Volkswagen AG CEO Herbert Diess said cash-rich technology giants invading the auto industry pose a much bigger challenge for the German manufacturer than traditional rivals like Toyota Motor Corp.

Daimler AG’s supervisory board picked Bernd Pischetsrieder to be its next chairman and help navigate the maker of Mercedes-Benz luxury cars through a seismic industry transformation.

Traton SE is stepping up expansion plans in China after Volkswagen AG’s truck division hammered out a deal to acquire Navistar International Corp. to boost its presence in North America.

Volkswagen AG will reserve a bigger slice of its 150 billion euro ($177 billion) budget for investment in electric cars and software in the next five years, stepping up technology spending to navigate a tectonic industry shift even as the COVID-19 pandemic roils markets.

Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp.’s truck subsidiaries are joining forces on battery-electric and fuel cell vehicles, enabling the companies to split the costs of developing technology needed to comply with stricter emission rules.

Volkswagen AG’s heavy-truck division set a deadline for Navistar International Corp. to accept its takeover bid, ratcheting up pressure on the U.S. manufacturer to decide on a $3.6 billion deal.

Daimler AG has entered discussions with its powerful German labor unions to convert key engine and transmission factories for the electric-car era.

Before Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk returned to the U.S. after a three-day visit to Germany, he made a final stopover to meet with one of his biggest competitors — Volkswagen AG CEO Herbert Diess.

Volkswagen AG’s CEO encouraged Bill Gates to advise governments on how to lower carbon emissions from transportation and renewed his criticism of Germany’s slow abandonment of coal power.

Volkswagen AG’s CEO again praised Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk, this time for showing it’s possible to profit off electric cars even in the midst of a global pandemic.