Slate Auto: Everything you need to know about the Bezos-backed EV startup - BERITAJA

In April 2025, a caller institution called Slate Auto came retired of stealth and shocked the car industry. Not only was this startup focused connected making an ultra-cheap, customizable electrical pickup motortruck pinch backing from Jeff Bezos, but it had besides been operating successful concealed for 3 years successful Troy, Michigan — the backyard of awesome automakers for illustration Ford and General Motors.

TechCrunch was first to the story, reporting successful early April about the company’s existence, its engagement pinch the Amazon founder, and its funny and unsocial business model. The weeks betwixt our study and Slate’s charismatic coming retired statement successful precocious April provided a whirlwind of news, pinch prototypes of the startup’s motortruck popping up about California.

Slate is an aberration successful the U.S. EV sector, wherever bankruptcies, grounded merchandise launches, and pivots person go commonplace. And while its existent backers, executive lineup, first product, and business exemplary supply a compelling way forward, the roadworthy is still riddled pinch imaginable hurdles arsenic it pushes toward accumulation successful precocious 2026. 

Here’s a timeline that charts retired everything you request to cognize about Slate Auto, from its root communicative and backers to its product, business model, and accumulation plans.

Inside the EV startup secretly backed by Jeff Bezos

April 8 – After a year-long investigation, TechCrunch published a communicative revealing that a secretive EV startup called Slate Auto had been operating for 3 years pinch the financial backing of Jeff Bezos and LA Dodgers proprietor Mark Walter. 

Unlike different EV startups, Slate had been moving connected processing an highly low-cost electrical pickup motortruck that would commencement astatine about $25,000. This motortruck would beryllium profoundly customizable, leveraging the acquisition of galore erstwhile labor from Harley-Davidson and Chrysler, 2 companies that person extended accessories and aftermarket parts businesses.

Slate Auto’s pickup motortruck spotted successful the wild

April 10 – One time later, a photograph of a nondescript electrical motortruck started circulating connected the r/whatisthiscar subreddit, pinch Redditors speculating it could beryllium Slate’s enigma EV. 

TechCrunch was capable to corroborate the photograph was, successful fact, of a prototype of Slate’s motortruck parked extracurricular the company’s Long Beach, California creation center.

An EV that could alteration for illustration a ‘Transformer’

April 21 – Slate began putting conception versions of the Slate EV connected nationalist streets to make trading buzz up of its planned motorboat arena connected April 24. Curiously, immoderate of them appeared to beryllium styled much for illustration SUVs aliases hatchbacks, not conscionable pickup trucks. 

TechCrunch was capable to corroborate the institution had developed the EV to person “Transformer-like” modular capabilities, and that this stunt was a measurement to tease this customization.

The analog EV pickup motortruck that is decidedly anti-Tesla

April 24 – Slate made its debut astatine a motorboat arena successful Long Beach, California, wherever it revealed its customizable electrical pickup truck. Slate besides announced the motortruck would beryllium disposable for nether $20,000 — pinch the $7,500 national EV taxation credit. 

The guidelines type of the motortruck was revealed to beryllium very bare-bones, pinch conscionable 150 miles of range, nary powerfulness windows, nary main infotainment screen, and not moreover immoderate paint. Slate promised fundamentally everything about the motortruck would beryllium customizable, moreover down to the number of seats and the wide silhouette. 

A erstwhile Indiana printing works eyed for EV motortruck production

April 25 – TechCrunch reported that Slate had identified a erstwhile printing works successful Warsaw, Indiana arsenic the location for its motortruck factory. The 1.4 million-square-foot installation was built successful 1958 and had been dormant for about 2 years. 

Slate Auto crosses 100,000 refundable reservations successful 2 weeks

May 12 – Slate confirmed to TechCrunch it had already surpassed 100,000 refundable $50 reservations for its affordable EV truck. It was grounds that the company’s ideas had caught connected pinch a wide audience, contempt nary 1 knowing about Slate conscionable 2 months prior. 

Slate Auto drops ‘under $20,000’ pricing aft Trump management ends national EV taxation credit

July 3 – The Trump management pushed done a monolithic tax-cut measure that, among galore different actions, group a September end-date for the $7,500 national EV taxation credit. That intends Slate’s motortruck will nary longer beryllium capable to thin connected that in installments to scope the “under $20,000” starting price the startup was touting. As such, Slate pulled that connection from its website earlier the measure was moreover signed into law.

Why this LA-based VC patient was an early investor successful Slate Auto

July 8 – Slate’s 2023 backing information included astatine slightest 16 investors — 1 of them being Bezos. While about of those investors person still not been identified, Los Angeles-based Slauson & Co. said to TechCrunch about why it threw successful pinch the EV startup successful that first backing round, arsenic good arsenic Slate’s Series B.

Slate Auto appears connected the TechCrunch Disrupt main stage

October 30 – Slate Auto CEO Chris Barman sat down for an question and reply connected the main shape astatine TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, wherever she talked about Jeff Bezos’ involvement, the situation of building an automaker from scratch, and really the institution plans to make a marketplace for customization.  

Slate passes 150,000 reservations

December 16 – Despite EV maturation cooling disconnected successful the U.S., Slate Auto crosses 150,000 refundable reservations for its motortruck and SUV, showing location is still superior liking successful the conveyance contempt the nonaccomplishment of the national taxation credit. And pinch less EVs group to travel to the U.S., it appears that the startup will person very small title astatine the debased extremity of the market. 

2026 

A astonishment CEO swap

 March 9 – Slate pulls a astonishment and swaps successful a new CEO: erstwhile Amazon Marketplace VP Peter Faricy. Former CEO (and Slate’s first hire) Chris Barman is staying pinch the institution though, shifting complete to a “President of Vehicles” role. Slate tapped Faricy to get the startup fresh for its end-of-year commercialized motorboat – starting pinch converting the preservation database into arsenic galore afloat orders arsenic possible.