Jeff Bezos-Backed Tesla Rival Slate To Reveal Affordable Pickup Truck Prices In June, CEO Confirms Mid-$20K Price For Base Trim
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) founder Jeff Bezos-backed Slate Auto has announced it will reveal prices for its affordable EV pickup truck in June.
Blank Slate To Boast Mid $20,000 Price
In a new post on the social media platform Instagram on Thursday, the official account of the automaker shared a video featuring company CEO Chris Barman, who announced that Slate will share updates on pricing in June this year amid negotiations with suppliers. "The Blank Slate will be in the mid 20s," she said in the video.
Slate Confirms 150,000 Reservations, $111 Million Funding
The company, which had generated interest in its claim that it would be offering a $20,000 EV Pickup, confirmed back in December last year that it had secured over 150,000 reservations for the pickup. It's worth noting that the promise of a $20,000 EV included the now-rescinded $7,500 Federal EV Credit.
Slate Auto also secured over $111 million in Series A funding from Bezos, as well as other high-profile investors like Mark Walter, CEO of Guggenheim Partners and majority owner of the L.A. Dodgers.
The company unveiled the pickup truck back in June last year and is offering it without a traditional paint job or even power windows and stereo. The base spec version offers a 150-mile range with a 52.7kWh battery and 1,400-pound payload capacity, while a larger battery option pushes the range to 240 miles.
Slate's unique approach focuses on personalization, where customers can pick and choose what they want, while the company also offers several presets tailored for multiple applications. The pickup truck can also be converted into a small SUV.
It’s worth noting that Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) currently dominates the U.S. EV sector, enjoying more than half of the EV market share as Tesla’s Model Y emerged as the best-selling electric vehicle in the country last year.
Ford's Universal EV Platform
As the average price of a car comes close to $50,000, affordability has become an important factor in the auto industry today. Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F) also shared more details about its Universal EV Platform that will underpin the upcoming $30,000 midsize EV Pickup truck in 2027.
CEO Jim Farley, reaffirming commitment to EVs, has touted the platform as a crucial element to offset the rising dominance of Chinese automakers in the global automotive market.
However, President Donald Trump's recent decision to rescind the fuel content factor provision from the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) norms could make EVs less attractive to automakers.
Check out more of Benzinga's Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.
Photo courtesy: lev radin on Shutterstock.com
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
You may also like
Before the Jensen Huang scandal broke out, the Quant King precisely cleared out Nvidia!
The latest 13F filing shows that quantitative giant Renaissance Technologies almost completely sold off its holdings in Nvidia (reduced by 99.7%), Meta (reduced by 99.9%), as well as other tech giants like Apple and Amazon in the third quarter, and significantly reduced its position in Palantir. At the same time, it heavily increased its holdings in Micron Technology (up by 618.7%), AMD, and SanDisk, as well as other storage and chip stocks.
British Pound extends losing streak against US Dollar, US PPI in focus
Barclays: US-Iran conflict unlikely to end in next 12 months, oil exports near 85% of pre-war level
Jensen Huang's sudden resignation shrouded in suspicion: Did the White House secretly intervene? Is a return possible in the future?
Only a few days separated Jensen Huang’s strong support from the board last Sunday and his late-night resignation on Wednesday. Multiple reports of the Wednesday night Nvidia board meeting were co-authored by Washington-based journalists—who do not typically cover Nvidia—fueling rumors of "White House pressure and information leaks." Huang’s unique value lies in leveraging his personal reputation to secure the supply chain and drive the implementation of technological roadmaps, making him difficult to replace. Some analysts note that, drawing on examples such as Steve Jobs’ return to Apple, it is possible that Huang may come back in the future.
Crypto prices
More
