Slate Auto
Slate Auto is an American startup company that is developing electric vehicles. It was founded in 2022 inside of Re:Build Manufacturing by Miles Arnone, William Barker and Jeff Wilke, and is based in Troy, Michigan. Its investors include Jeff Bezos, Mark Walter, and Re:Build Manufacturing. Its first product will be the Slate Truck, an electric pickup truck that can be converted into an SUV.
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Automotive |
| Predecessor | Re:Build Manufacturing |
| Founder | Miles Arnone; William Barker; Jeff Wilke |
| Headquarters | , U.S. |
Area served | United States |
Key people | Chris Barman (CEO)[2] |
| Products | Electric vehicles |
| Website | slate.auto |
Slate Auto is an American startup company that is developing electric vehicles. It was founded in 2022 inside of Re:Build Manufacturing by Miles Arnone, William Barker and Jeff Wilke, and is based in Troy, Michigan. Its investors include Jeff Bezos, Mark Walter, and Re:Build Manufacturing.[3] Its first product will be the Slate Truck, an electric pickup truck that can be converted into an SUV.
History
[edit]Slate was founded in 2022, and operated in stealth mode until it revealed the Slate Truck on April 24, 2025.[4] It was originally called "Re:Car", as a project within Re:Build Manufacturing, a domestic manufacturing platform. Slate's three co-founders and co-chairman Miles Arnone, William Barker and Jeff Wilke are all co-founders and leaders at Re:Build Manufacturing. Slate's first several hundred employees include many with experience at Ford, General Motors, Stellantis, and Harley-Davidson.[3] The company is headquartered in Troy, Michigan and has a design studio in Long Beach, California.
Slate raised at least $111 million in Series A financing, including an undisclosed amount from Bezos. Slate then raised $600 million in 2024 from Mark Walter, the controlling owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and CEO of Guggenheim Partners, Jeff Bezos, and General Catalyst, a venture capital firm.[5] In mid-2025, the company said it was launching a third round (Series C) of financing.[6]
Initial manufacturing is expected to occur in Warsaw, Indiana,[7] at a site previously operated by LSC Communications as a printing plant until its closure in 2023.[8] Slate is retrofitting the plant to accommodate its vehicle line, targeting production to begin at the end of 2026.[9] Slate expects a capacity of up to 150,000 vehicles per year.[6]
Vehicles
[edit]
Slate's first vehicle, a battery-powered pick-up truck, was announced on April 24, 2025. The company expects to price it under $28,000.[10] The vehicle can be transformed from a truck into a 5-seater SUV through a kit that Slate will sell to customers.[11]
As a publicity stunt, Slate parked at least three prototype vehicles on the streets of Venice, Los Angeles, ahead of the official announcement.[12] The vehicles were wrapped with branding for fictitious companies, and resembled a pick-up truck, a "coupe-like" sports utility vehicle (SUV), and a boxier SUV that resembles a Land Rover Defender. The vehicles are non-functional design bucks; images of them were shared widely by journalists and Reddit contributors.[13]
Prior to its official announcement, the company had trademarked "Blank Slate" and "We Built It. You Make It."[14] The vehicle has been both called "anti-Tesla"[15][16][17] and "anti-Cybertruck";[18] the name "Slate" has been noted to be an anagram of "Tesla".[19][20]
References
[edit]- ^ Doll, Scooter (March 28, 2025). "What is Slate? A stealthy new American EV automaker promises to be a 'game-changer'". Electrek. Retrieved April 25, 2025.
- ^ Voelcker, John. "Slate's $25K Electric Pickup Is Here". Wired. Retrieved April 25, 2025.
- ^ a b O'Kane, Sean (April 8, 2025). "Exclusive: Inside the EV startup secretly backed by Jeff Bezos". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
- ^ Levin, Tim (April 24, 2025). "Slate Emerges From Stealth With A Low-Cost, Transforming EV Pickup". InsideEVs. Retrieved April 25, 2025.
- ^ Falkenberg-Hull, Eileen (May 8, 2025). "Slate confirms $700 million in funding, Bezos investment". Newsweek. Retrieved May 10, 2025.
- ^ a b Wayland, Michael (June 7, 2025). "Slate Auto: Inside the EV startup, stealth production facility backed by Jeff Bezos". CNBC. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
- ^ DaSilva, Amber (April 9, 2025). "Jeff Bezos–Funded EV Startup Slate Auto Wants To Build A $25,000 Two-Seat Pickup". Jalopnik. US. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
- ^ "Warsaw, Indiana, printing plant to close, putting about 525 workers out of jobs". AP News. US. June 7, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
- ^ "Slate Auto Prepares Warsaw Factory for EV Truck Production". The EV Report. US. January 30, 2026. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
- ^ Fink, Greg S. "2027 Slate Truck EV Will Be Very Customizable, Priced Under $28,000". Car and Driver. Retrieved April 25, 2025.
- ^ Levin, Tim. "Here's How Slate's Truck Transforms Into An SUV". InsideEVs. Retrieved April 25, 2025.
- ^ Tracy, David (April 22, 2025). "The Slate Auto SUV Is Now Hiding In Plain Sight With A Harry Potter-Themed Wrap". The Autopian. Retrieved April 24, 2025.
- ^ Tracy, David (April 20, 2025). "The New Slate SUV Reportedly Funded By Jeff Bezos Was Just Revealed In The Most Insane Way". The Autopian. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
- ^ O'Kane, Sean (April 21, 2025). "Bezos-backed startup designed an EV that can change like a 'Transformer'". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
- ^ Biggs, Tim (May 4, 2025). "This electric ute is shaping as the anti-Tesla for EV buyers". The Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ O'Kane, Sean (April 25, 2025). "Bezos-backed Slate Auto debuts analog EV pickup truck that is decidedly anti-Tesla".
- ^ "'Anti-Tesla' pick-up that morphs into an SUV unveiled in US". Yahoo! Autos. April 28, 2025.
- ^ Reuter, Dominick. "The 'anti-Cybertruck' Slate EV appears off to a strong start". Business Insider.
- ^ Agatie, Cristian (April 26, 2025). "Bezos-Backed Slate Auto Is the IKEA of EV Trucks, Will It Give Tesla a Run for Its Money?". autoevolution.
- ^ Doll, Scooter (April 25, 2025). "Slate emerges with customizable EV pickup available for under $20k [Video]". Electrek.