Lucid Motors was just months away from releasing its most affordable electric vehicle yet, a crossover SUV called the Cosmos that was supposed to start under $50,000. But this week, the company pushed the release of the Cosmos back by almost a full year to the second half of 2027, part of an effort by its new CEO to avoid the quality problems that Lucid has suffered with its existing EVs.
It’s the latest setback for the company, which has struggled to find more than a niche customer base for its expensive, but technologically impressive, vehicles. And it’s one that CEO Silvio Napoli presented as necessary for the company to survive.
“While there is no question that Lucid brought leading innovations and outstanding products to the market, we have disappointed on several fronts, and for far too long,” Napoli said this week. “We have not executed consistently. We missed commitments, launched products before they were ready, underinvested in service, responded too slowly to quality issues, and allowed complexity to slow decisions down.”
Napoli’s sober assessment, which he offered on the company’s second-quarter earnings call, helps explain why he has taken an axe to the company’s leadership structure and overall workforce.
