Trump’s DOE proposes cutting billions in grants for GM, Ford, and lots of startups

The Department of Energy (DOE) under the Trump administration is proposing to cut billions of dollars in federal funding, including more than $500 million in grants awarded to over a dozen startups, as well as significant grants to major automakers such as Ford, General Motors, Stellantis, Daimler Trucks North America, Harley-Davidson, Mercedes-Benz Vans, and Volvo Technology of America. These grants were awarded under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and include contracts aimed at advancing clean energy technologies and domestic manufacturing. The proposed cuts come shortly after the administration announced plans to slash over $7.5 billion in contracts the previous week. Among the notable grants at risk are a $189 million award to Brimstone, a materials startup developing low-carbon Portland cement and alumina production, and a substantial grant to Anovion, which aims to produce synthetic graphite domestically for lithium-ion batteries, a market currently dominated by China. Other affected startups include Li Industries, which received $55.2 million to recycle lithium iron