Lucid Motors, a rising star in the electric vehicle market, is revving up to start production at its first manufacturing plant in Casa Grande, Arizona this spring, CEO Peter Rawlinson told Cheddar.
"To the best of my knowledge, it's the first purpose-built greenfield EV plant in North America. It's been constructed in record time, and it's got state-of-the-art facilities," he said.
The California-based firm broke ground on the factory one year ago. Now it plans to start rolling tech-heavy electric vehicles off of the manufacturing line by spring of 2021. The plant will produce 30,000 units per year in its initial phase and ramp up to 400,000 units "later in the decade," Rawlinson said.
The CEO attributed the company's speed in building the plant to its flexibility and size.
"The agility of a small company like Lucid helps us enormously," he said. "We're able to set up and establish our own most appropriate processes and central to that is the production process, which will ensure a wonderfully high-quality product for customers."
That flexible approach extends to the construction of the plant itself, which is designed to grow with the company over a 590-acre footprint.
Lucid Motors' ramp-up also happens to be taking place amid a major political transition that could have significant implications for the U.S. electric vehicle market.
"I think there's a real great opportunity here for the U.S. to regain leadership," Rawlinson said.
He noted that while America may have the most technical expertise — due to the leading position of companies such as Tesla — the country is "lagging" when it comes to government policy.
"If we look at the worldwide picture, probably China takes the lead in that, frankly, and then Europe," he said.
Rawlinson added that he has "high hopes" the Biden administration will provide more support to electric vehicles. At the same time, he stressed that Lucid's launch model will stand on its own.
"This car stands on its own merit in the market," he said. "We don't need the artificial construct of incentives. This is inherently a better car than its gasoline counterpart."
The New York Times and President Donald Trump are fighting again. The news outlet said Wednesday it won't be deterred by Trump's “false and inflammatory language” from writing about the 79-year-old president's health. The Times has done a handful of stories on that topic recently, including an opinion column that said Trump is “starting to give President Joe Biden vibes.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said it might be treasonous for outlets like the Times to do “FAKE” reports about his health and "we should do something about it.” The Republican president already has a pending lawsuit against the newspaper for its past reports on his finances.
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
U.S. sports betting is booming as NFL and college football fuel massive activity. BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt breaks down trends, growth, and what’s next.
President Donald Trump says a deal struck by Netflix last week to buy Warner Bros. Discovery “could be a problem” because of the size of the combined market share. The Republican president says he will be involved in the decision about whether federal regulators should approve the deal. Trump commented Sunday when he was asked about the deal as he walked the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors. The $72 billion deal would bring together two of the biggest players in television and film and potentially reshape the entertainment industry.
Disney's changes to a program for disabled visitors are facing challenges in federal court and through a shareholder proposal. The Disability Access Service program, which allows disabled visitors to skip long lines, was overhauled last year. Disney now mostly limits the program to those with developmental disabilities like autism who have difficulty waiting in lines. The changes have sparked criticism from some disability advocates. A shareholder proposal submitted by disability advocates calls for an independent review of Disney's disability policies. Disney plans to block this proposal, claiming it's misleading. It's the latest struggle by Disney to accommodate disabled visitors while stopping past abuses by some theme park guests.
With a merger this big, creators, studios, and theaters all face uncertain futures. Here’s what experts are worried about and what good could come from it.
With disengagement rising and hybrid work shifting, 'Everybody Matters' author Bob Chapman explains why treating people well could define the future of work.
We sat down with Ali Furman, U.S. Consumer Markets Industry Leader at consulting firm PwC to ask what trends she garnered from the initial data this year.
