This year has been full of surprises, and we aren’t even halfway through April. Yet, I bet none of you reading this had what I’m about to tell you on your bingo sheet. Jeff Bezos, the mastermind of Amazon and the guy I’m surprised doesn’t live in a volcano, is funding an electric pickup truck. But he isn’t funding just any truck, as he wants to see a two-seat pickup truck that’ll cost around just $25,000 become real. These trucks will be the product of a secret company that nobody’s even heard of until now.
We know about the existence of this company, Slate Auto, because of the tech publication TechCrunch. I’ll warn you right from the jump, Slate Auto is still a very secretive entity. It has released no sketches, no concepts, or no photos of any kind. If you go to Slate Auto’s website, you’re presented with a single black page with just a form to fill out to get more information one day.
However, because of TechCrunch, we have a good enough idea of what’s going on to start dreaming about a truly cheap way to get around. Is Bezos working on the Amazon Prime of EVs?
A Company Nobody’s Heard Of
According to the TechCrunch report, Slate was founded in 2022 and has links to Framingham, Massachusetts-based Re:Build Manufacturing, a Bezos-connected company that sees itself reinventing American industry with its manufacturing incubator business strategy. Basically, if you run a startup and need manufacturing help, that’s what Re:Build says it helps with. Slate Auto was reportedly born out of an early 2022 project within Re:Build called Re:Car.
Slate resides in David Tracy’s old stomping grounds of Troy, Michigan, and it has been operating silently since its founding. It also has a presence in Los Angeles, California, too. However, despite the silence, TechCrunch was able to find out that the firm has been gathering hundreds of staff from major names, including Ford, General Motors, Harley-Davidson, and Stellantis.
In addition to funding from billionaire Jeff Bezos, Slate Auto has also attracted investment from Mark Walter, the controlling owner of the LA Dodgers and CEO of Guggenheim Partners. TechCrunch notes that Thomas Tull makes an appearance, a person notable for being the lead investor in Re:Build Manufacturing. Both of these guys are also board members.
Slate Auto has since gathered at least $111 million in one round of funding and more money in another round. TechCrunch was not able to ascertain how much Bezos has put in, but the report notes that Melinda Lewison, the person who manages the Bezos Expeditions family office, is noted as a director in state and federal documents.
Cheap Truck
But the real meat and potatoes here is that it appears that Slate Auto wants to upset the EV market. But instead of launching a luxury flagship like almost every other EV manufacturer since Tesla, Slate Auto wants to cater to the bottom of the market. From TechCrunch:
Slate Auto is tackling a big goal: an affordable two-seat electric pickup truck for around $25,000, according to two sources who were granted anonymity to speak about the company’s internal discussions. Leaders inside the company have mentioned the Ford Model T or Volkswagen Beetle as a North Star for the project, according to the people.
(…)
Slate plans to supplement the small margins of its low-cost truck by building out a line of accessories and apparel that owners can use to customize their vehicles and their looks, according to the sources and various job listings. It has filled its executive ranks with former Harley-Davidson and Stellantis employees – two companies that have historically leaned on these kinds of ancillary businesses (the former with apparel and the latter with MoPar parts and accessories).
As TechCrunch reports, current plans call for the truck to be built somewhere near Indianapolis, Indiana, as soon as late 2026. This truck could be pitched to be a driver’s “first car,” as TechCrunch reports. Apparently, a proof of concept vehicle for this truck does exist and it has been shown to the firm’s wealthy investors.
If it weren’t for the TechCrunch report, there would be nothing but breadcrumbs out there. Electrek published a report last week, but even they found exactly nothing.
What’s also interesting about this is something that TechCrunch might have missed. Will this vehicle have some open-source software and be easily repaired by owners? From the report:
One (job listing) posted in 2024 hinted the company will dub the customer customization process “Slate University.” The listing was originally titled “University Lead” and was renamed to “Head of Customer Education Repair & Maintenance” before the startup stopped accepting applications.
“We seek an enthusiastic, experienced Leader of Slate University to build and lead our game-changing approach to open-source content for customers to enhance their ownership experience,” the listing reads. “As the Lead, you will drive the strategy and ecosystem development for the educational content and delivery for Slate shoppers, customers, technicians, and partners.”
Still Mysterious
If you’re looking for the Amazon Prime of trucks, it’s too early to say, but that might not be the case here. Reportedly, Bezos is mostly just putting a ton of money into this project, not running it.
As of now, there isn’t much else known. It appears that Slate might be looking to outsource major components like the battery and motor, which makes sense. It also makes sense to lean on merch sales to make money. If you, like me, have been to a Harley-Davidson dealer at all in the past several years, you’ve undoubtedly seen more T-shirts, decals, and knick-knacks for sale than actual motorcycles. Some Harley-Davidson stores don’t even have any motorcycles to sell!
I’m pretty excited to learn more about this thing. If what TechCrunch found out becomes reality, we’ll see if a new automaker can come out of the gate swinging for the fences with a cheap truck, not some luxury car only the few can afford. Of course, a two-seat electric truck for just $25,000 will have some sort of compromises going on, as do all cheap vehicles. What will this thing be like? Will it be like a two-seat Ford Maverick? Will it be like a Kei truck? Or maybe will it be like the sweet Toyota Hilux Champ? We just don’t know yet, but we can dream!
Maybe Jeff Bezos of all people will help give America a mainstream, cheap EV pickup truck.
(Topshot: Toyota/Amazon/depositphotos.com)
