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The record-breaking Falcons Flight roller coaster starts out slow, but don’t be fooled. Seconds into the ride at the new Six Flags Qiddiya City in Saudi Arabia, passengers are jolted into a high-speed journey that ascends mountainsides, passes through dark tunnels, and then does it all over again. The ride reaches a height of nearly 640 feet, lasts for nearly 3.5 minutes, and travels more than 2.6 miles. It’s the largest, longest, and fastest roller coaster in the world, reaching peak speeds of about 155 mph. To make it, a European design and manufacturing company used the most powerful electro-magnetic propulsion system on the market. Though Saudi Arabia just killed plans for the Line, its futuristic 150-mile-long city, it now holds records at its park, including the world’s tallest inversion on a roller coaster and the world’s tallest pendulum ride. [Photo: Six Flags Qiddiya City] Falcons Flight holds the speed, height, and length records for roller coasters, according to Intamin Amusement Rides, the Liechtenstein-based company that designed it. Founded in 1967, the company’s work spans from monorails in Moscow to an observation tower in Argentina, and includes what it claims was the world’s first giant drop ride in 1995. It says its newest roller coaster is part of “a commitment to pushing boundaries.” Intamin’s linear synchronous motors (LSM) drive system gives Falcons Flight an edge in terms of engineering. LSMs use electro-magnetic propulsion to move the ride forward through permanent magnets on the coaster train and electromagnets on the tracks. That’s different from other methods, like an old-school chain lift pulled by a motor, or a hydraulic launch. With LSMs, a moving magnetic field pulls the train forward. LSMs debuted on two Intamin-designed ridesSuperman: Escape From Krypton at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California, and the Tower of Terror II ride at Dreamworld in Australia, both of which opened in 1997. Today, it’s a popular way to build roller coasters because it’s more efficient and cheaper to run. It’s also super fast. Intamin says Falcons Flight was was always intended to break records; the bird-shaped trains were designed to be aerodynamic, with windshields “engineered to pierce through the air,” not to mention save riders’ eyes from all that wind. The Six Flags Qiddiya City opening late last year came after the November closure of Six Flags America just east of Washington, D.C. Six Flags announced later that month that more closures are forthcoming for underperforming parks. The Quiddiya City park is its first outside the United States.
Category:
E-Commerce
At the 2026 Detroit Auto Show, the spotlight quietly shifted. Electric vehicles, once framed as the inevitable future of the industry, were no longer the centerpiece. Instead, automakers emphasized hybrids, updated gasoline models and incremental efficiency improvements. The show, held in January, reflected an industry recalibration happening in real time: Ford and General Motors had recently announced $19.5 billion and $6 billion in EV-related write-downs, respectively, reflecting the losses they expect as they unwind or delay parts of their electric vehicle plans. The message from Detroit was unmistakable: The U.S. is pulling back from a transition that much of the world is accelerating. That retreat carries consequences far beyond showroom floors. In China, Europe, and a growing number of emerging markets, including Vietnam and Indonesia, electric vehicles now make up a higher share of new passenger vehicle sales than in the United States. That means the U.S. pullback on EV production is not simply a climate problemgasoline-powered vehicles are a major contributor to climate changeit is also an industrial competitiveness problem, with direct implications for the future of U.S. automakers, suppliers, and autoworkers. Slower EV production and slower adoption in the U.S. can keep prices higher, delay improvements in batteries and software, and increase the risk that the next generation of automotive value creation will happen elsewhere. Where EVs are taking over In 2025, global EV registrations rose 20% to 20.7 million. Analysts with Benchmark Mineral Intelligence reported that China reached 12.9 million EV registrations, up 17% from the previous year; Europe recorded 4.3 million, up 33%; and the rest of the world added 1.7 million, up 48%. By contrast, U.S. EV sales growth was essentially flat in 2025, at about 1%. U.S. automaker Tesla experienced declines in both scale and profitabilityits vehicle deliveries fell 9% compared to 2024, the companys net profit was down 46%, and CEO Elon Musk said it would put more of its focus on artificial intelligence and robotics. Market share tells a similar story and also challenges the assumption that vehicle electrification would take time to expand from wealthy countries to emerging markets. In 39 countries, EVs now exceed 10% of new car sales, including in Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia, which reached 38%, 21%, and 15%, respectively, in 2025, energy analysts at Ember report. In the U.S., EVs accounted for less than 10% of new vehicle sales, by Embers estimates. U.S. President Donald Trump came back into office in 2025 promising to end policies that supported EV production and sales and boost fossil fuels. But while the U.S. was curtailing federal consumer incentives, governments elsewhere largely continued a transition to electric vehicles. Europe softened its goal for all vehicles to have zero emissions by 2035 at the urging of automakers, but its new target is still a 90% cut in automobiles carbon dioxide emissions by 2035. Germany launched a program offering subsidies worth 1,500 to 6,000 euros per electric vehicle, aimed at low- and middle-income households. In developing economies, EV policy has largely been sustained through industrial policies. In Brazil, the MOVER program offers tax credits explicitly linked to domestic EV production, research and development, and efficiency targets. South Africa is introducing a 150% investment allowance for EV and battery manufacturing, giving them a tax break starting in March 2026. Thailand has implemented subsidies and reduced excise tax tied to mandatory local production and export commitments. In China, the EV industry has entered a phase of regulatory maturity. After a decade of subsidies and state-led investment that helped domestic firms undercut global competitors, the governments focus is no longer on explosive growth at home. With their domestic market saturated and competition fierce, Chinese automakers are pushing aggressively into global markets. Beijing has reinforced this shift by ending its full tax exemption for EV purchases and replacing it with a tapered 5% tax on EV buyers. Consequences for U.S. automakers EV manufacturing is governed by steep learning curves and scale economies, meaning the more vehicles a company builds, the better it gets at making them faster and cheaper. Low domestic production and sales can mean higher costs for parts and weaker bargaining power for automakers in global supply chains. The competitive landscape is already changing. In 2025, China exported 2.65 million EVs, doubling its 2024 exports, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. And BYD surpassed Tesla as the worlds largest EV maker in 2025. The U.S. risks becoming a follower in the industry it once defined. Some people argue that American consumers simply prefer trucks and hybrids. Others point to Chinese subsidies and overcapacity as distortions that justify U.S. industry caution. These concerns deserve consideration, but they do not outweigh the fundamental fact that, globally, the EV share of auto sales continues to rise. What can the U.S. do? For U.S. automakers and workers to compete in this market, the government, in our view, will have to stop treating EVs as an ideological matter and start governing it like an industrial transition. That starts with restoring regulatory credibility, something that seems unlikely right now as the Trump administration moves to roll back vehicle emissions standards. Performance standards are the quiet engine of industrial investment. When standards are predictable and enforced, manufacturers can plan, suppliers can invest in new businesses, and workers can train for reliable demand. Governments at state and local levels and industry can also take important steps. Focus on affordability and equity: The federal clean-vehicle tax credit that effectively gave EV buyers a discount expired in September 2025. An alternative is targeted, point-of-sale support for low- and middle-income buyers. By moving away from blanket credits in favor of targeted incentivesa model already used in California and Pennsylvaniagovernments can ensure public funds are directed toward people who are currently priced out of the EV market. Additionally, interest-rate buydowns that allow buyers to reduce their loan payments and green loan programs can help, typically funded through state and local governments, utility companies or federal grants. Keep building out the charging network: A federal judge ruled on January 23, 2026, that the Trump administration violated the law when it suspended a $5 billion program for expanding the nations EV charger network. That expansion effort can be improved by shifting the focus from the number of ports installed to the number of working chargers, as California did in 2025. Enforcing reliability and clearing bottlenecks, such as electricity connections and payment systems, could help boost the number of functioning sites. Use fleet procurement as a stabilizer for U.S. sales: When states, cities and companies provide a predictable volume of vehicle purchases, that helps manufacturers plan future investments. For example, Amazons 2019 order of 100,000 Rivian electric delivery vehicles to be delivered over the following decade gave the startup automaker the boost it needed. Treat workforce transition as core infrastructure: This means giving workers skills they can carry from job to job, helping suppliers retool instead of shutting down, and coordinating training with employers needs. Done right, these investments turn economic change into a source of stable jobs and broad public support. Done poorly, they risk a political backlash. The scene at the Detroit Auto Show should be a warning, not a verdict. The global auto industry is accelerating its EV transition. The question for the United States is whether it will shape that futureand ensure the technologies and jobs of the next automotive era are in the U.S.or import it. Hengrui Liu is a postdoctoral scholar in economics and public policy at the Fletcher School at Tufts University. Kelly Sims Gallagher is a professor of energy and environmental policy and director of the Climate Policy Lab and Center for International Environment and Resource Policy at the Fletcher School at Tufts University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Category:
E-Commerce
The only constant in life is change. This truth is as salient today as it was when the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus posited the idea centuries ago. Its a truth that most modern leaders know firsthand, especially when it comes to culture. Culture is in constant flux. Emergent ideas are introduced to an organizationbe they new technologies or nascent philosophieswhich catalyze new imaginations and result in new ways of work. However, the question isnt if things will change but how and when? So, we sat down with the former CMO of McDonalds North America, Tariq Hassan, for this weeks episode of the From the Culture podcast to talk about cultural change and how leaders can best navigate it. As Hassan poetically puts it, every organization is haunted by the ghosts of cultures past. These are the existing conventions of an organization that were once introduced and integrated into its operating system but linger about even after a leader departs. Some were advantageous in the moment but perhaps soured over time. Others were likely rejected at first glance but eventually revealed themselves to be useful. These cultural contributions can be edifying or detrimental to an organization. Therefore, its incumbent upon new leaders to identify which ghosts should be summoned and which ought to be exorcised. {"blockType":"mv-promo-block","data":{"imageDesktopUrl":"https:\/\/images.fastcompany.com\/image\/upload\/f_webp,q_auto,c_fit\/wp-cms-2\/2026\/01\/studio_16-9.jpg","imageMobileUrl":"https:\/\/images.fastcompany.com\/image\/upload\/f_webp,q_auto,c_fit\/wp-cms-2\/2026\/01\/studio_square_thumbnail.jpg","eyebrow":"","headline":"FROM THE CULTURE","dek":"FROM THE CULTURE is a podcast that explores the inner workings of organizational culture that enable companies to thrive, teams to win, and brands to succeed. If culture eats strategy for breakfast, then this is the most important conversation in business that you arent having.","subhed":"","description":"","ctaText":"Listen","ctaUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLvojPSJ6Iy0T4VojdtGsZ8Q4eAJ6mzr2h","theme":{"bg":"#2b2d30","text":"#ffffff","eyebrow":"#9aa2aa","subhed":"#ffffff","buttonBg":"#3b3f46","buttonHoverBg":"#3b3f46","buttonText":"#ffffff"},"imageDesktopId":91470870,"imageMobileId":91470866,"shareable":false,"slug":""}} How Will I Know According to Hassan, a trained strategist turned C-suite executive, culture should evolve but also remain static. This dynamic might seem paradoxical on the surface, but it is empirically supported by the literature. Famed anthropologist Grant McCracken refers to this as fast and slow culture. Slow culture consists of the deeply held beliefs and assumptions of an organization that inform how we do things around here. Fast culture, on the other hand, is a reflection of the organizations beliefs in a contemporary context, based on the realities of today. They both exist at the same time but change at different rates. Slow culture moves at a glacier pace, if at all. This is the static nature of culture that Hassan argues is the anchor of an organization that keeps it stable. Fast culture is far more temporalthe evolving parts of Hassans cultural calculus. When considering change, new leaders must distinguish between the fast and the slow, which parts must be revisited (the fast) and which should be reinforced (the slow). This is where reenvisioning comes into play for the CEO and executions become contextualized for managers. Three Ideas To navigate these complexities, Hassan offers three recommendations. First, leaders must approach change with great humility. This means realizing that someone was there before you who helped get the organization to where it is today. As good as you may be, you cant enter the company thinking Everyone here is incompetent and only I, alone, will save it. Doing so is to ignore the cultural conventions that ushered in its past successes or, worse, it may lead you to erroneously mistake them for the lingering conventions that may have prevented the organization from thriving. Discerning the differences is key. Secondly, Hassan suggests adopting a curious mindset. As a leader, hes far more infatuated with questions than he is with answers. Questions invite other members of the organization who have experienced previous cultures to contribute to the exploration of change. It allows leaders to brain surf the institutional knowledge that already exists and leverage the endowment effect so that members of the team feel a sense of ownership in the change. That way, they are a part of the change as opposed to the change happening to them. Lastly, Hassan emphasizes the importance of empathyself-aware perspective taking. Considering the kaleidoscope of meanings the world presents to our collective sense; having more perspectives provides a vivid picture of the organizations reality, which helps you, as a leader, lead change more effectively. This, as Hassan notes, is not only true of business culture but also of culture more broadly. And thats spot-on. Things arent the way they are; they are the way that we are, to paraphrase famed French-born author Anas Nin. And if that is the case, then understanding the multiple perspectives of the organization is critical to truly understanding the organization itself. Without this understanding, how can you effectively lead change? Check out our full conversation with Tariq Hassan on the From the Culture podcast, where we explore the inner workings of organizational culture with the leaders who lead them. {"blockType":"mv-promo-block","data":{"imageDesktopUrl":"https:\/\/images.fastcompany.com\/image\/upload\/f_webp,q_auto,c_fit\/wp-cms-2\/2026\/01\/studio_16-9.jpg","imageMobileUrl":"https:\/\/images.fastcompany.com\/image\/upload\/f_webp,q_auto,c_fit\/wp-cms-2\/2026\/01\/studio_square_thumbnail.jpg","eyebrow":"","headline":"FROM THE CULTURE","dek":"FROM THE CULTURE is a podcast that explores the inner workings of organizational culture that enable companies to thrive, teams to win, and brands to succeed. If culture eats strategy for breakfast, then this is the most important conversation in business that you arent having.","subhed":"","description":"","ctaText":"Listen","ctaUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLvojPSJ6Iy0T4VojdtGsZ8Q4eAJ6mzr2h","theme":{"bg":"#2b2d30","text":"#ffffff","eyebrow":"#9aa2aa","subhed":"#ffffff","buttonBg":"#3b3f46","buttonHoverBg":"#3b3f46","buttonText":"#ffffff"},"imageDesktopId":91470870,"imageMobileId":91470866,"shareable":false,"slug":""}}
Category:
E-Commerce
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