- Lucid CEO confirms the corporate is on the lookout for extra established automakers to associate with.
- It is already in talks with two unnamed automakers after signing a deal to supply Aston Martin with its EV tech.
- Lucid desires to promote 1 million autos yearly and it’ll want an OEM’s assist to assist it ramp up manufacturing.
Though Lucid Motors is a startup with a lot much less car-making expertise than conventional OEMs, it has shortly turn out to be an electrical automobile know-how chief. It’s prepared to share its EV tech with others and it’s already serving to Aston Martin create its personal bespoke EV platform. Nonetheless, it additionally desires to seek out extra automakers to associate with.
In a current interview with Bloomberg, Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson mentioned the corporate was at present in talks with “a pair” of automakers, however he didn’t title names—one among them might be Genesis. He mentioned, “It could be pretty if we may provide know-how to a standard automobile firm to assist them on their approach to sustainability, and maybe we are able to leverage economies of scale with their components bin and different points of the enterprise.”
In different phrases, Lucid could be concerned about supplying its EV tech and count on to achieve know-how from its potential companions. This doesn’t apply to its take care of Aston Martin, which is one-sided for now, however Lucid expects to earn extra than simply cash from its future partnerships. Aston Martin will launch its first EV, which may have Lucid tech and know-how, in 2026, and it says it has a number of EVs within the pipeline.
Lucid isn’t the one EV startup on the lookout for established OEM companions. Rivian arrange a multi-billion greenback three way partnership take care of Volkswagen to develop electrical autos. VW has pledged to take a position near $6 billion, and the partnership’s first autos are anticipated to debut in 2027. Apparently, a Volkswagen EV prototype is already operating on a Rivian platform with Rivian tech.
Volkswagen additionally owns the Scout EV model, so it’s not solely unreasonable to counsel that the upcoming Scout Terra and Traveler could have some parts in widespread. That can make the truth that Scout and Rivian are usually not the identical firm even much less obvious.
Lucid’s in-house-developed electrical motors and 900-volt platform permit it to make a few of essentially the most environment friendly electrical autos on this planet. The startup lacks data about scaling up manufacturing into the a whole bunch of hundreds, which is the place the expertise supplied by a longtime automaker could be very helpful.
Now within the means of ramping up manufacturing of its second mannequin, the Gravity full measurement SUV, Lucid will then transfer on to getting ready the beginning of manufacturing for its third mannequin. This can be a smaller and extra reasonably priced midsize electrical SUV, whose beginning worth can be round $48,000, so it ought to promote in greater volumes than any of its present fashions—the most cost effective Lucid proper now’s the Air Pure, which begins at $71,400, however you may pay over $250,000 for a top-spec Air Sapphire.
Peter Rawlinson beforehand mentioned that Lucid is aiming to promote 1 million autos yearly, and it’s banking on not one however two midsize electrical crossovers to get there. This yr, it produced round 10,000 autos, so it is received a protracted approach to go to realize the said aim.
