Lucid (LCID) CEO predicts ‘exponential’ growth, and it’s not just from selling luxury EVs
Can Lucid (LCID) make 1 million EVs a year? CEO Peter Rawlinson said this is his vision, and Lucid has ambitious plans to achieve it. After launching its first electric SUV, the Gravity, Lucid will enter the mass market with its midsize platform starting at around $50,000. Rawlinson said this is “finally when we compete directly with Tesla,” but the EV maker has even bigger plans to drive growth.
After delivering the first Gravity models in December, Lucid’s CEO claims the electric SUV is “destined to be a landmark product” with an EPA-estimated range of 450 miles.
During the BloombergNEF Summit in San Francisco last week, Rawlinson explained how the company plans to become a powerhouse in the EV space.
Although the Gravity is an impressive-looking vehicle, loaded with tech and a true 7-seater (not a 5-seater, plus two kids in the back, as Rawlinson said many of its rivals offer), it’s what you can’t see that makes the electric SUV so unique.
The Gravity achieves up to 450 miles of driving range with a 123 kWh battery. Rawlinson said the fact that it can achieve such a long driving range with so few batteries is a testament to Lucid’s technology, which he claims is the “most advanced technology in the world.”
Lucid was the first to launch an EV with 520 miles range. At the Summit, Rawlinson claimed that “nobody today is within 100 miles of range of where we were three years ago,” referring to its luxury Air sedan.
Lucid delivered over 10,200 vehicles last year, up 70% from the 6,001 in 2023 and roughly 3,500 in 2022. Rawlinson said the company is seeing “exponential sales growth,” but he expects to see things pick up over the next few years.
Lucid is launching new EVs and tech to boost growth
Following the Gravity, Lucid will launch its midsize platform. The platform will underpin a sedan and crossover, starting at around $50,000. According to Rawlinson, this is when Lucid will “compete directly with Tesla” as direct rivals to the best-selling Model Y and Model 3.
However, as Rawlinson explained, “Lucid does not exist to be a niche luxury manufacturer.” Lucid is in the luxury space “at the moment” because it needs to be for financial support.
It’s the company’s tech that will be Lucid’s trademark. With some of the most advanced tech on the market, it will “cascade down,” reducing the cost to mass produce EVs.
“We want Lucid to be huge,” Rawlinson said. By the early 2030s, he envisions Lucid producing one million cars annually.
Lucid plans to achieve it through progressive steps. After launching the Air, Lucid’s first electric SUV is now hitting the market. In late 2026, Lucid is scheduled to begin production of its midsize platform.
Rawlinson believes Lucid will have a significant advantage by then. Since the battery is by far the biggest cost to make an EV, with some of the most efficient technology, Lucid will be able to offer a competitive range at a lower price point.
Not only that, but Lucid is also developing a new affordable “Atlas” drive unit. Rawlinson claimed the new drive unit will be “an absolute breakthrough” for Lucid and the planet to bring down EV costs.
The company is already licensing its technology to other automakers, which could be an even bigger business for Lucid than selling vehicles.
Last year, Lucid secured a tech partnership with Aston Martin to supply its proprietary powertrain tech for the British automaker’s upcoming electric cars.
Rawlinson said Lucid is in talks with several others about similar licensing partnerships. According to Lucid’s CEO, EV adoption will continue to climb over the next few years, and some OEMs will be left behind. “The train is leaving the station,” he said, and that’s why Lucid is open to strategic alliances through licensing its technology.
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Just one year after ZEEKR went public on the US stock market, its majority shareholder, Geely, is offering the Chinese EV automaker an opportunity to go private once again.
As we’ve pointed out several times in the past (especially the last month or so), Chinese EV automaker ZEEKR ($ZK) continues to build momentum overseas as it gears up to continue expanding its presence to new markets around the world (just not in the US yet, sorry).
We recently visited Shanghai and Hangzhou in China, where ZEEKR was our host. At the Shanghai Auto Show, we explored the automaker’s entire lineup on the showroom floor and also got a rare opportunity to drive ZEEKR EVs on public roads in China, which we were quite impressed with.
Several other brands under the Geely umbrella, including Lynk & Co., were also present during that drive day. Geely currently owns approximately 65.7% of ZEEKR and is now hoping to make that investment whole, as it has proposed that the automaker delist in the US and become a private company.
ZEEKR has option to delist in US and become wholly-owned by Geely
As reported by CnEVPost, Geely Automobile Holdings submitted a non-binding offer to ZEEKR today, proposing to delist it from the Nasdaq in the US and take the Chinese EV automaker private. That letter was confirmed via an announcement from the Hong Kong stock exchange.
In May 2024, ZEEKR went public in the US on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “ZK,” trading as American depositary receipts (ADRs). Then, in November of 2024, Geely increased its stake in ZEEKR after a musical chairs restructuring in which the latter acquired 21% of Lynk & Co from the former and its 30% stake in Volvo Cars. As a result, Geely owns about 65% of ZEEKR.
As the majority shareholder, Geely now wants ZEEKR to delist from the US stock market so it can wholly acquire it to “drive resource consolidation, avoid duplication, reduce costs, and build long-term value.”
According to the non-binding proposal letter filed today, Geely is offering to acquire all issued and outstanding ZEEKR shares and ADSs at a proposed purchase price of $2.57 per share or $25.66 per ADS. The proposed purchase of the remaining 34.3% of the automaker would equate to about $2.2 billion from Geely without any evident hurdles to continuing business as usual.
Instead, Geely hopes to create a unified listing platform and consolidate the automaker’s assets and resources to become more competitive in the passenger EV segment and, per Geely, help “define ZEEKR’s future strategic direction to address global market and economic challenges.”
ZEEKR’s stock in the US is currently up following news of Geely’s privatization plans. We’ve contacted ZEEKR for a comment, and were sent the following release from Geely.
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Finally, Mitsubishi is bringing a new EV to the US. Mitsubishi confirmed plans to launch a new EV in North America that will be based on the next-gen Nissan LEAF. Here’s what we know so far.
Mitsubishi will use the Nissan LEAF for its new EV
Earlier this year, Mitsubishi told US dealers (via Automotive News) that a new EV would arrive in 2026. Sources said the new electric car will closely resemble Nissan’s updated LEAF.
The company officially announced its upcoming EV on Tuesday, giving us a better idea of what to expect. Mitsubishi confirmed its upcoming EV will, in fact, be based on the new Nissan LEAF. The Japanese automakers will work together to launch it across the US and Canada as part of Mitsubishi’s long-term growth plan.
Nissan revealed the third-gen LEAF in March, upgrading it in nearly every way. The new Nissan LEAF drops the iconic hatch design for a crossover and includes a native NACS port to access Tesla Superchargers.
Based on its CMF-EV platform, the same one underpinning its electric SUV, the Ariya, Nissan’s new LEAF has “significant range improvements.”
Although official specs will be revealed soon, Nissan’s vehicle program chief, Francois Bailly, told TopGear.com that the new LEAF is expected to have a WLTP driving range of up to 373 miles (600 km).
The updated LEAF will arrive in the US and Canada later this year as one of ten new or refreshed vehicles from Nissan and its luxury Infiniti brand.
As part of its North American growth strategy, dubbed Momentum 2030, Mitsubishi will launch “a new or significantly revised vehicle every year between 2026 and 2030,” starting with the 2025 Outlander.
Mark Chaffin, president and CEO of Mitsubishi’s North American operations, said after launching the new business plan (Momentum 2030), dealers were asking “for more concrete timing and plans.”
Chaffin added that today’s announcement “is the first of many to come that reinforce our commitment to the US market. “
Mitsubishi’s North American sales rose 11% year-over-year (YOY) in the first quarter to 31,637 units. Chaffin said the new EV will diversify its lineup with “a blend of internal combustion engines, plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles.” The company will share more details, including prices and specs, closer to launch in Summer 2026.
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Another day, another exciting post from Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe sharing images of the upcoming R2 EV. This is the third R2 update from Rivian in as many days, as the American automaker’s second flagship model configuration inches closer to full-fledged production.
As we pointed out earlier this week, Rivian ($RIVN) continues to succeed by selling its first two flagship models—the R1S and R1T, which are now in the second generation. The automaker’s Q1 2025 report, posted yesterday, solidified that statement, detailing gross profits for a second consecutive quarter that have unlocked a $1 billion investment from joint venture partner Volkswagen Group.
Another interesting update from yesterday’s shareholder letter was progress on the Rivian R2 – a smaller, more affordable BEV that has already secured hundreds of thousands of pre-orders and could very well enable Rivian’s “Model 3 moment.”
Per Rivian, R2 validation builds are underway in Normal, Illinois, and are on track for scaled production next year. Just hours after the quarterly report went public, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe shared some images of the validation R2 builds on social media, offering our best look at its development progress yet.
R2 images look cool, but don’t get too excited about its wheels
The two Rivian R2 images above were posted by Scaringe on X yesterday evening with the following caption:
Validation builds for R2 are progressing on our pilot line!! Can’t wait for R2!!
The images join a picture of Rivian’s new Maximus drive unit, which will power the R2 BEVs, which Scaringe shared earlier this week. While drive units are exciting to hardcore BEV enthusiasts, especially when you think of the cost-per-unit savings the lighter and optimized assembly Maximus unit will offer, but most people want to see a physicaly BEV body to ogle. Scaringe delivered.
The images of the validation R2 builds showcase tremendous progress for Rivian as it looks to deliver a smaller and more affordable model to the masses. Judging by the number of reservations, those consumers are ready.
Most of the reactions to Scaringe’s post were excited. One user asked for more details about the R2’s all-black wheels seen in the image above, to which Scaringe responded that they are only for Rivian development vehicles, so don’t expect to see them in the Gear Shop—unless, perhaps, you keep spamming the CEO about it until they add them!
Less friendly comments pertained to the build quality of the R1T and R1S models currently rolling out of Rivian’s Normal facility, imploring RJ and his team to spend more time on quality control before deliveries. I’ll admit that my R1S came with a couple of early cosmetic and software hurdles, but it’s been smooth sailing since.
I’d also argue that Rivian is already assembling and delivering better quality builds than Tesla, which has been in the production game a lot longer. You don’t see many (or any?) Rivians with mismatched paint panels, but I digress.
Rivian will have plenty of time to get all the production bugs out in Normal as it continues progressing on its new 1.1 million-square-foot manufacturing expansion, which will be home to R2 production next year. For now, we will keep an eye on RJ’s accounts to see what exciting R2 images he and Rivian will share next. Stay tuned.
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