Slate’s Affordable EV Truck Plans Just Got A Major New Lifeline

The startup has secured millions more in funding to bring its affordable EV dreams to life. Is its timing too late or just right?

• EV startup Slate Auto just closed its Series C funding round.

• It has over 160,000 reservations for its affordable electric truck.

• The latest cash infusion should help scale up manufacturing.

Slate Auto, the Jeff Bezos-backed electric vehicle startup, has raised $650 million to fuel its push to launch an affordable, mass-market truck, the company said on Monday.

Investment firm TWG Global led the round. The cash infusion will be critical to developing the Slate truck and scaling up manufacturing at its plant in Warsaw, Indiana. The company plans to begin production by the end of this year.

The startup was founded in 2022 and emerged from stealth last year. It originally banked on the $7,500 federal EV tax credit to bring the electric truck’s starting price under $20,000. With that credit now gone, the target price has crept up to around $25,000.

That makes this funding round all the more important. Launching an electric car company in 2026 in the U.S. means running headlong into a market where EV demand remains uneven, legacy automakers are pivoting back toward hybrids and gas vehicles, and competition is only getting stiffer. That said, having billionaire backers in your corner doesn’t hurt.

Every “Blank Slate” will ship from the factory in a no-frills base configuration that includes steel wheels and an interior so spartan it lacks an infotainment screen, speakers, or even powered windows. The only option at the factory is between a base battery with 150 miles of range and an upgraded pack with 240 miles of range.

All of the other options—including an SUV body kit, a radio, powered windows, upgraded wheels, and even an open-top kit—are either installed by service centers or owners. We don’t know the exact price of the base truck, or the options, but Slate said official pricing will come in June.

The average new car now costs over $51,000, according to Cox Automotive. Slate is betting there’s a real market for an EV that undercuts that figure dramatically, even if the trade-off means skipping features most buyers consider basic.

It’s a compelling argument on paper. Whether it holds up in the real world, especially when the used EV market can offer better-equipped vehicles at comparable or even lower prices, is another question entirely.

There’s also an influx of new and affordable models like the latest-generation Nissan Leaf and the refreshed Chevy Bolt, which are far better equipped and start under $30,000. That said, they aren’t trucks, and Slate is using a unique approach that no other automaker has tried before. We’ll soon find out if it works.

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