Yeah I get that, but I think the EV market is more than just batteries, simply because of the direction Tesla took it and others are following. Motor design is a huge thing with Tesla. And Toyota is innovating on motors with the Tundra/Sequioa hybrid electric motor system, using it to restart the gas engine instead of a starter motor and other tactics.
This is a game that is a lot like cell phones, with three fronts: power savings, battery power:weight ratio improvements, and a grid that can enable it. Materials technology to lighten the car without weakening it is another factor. Everyone is looking at that as well.
AI/automation are big issues too, mainly for competitive reasons, but they will likely become a command and control system in the cities as well. Right now charging sites and their impact on the grid are probably a bigger issue than batteries.
My point was just that I think Toyota wasn't really going toward BEVs for awhile. Now they are.
I'm not looking for any EV R&D. IMO we've reached diminishing returns on all the related technology and it will just be fractional percentage gains on all of it until some serendipitous find gives us a new battery or other portable power technology that can really do the job.
Most battery R&D now is busy work testing chemistries, grants seeking full of smoke and mirrors claims, and trying to find ways around the li-ion problems that is a looming wall on advancement. Someone might get lucky with some of the solid chemistry experimentation and jump the power ratio 10%.
That's the sort of thing they are all chasing. Most of the cathode experimentation is only going to yield longer life. That will help with long term cost, ROI, etc. but it won't result in significant power improvements.
It's the govt subsidies that are driving production now. I view that as a negative, a prop to force tech that isn't really ready, onto a grid that isn't really ready. That money would be better spent on infrastructure, like they promise, but never really do. All the infrastructure builds right now are adding load in the form of chargers, and in CA replacing legacy power will lower yield systems. We need more electric generation, not more load and rules.
There's also a schism between urban end-users and everyone else. The urban end-user in temperate areas just wants to commute and slow charge. Everyone else wants long range travel-ready vehicles, temperature stability, hauling capability, and around the clock usage for fleets. The govt is catering to the end-user to solve some of their city emissions issues (and eventually traffic issues), and screwing over everyone else with their policies.