New vehicles are ridiculously costly. New electrical vehicles, much more so. Might a brand new American EV startup change that equation?
Based on a scoop from TechCrunch’s Sean O’Kane, that is the aim of Slate Auto. It is a new automaker that might exit of “stealth mode” quickly with an electrical pickup truck aiming for an attractive price ticket of round $25,000.
Launching a completely new automobile firm is not any straightforward endeavor, however Slate reportedly has no less than one very deep-pocketed investor: Amazon founder and govt chairman Jeff Bezos.
“Slate, which took root in one other Bezos-connected firm known as Re:Construct Manufacturing, has been working quietly since its founding in 2022,” the tech information publication reported. It has since poached workers from Ford, Common Motors, Stellantis, and Harley-Davidson, and different backers might embrace LA Dodgers proprietor Mark Walter and billionaire govt Thomas Tull.
Based on the story, Slate’s first product will likely be a two-seat electrical truck likened to the Ford Mannequin T and authentic Volkswagen Beetle. The corporate’s web site affords no details about the product itself at current, solely a portal to join information. A Slate spokesperson declined to remark when reached by InsideEVs.
TechCrunch reported that the corporate has raised no less than $111 million in Sequence A funding, which included Bezos. The billionaire Amazon founder can be the proprietor of the Washington Publish and the Blue Origin aerospace firm. It’s mentioned to be headquartered in Michigan, constructing vehicles close to Indianapolis, Indiana, and with a design studio in California.
Past that, no different particulars concerning the Slate truck are instantly accessible. But when the corporate does launch quickly, it might be the primary EV startup to seem within the U.S. market since maybe Fisker Inc. And the failure of that firm final 12 months reveals the numerous headwinds going through the automotive startup house. Whereas newcomer Rivian says it is on observe for a worthwhile 12 months in 2025 and Lucid has its personal deep-pocketed traders, making vehicles is tough—and in an unsure financial surroundings, the dangers couldn’t be greater.
On the identical time, the EV house is quickly maturing and trending towards extra inexpensive fashions. Gone are the times when an EV firm may launch with an ultra-exclusive spaceship and a six-figure price ticket; lately, consumers need affordability. If Slate can benefit from built-out battery growth prices, safe sturdy associate relationships for issues like electrical motors and different components, and might certainly “problem the established order of auto design” as that story claims, it might have a shot at success.
Extra on this as we get it.
Contact the creator: patrick.george@insideevs.com
