–70% BEV share. Even with Tesla sales down significantly as Elon dabbles with robots and robotaxis (a shame in my opinion - see my post here, the momentum didn’t slow - BYD tripled its growth, and others stepped straight into the space.

All of this happened despite policy somewhat softening around ICE phase‑outs. Better tech and better economics continue to win. And it's no longer just cars. Commercial fleets, vans, trucks are buses already showing the same early curve.

The transition isn’t coming. It’s here.

It’s also been a busy start to the year for the team. From E‑World in Essen, to this week’s Energy Storage Summit in London, and my own visit to Powered Up London last month. A few standout themes from that event:

  • The sector is shifting from “Land Grab" to "Longevity". Yes, there will always be the few new market entrants who try to capitalise on the low hanging fruits and quick wins but they won't last. We'll end up with fewer, better quality, better funded and more reliable operators - and that's a good thing.
  • Execution is becoming the differentiator. And investors recognise this. Shiny pitch decks and ambitious growth plans won't cut it if your commercial models and leadership teams aren't credible.
  • Talent remains a critical bottleneck - especially in commercial, product, and delivery roles.
  • And perhaps most importantly - the EV transition is no longer a niche movement and sub-standard EV charging is no longer acceptable.

With that, let’s take a look at what’s been happening across the sector…

Industry News Round-up 🚗⚡
🔋 Battery

Donut Lab releases first data on its controversial solid‑state battery: There has been a lot of noise around this and it was very much a topic of discussion that came up on 1-2 panels at Powered Up in London last month. Whilst early results show promising energy density and cycle life, questions remain around manufacturability and cost. Time will tell!

Connected Energy to establish second‑life EV battery testing at its grid‑scale storage site: Connected Energy who we have had the pleasure to support over the years will begin testing repurposed EV batteries at its large‑scale energy storage facility. This is a move that strengthens the business case for circularity, extends asset life, and supports grid flexibility at a time when storage demand is accelerating.

🚛 eHGV

UK boosts purchase grants for electric HGVs: The UK government has injected an additional £18 million into its existing Plug-in Van and Truck Grant which comes as a major boost and a huge step in accelerating the fleet transition.

Electric truck sales rise in 2025 but volumes remain small: Electric truck sales grew meaningfully last year, though they still represent a tiny share of the overall market. But this is exactly what early‑curve adoption looks like - slow, then sudden. Infrastructure, grants, and maturing vehicle platforms are now lining up and the inflection point is getting closer.

UK Electric Freightway launches with first public eHGV hubs: The UK’s new Electric Freightway initiative opened its first public eHGV charging hubs in January, providing dedicated high‑power infrastructure for operators and removing one of the biggest barriers to early adoption. This is the kind of backbone investment the sector has been waiting for.

A new electric truck charging hub is being built at Magna Park, Lutterworth: With operations due to begin in September 2026, Guardian Smart Infrastructure Management and Keoma Hubs are partnering to deliver the site, which is positioned as a major enabler for large‑scale eHGV adoption.

Fleete secures planning consent for a 26-bay electric heavy goods vehicle (eHGV) charging hub in the UK: The hub will support the accelerating shift to electric HGVs across one of the country’s densest concentrations of warehouses and distribution centres.

Public EV Charging ⚡ 

TfL awards TotalEnergies a new contract to deploy up to 43 rapid EV chargers across London: This will no doubt strengthen the capital’s public fast‑charging network for high‑mileage commercial users.

Fleet 🚚🚚🚚

Octopus Energy launches Octopus Fleet: The consolidated platform will support businesses with access to public charging, home‑charging reimbursement, fleet payment tools, and on‑site energy solutions such as chargers, solar, and battery storage. It’s positioned as a one‑stop shop for organisations at any stage of their electrification journey.

🤖 Autonomous Vehicles

Uber commits $100m to robotaxi charging infrastructure: This comes as a clear signal that AV deployment is shifting from pilots to commercialisation.

Wayve has secured $1.2–1.5 billion in new investment: Lifting its valuation to around $8.6 billion and accelerating its shift from R&D to commercial deployment, the company plans to launch robotaxi trials in London in 2026.

📈 BEV Uptake

UK EV registrations edge up in January - but market share dips: Promising news with BEV registrations to kickstart the year but a reminder that growth won’t be linear, and policy clarity still matters.

🏛️ Politics & Policy

EU urged to avoid a funding gap as heavy‑duty charging accelerates: A joint industry letter warns that infrastructure momentum could stall without coordinated support.

UK increases home and workplace charge‑point grants: The government is lifting EV charger grants from £350 to £500 per socket from 1 April 2026, a move designed to make home, workplace and fleet charging far more affordable.

Industry Insights 🔍
🫱🏼🫲🏼Consolidation: Not a slowdown - a maturation

Pretty much this time last year, I joined a brilliant webinar from LCP Delta where John Murray and industry leaders explored whether the European EV charging market was entering a consolidation era. The conclusion then was “not yet, but very soon.”

Well… it’s here.

Within just ten days, we saw four major deals:

 

This isn’t the sector shrinking. This is the sector growing up.

Chris Jackson put it perfectly in his recent LinkedIn post:

"The land grab phase is done. The market is sorting itself into operators with the capital and commercial model to scale and those that can't get there alone...the direction is clear. Fewer, larger, better-funded networks. That means better reliability, more consistent pricing and operators with the balance sheets to maintain and grow infrastructure for the long term."

Fragmentation has been holding back utilisation, financing, and customer experience. Consolidation is the only way to build networks that are truly scalable, reliable, and investable.

I expect to see more of this through Q2 and beyond.

eHGV Momentum 🚚⚡

The eHGV landscape is gathering real pace. The market map Niall Riddell M.A.F.P and I published earlier this month has already sparked some brilliant conversations - and we’re working on future iterations to reflect the speed of change. If you haven't connected with us already, or we haven't included your organisation in our map, please DM me. I'd love to talk to you if you are building solutions to enable heavy duty electrification at scale.

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And on the topic of eHGV's, If you haven’t yet read the excellent SET Ventures report on heavy‑goods electrification (developed by Austin Wood, who I placed), it’s well worth your time. It’s one of the clearest analyses of the commercial, technical, and policy levers shaping this space. You can access it here.

Deals, Funding & Investment 💰

It has been a strong couple of months for capital flows across batteries, charging, and fleet electrification. Here are my top picks:

Capital is still there but it’s flowing more diligently and to the right places - proven operators, scalable models, and infrastructure‑critical technologies.

Talent Insights 👥

I recently shared some thoughts on the value of a true search partner - especially in a market where hiring is becoming more deliberate, more strategic, and more risk‑aware. Read it here

A few key points worth reiterating:

  • Great hiring isn’t about speed - it’s about precision.
  • The best candidates aren’t “on the market” - they’re in the sector, doing the work. Great work.
  • And the organisations that win are those that treat talent as a competitive advantage, not a cost line.

As consolidation across the EV sector accelerates and capital becomes more selective, the bar for leadership and execution will only rise. Don't let a poor hiring strategy limit your ability to attract the best leaders.

Key People Moves (January / February) 👥

Already this year, there have been some high profile people moves across the sector, here's my top picks:

Mo Ismail joins Optimo Energy as Director of Sales Europe

Paul Ayres joins Paythru as Chief Commercial Officer

Martin Roemheld joins EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG as Chief Executive Officer Mobility+

Luke Dowell joins TUAL | Pro-Charging as CTO

Stuart Tolley joins Fuuse as Sales Director

We cover this more broadly each quarter in our Market & Talent Review which will be published towards the end of Q1. You can take a look at our previous release here

Podcast Recommendations 🎧

A few standout listens this month:

What else should I be listening to?

Looking Ahead

As we head towards Q2, a few themes feel inevitable...

  • More consolidation is going to happen - especially across the CPO and software landscape.
  • There will be a sharper focus on profitability and utilisation, not just growth.
  • This will mean a more careful, critical approach to hiring - hiring volumes will be impacted but there will still be solid demand for the right people in the right roles - at business critical levels.
  • Acceleration in eHGV will continue, driven by grants, infrastructure, and growing operator confidence.
  • We'll see continued BEV growth, even if the monthly numbers fluctuate, OEM's who aren't prioritising BEV's run the risk of extinction if they don't pull their fingers out.

 

The direction of travel is clear. The challenge now is execution - and that’s where the sector’s 'Doers' will continue to shine.

If you enjoyed reading this, hopefully you'll stay tuned for future editions and if you are reading this knowing you have some key, strategic and senior level hiring needs currently or for which you are soon going to be hiring for, let's connect as I'd love to introduce myself.

See you next time.

Steve