CarOffer To Shut Down, Ford’s EV Affordability Plan, GPT-5 Is Here

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Episode #1116: CarGurus shuts down CarOffer, trimming its wholesale tech reach. Ford opens a Long Beach EV hub to take on low-cost rivals. And OpenAI’s GPT-5 rolls out to all ChatGPT users, promising smarter, faster AI for everyone.

Show Notes with links:

• CarGurus will shutter its wholesale digital marketplace CarOffer less than two years after fully acquiring it, citing a volatile pricing environment and dealer demand for more flexibility.
  • CEO Jason Trevisan said the company explored alternatives but winding down was the only option.
  • The closure impacts Dealer-to-Dealer, a wholesale platform for dealer-to-dealer used inventory trades, and Instant Max Cash Offer, a consumer vehicle acquisition tool feeding dealer inventory pipelines.
  • The shutdown will run through 2025, costing $14M–$19M including $5M–$7M in restructuring.
  • However, CarOffers tech will remain, with Trevisan saying “We will retain and build on the underlying technology…capabilities that…remain central to CarGurus’ sourcing strategy,”

• On the heels of Ford’s “Model T moment” we covered yesterday, the manufacturer has opened a 250,000-square-foot Electric Vehicle Development Center in Long Beach, CA, focused on bringing affordable EVs to market, including a new mid-size pickup.
  • The facility includes design review spaces, EV testing labs, a fabrication shop, and a digital visualization room to accelerate product development.
  • This is part of Ford’s first low-cost EV platform initiative, led by ex-Tesla engineer Alan Clarke, aiming for simpler, more efficient builds.
  • An initial team of 350 employees will grow by 100; the group was formerly known internally as the “Skunkworks Team” for its rapid, innovative approach.
  • A new trademark filing suggests Ford’s upcoming midsize electric pickup could revive the Ranchero nameplate, a nod to the classic coupe-pickup sold from 1957–1979, with the EV version expected to debut in 2027.
  • “The goal is to define a new era for electric vehicles,” said Jolanta Coffey, Ford’s Director of Global New Model Launch.

• OpenAI has launched GPT-5, its fastest and most capable AI model yet, giving both free and paid ChatGPT users access to advanced reasoning for the first time. Just 2.5 years after GPT-4 debuted, the release marks another step toward integrating AI deeper into business, education, and everyday workflows.
  • CEO Sam Altman says going back to GPT-4 after testing GPT-5 was “quite miserable,” citing improvements in speed, reasoning, and usability.
  • New “safe completions” reduce outright refusals while keeping answers within safety guardrails, alongside lower hallucination rates and better handling of complex logic.
  • Free-tier ChatGPT users get a reasoning model; Plus and Pro users get higher usage limits, with GPT-5 Pro for advanced performance.

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