By Gabrielle Coppola and Bethany Benjamin | Bloomberg
Slate Auto, the EV startup backed by Jeff Bezos, said its all-electric subcompact pickup will be priced just under $25,000, a price tag it’s betting can help it take on bigger, more established rivals.
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Slate is holding an event in Los Angeles on Wednesday to offer rides to journalists in a “pre-production prototype,” with specifications it says are close to the final version. The stripped-down two-seater offers 205 miles of range and up to 2,000 pounds of towing capacity and will start at $24,950.
The company is pitching a customizable, low-cost pickup as an antidote to increasingly expensive trucks and SUVs, testing whether affordability can broaden the appeal of electric vehicles. That goal was challenged after Congress eliminated a federal tax credit for EVs last year, though soaring gas prices have pushed some consumers to wade into the used plug-in market.
“If Slate succeeds, it won’t be because people love electric vehicles, it will be because people love affordable vehicles,” said Jesse Toprak, founder and chief executive officer of vehicle inspection and car-shopping platform OptiCar.AI. “It has its limitations obviously in terms of range and towing capacity — it doesn’t shine in most of the technical areas.”
The only close competitor in the new-car market will be Ford Motor Co.’s upcoming lightweight EV truck, which starts at $30,000, and used trucks that are a few years old, Toprak said.
Slate is selling two SUV configurations of the vehicle, the Squareback and the Fastback, that will both start at $29,950.
The average new vehicle transaction price was $48,402 in 2025, a 30% jump from 2019, according to researcher Edmunds.com. Just 4.7% of new vehicles sold for $25,000 or less last year.
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EVs are now expected to account for 17% of US passenger vehicle sales in 2030, according to BloombergNEF, down from an estimated 27% in last year’s forecast. Many automakers overestimated US demand for EVs, which still lack widespread charging infrastructure. And under President Donald Trump, policymakers axed a $7,500 federal tax credit and weakened fuel-efficiency standards, making it less attractive for manufacturers to sell the cars.
A key feature of Slate’s pitch is that inflation-weary consumers can save money by buying a basic truck and then add accessories over time, rather than paying for a pricey package of options at the initial purchase.
The base model lacks standard comforts like power windows or an audio and infotainment system. CEO Peter Faricy, a former Amazon.com Inc. executive who joined Slate this spring, has been focused on developing an online site, dubbed Slate Marketplace, where owners can shop for parts to add to their vehicles.
“I doubt they’re going to have much profit margin on the actual sale of the vehicle,” Toprak said. “But it’s a smart strategy where they’re giving you a bare-bones truck but also giving you a ton of options to make it your own. And that’s where the profit is going to lie long term.”
The Troy, Michigan-based startup has accumulated 180,000 reservations at $50 a pop. Now it’s trying to convert those into firm preorders, which require a total $300 down payment. It plans to deliver the first trucks in the fourth quarter of this year.
The EV maker says it can deliver a mid-$20,000 truck because it has drastically streamlined the manufacturing process.
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