Topline

Slate Auto, an electric vehicle startup backed by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, unveiled its inaugural truck the company says starts at a price of $20,000 for the most bare-bones version, a lower price than competitors including Elon Musk’s Tesla vehicles.

Key Facts

Is Slate A Tesla Competitor?

Slate’s promise of a low-cost vehicle comes as Tesla has long teased, and not yet delivered, an electric car that costs $25,000. Musk had hinted at a lower-cost electric vehicle for years, including in a 2018 interview, in which he said a car at that price is “something we could do,” maybe “in three years.” He again said at a Tesla event in 2020 the company would seek to build a $25,000 electric vehicle within three years. But Musk reportedly halted work on the project himself, according to biographer Walter Isaacson, who said Musk urged the company to focus on developing self-driving vehicles, which he believed would make the $25,000 car “unnecessary.” Reuters reported in April 2024 Musk had scrapped plans for the cheap electric vehicle, citing competition from Chinese companies, though Musk said Reuters was “lying” in a post on X, without elaborating. But months later, Musk said on a Tesla earnings call in October that “having a regular $25,000 model is pointless. It would be silly,” in response to an investor who asked about a $25,000 non-autonomous car. Musk instead pointed to Tesla’s upcoming Cybercab vehicle, which is expected to cost $25,000, though the vehicles are autonomous and lack steering wheels and pedals. The Slate truck’s low price tag would make it the cheapest electric vehicle on the market, below Tesla’s cheapest vehicle, which starts at $41,000 after the federal electric vehicle tax credit, according to Tesla’s website.

Tangent

The truck announcement comes amid a rough period for Tesla, which earlier this week reported its worst earnings since 2021. Tesla reported $19.3 billion in revenue in its first-quarter earnings report, short of $21.3 billion estimates and down 9% year-over-year. The poor earnings report came as Cybertrucks and other Tesla vehicles face a spate of vandalism, both in the United States and worldwide, as a form of protest against Musk and his activities as DOGE’s chief. Six people have been charged by the Justice Department and face decades in prison as Attorney General Pam Bondi has moved to prosecute vandals and label them domestic terrorists. JPMorgan analyst Ryan Brinkman said in a note last month he struggles “to think of anything analogous in the history of the automotive industry, in which a brand has lost so much value so quickly.”

How Else Are Musk And Bezos Competitors?

Bezos and Musk are also rivals in the space business: Bezos founded his company, Blue Origin, in 2000, while Musk founded SpaceX in 2002. Though the two have differing visions—Bezos has said Blue Origin wants to “move polluting industry off Earth” into space, while Musk is aiming to build a sustainable colony on Mars—both are investing in space exploration. Blue Origin, which recently garnered some controversy for blasting Katy Perry and Gayle King to the edge of space, said it wants to “enable millions of people to live and work in space for the benefit of Earth,” while SpaceX has launched dozens of people into orbit.

Forbes Valuation

Musk and Bezos are the two richest people in the world, according to Forbes estimates. Musk is worth an estimated $382.1 billion as of Friday morning, much of which comes from his 12% stake in Tesla and his 42% ownership of SpaceX. Bezos, who owns slightly less than 10% of Amazon, is worth an estimated $202.9 billion.

Further Reading

Tesla’s $25,000 EV flip-flop, explained (TechCrunch)

Tesla Protests And Vandalism Surge: Justice Department Announces Charges Against Sixth Alleged Vandal (Forbes)

Tesla Earnings: Elon Musk’s Firm Reports Worst Quarterly Profit Since 2021 (Forbes)