Also when people hear "cast" they think "cast iron" or cheap appliance broken piece (mostly zinc). They're brittle because of material choice, not because of casting. (Though casting does influence the choice of materials)

Ruger, for example, makes everything from gun barrels to golf clubs from casting.

They claim that due to material advances and such, casting can meet or exceed the strength of typical 'forged' steel.

Not necessarily. Tesla actually developed a proprietary alloy for their giga casting that removed the need for heat treatment, as the large castings tended to deform during it. On the plus side, also meant they could remove that process step. Article didn't give any details how Toyota would handle it though.