Chloe Aiello

New York

Staff Reporter at Inc.

Staff reporter @Inc covering climate tech | Formerly @Cheddar, @CNBC, @todayshow and @denverite | @Columbiajourn alumna | Send tips!

Articles

Tesla Slams the Brakes on Cybertruck's $16,000 Range Extender

6 days ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

Tesla’s much maligned Cybertruck won’t get a long-promised range boost. The Elon Musk-helmed EV company has begun informing Cybertruck owners via email that the company is no longer planning to sell the “Range Extender,” and has plans to refund those owners who put down $2,000 deposits, Electrek reported.
Trump Wants to End Energy Star, Which Has Saved Consumers $500 Billion

1 week ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

The Trump administration is planning even more cuts to the Environmental Protect Agency. This time, the agency’s Energy Star program is reportedly next. Energy Star is a EPA-run program that has promoted energy-efficient practices since the early ‘90s. The Energy Star label signals to consumers that their appliance purchases meet certain standards and specifications for energy efficiency, much like what USDA Organic certification means for food production standards.
This Startup Just Unveiled Autonomous Electric Planes for the Air Force

1 week ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

Tennessee-based startup Whisper Aero just unveiled new concepts for autonomous cargo aircraft in partnership with the U.S. Air Force. The company, which made headlines for a 2024 partnership with Stanley Black & Decker on ultra quiet leaf blowers, recently unveiled designs for two hybrid-electric collaborative logistics aircraft (CLA). That refers to cargo aircraft that can fly autonomously.
A Memphis Community Tells Elon Musk to Stop Polluting Their Neighborhood

1 week ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

There’s a true David and Goliath battle going on in Memphis. A group of environmental activists and local lawmakers are fighting against the wealthiest man in the world and his rapid push to expand his AI data center at any cost. Elon Musk’s xAI moved into Southwest Memphis in 2024, and began burning gas turbines to power Colossus, a supercomputer built to train xAI’s large language model and OpenAI competitor, Grok.
How a First-Time Founder Built His Company to Be Sellable

1 week ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

Manifesting an exit strategy when starting a business may seem like skipping to the end of the book before reading the first page. But that’s the approach Jim Kaveney took.
This Tech Startup Won $1 Million to Work on Climate Change—and Maybe Even Beer

2 weeks ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

With only months to spare, a Berkeley, California-based startup entered the XPRIZE Carbon Removal competition—and won $1 million for pulling CO2 out of the atmosphere. Aircapture is a direct-air-capture company that manufactures a modular solution to capture CO2 for storage underground or for use in adjacent industries, like beverage carbonation.
Trump’s First 100 Days Have Thrown Energy and Environmental Policy Into Chaos

2 weeks ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

One focus of the Trump administration’s frenetic and chaotic activity during its first 100 days has been directed at energy policy and environmental regulation. Among the 26 executive orders Trump issued on his first day in office, three pertain exclusively to energy policy. Their collective aim: to establish the energy independence of the United States through a renewed focus on fossil fuels.
Is Rivian going big on AI? A new board member suggests ambitious plans

2 weeks ago | pantagraph.com | Chloe Aiello

Rivian has added a high-profile new executive to its board: Aidan Gomez, cofounder and CEO of generative AI company Cohere. The appointment signals Rivian — a California-based company that manufactures all of its electric trucks, SUVs and commercial delivery vans in Normal — is prioritizing AI on the back of a $5.8 billion deal the EV-maker struck with Volkswagen to develop EV software. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gomez will serve in the position until 2026.
This Battery Startup Just Notched a Key Win for Its Next-Gen EV Tech

2 weeks ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

Factorial just passed a major milestone with its next-generation EV battery. Together with automaker Stellantis, the Massachusetts-based startup recently validated its solid-state battery cell tech—meeting some key metrics and notching a major step toward commercialization. Battery technology is a crucial limiting factor in modern EVs. A vehicle’s range, weight, and recharge time can all be traced to its batteries.
This Startup Just Raised $186 Million to Clean Up Steel's Dirty Iron Problem

3 weeks ago | inc.com | Chloe Aiello

Boulder, Colorado-based Electra wants to green up the dirty iron industry. “If iron and steel were a country, its emissions would be ranked third after China and the United States in terms of emissions,” says Electra CEO and cofounder Sandeep Nijhawan. It’s a “very large, big energy transition problem.” The steel industry is responsible for as much as 9 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions—and its high-temperature production methodology makes that footprint difficult to abate.