Lucid CEO Company Is Years Ahead of Tesla in Technology
TapTechNews June 17 - In an interview on Fox Business Channel, Peter Rawlinson, the CEO of luxury electric carmaker Lucid Motors, stated that his company is 'a number of years ahead' in terms of technology from Tesla.
In the interview, Rawlinson discussed topics such as Lucid's sedan LucidAir, the upcoming Gravity SUV, the company's stock price fluctuations, and its factories in Saudi Arabia and the United States. Near the end of the interview, the host Liz Claman asked Rawlinson how Lucid ranks in the electric vehicle industry compared to Tesla and BYD.
Rawlinson emphasized Lucid's technological advantages: 'I think if you go back 10-15 years ago, Tesla was the technology leader. But I think they're a bit distracted now, and Lucid has taken over the baton of the leader. I believe we are a number of years ahead of Tesla in core technology.'
Rawlinson also said, 'Earlier this week I announced that we achieved a milestone technological capability, achieving a magical efficiency of 5 miles per kilowatt-hour (TapTechNews note: about 8.05 kilometers). Currently no other company can approach this level. This is a technological race and it's far from over, and there's no doubt that Lucid is leading this race.'
In the past, Rawlinson has also strongly promoted Lucid's battery technology, claiming that its range and charging speed are superior to Tesla vehicles. In 2021, he also described Tesla's breakthrough in 4680-type battery technology as 'fantasy'.
When asked about details of the Gravity SUV, Rawlinson said that it will be a better product than the Tesla Model X mainly because it is based on a platform specifically designed for luxury vehicles.
Rawlinson also said in a recent interview with the BBC that he thinks Tesla is 'distracted'. Over the years, he and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have criticized each other. Musk has often hinted that Lucid will go bankrupt, most recently after Lucid released its Q1 financial report which included a net loss of $684.7 million.
In January this year, Lucid started to expand its AMP-1 factory in Casa Grande, Arizona to prepare for the production of the upcoming Gravity SUV. In the interview, Rawlinson also emphasized that Gravity will start mass production later this year, but he refused to disclose the exact time.