WEBVTT - Lucid Motors CEO Peter Rawlinson Talks EV's & Trump Administration

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news Now.

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<v Speaker 2>Shares of Lucid, the electric car maker, are lower after

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<v Speaker 2>a report that President elect Trump is planning on eliminating

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<v Speaker 2>a seventy five one hundred dollars consumer tax credit for

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<v Speaker 2>EV purchases. Joining us now is the Lucid CEO, Peter

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<v Speaker 2>Rollinson here on set. Great to have you here in

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<v Speaker 2>the building. Thanks so much for joining us. I initially thought,

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<v Speaker 2>why does Lucid care if the seventy five hundred dollars

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<v Speaker 2>tax credit is canceled, because your vehicles at over eighty

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<v Speaker 2>thousand are starting just there, I think for the Gravity

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<v Speaker 2>aren't really eligible for it anyway.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, they're ineligible through their price points, but there is

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<v Speaker 3>a route through leasing where a customer would be technically eligible.

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<v Speaker 3>But there's also a household income thresholds which rules out

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<v Speaker 3>many of our customers.

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<v Speaker 2>So you're not getting a goose from that. You haven't

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<v Speaker 2>historically and you won't in the coming year. You just

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<v Speaker 2>had third quarter sales out that were better than expected.

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<v Speaker 2>I think it was two hundred million, a smaller loss

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<v Speaker 2>and expected, and you've been taking orders for your new

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<v Speaker 2>SUV the Gravity for I think just over a week now,

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<v Speaker 2>you've said you plan on selling nine thousand vehicles if

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<v Speaker 2>I'm not mistaken this year manufacturing, manufacturing, So what do

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<v Speaker 2>you expect for next year? Can you give us a

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<v Speaker 2>little color after your first week of orders for the

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<v Speaker 2>Gravity about what you expect in the future.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, you quite right, Matts. We've come off the third

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<v Speaker 3>successive record quarter of deliveries, record Q one, record Q two,

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<v Speaker 3>record Q three. We're assidiously working on our cost structure

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<v Speaker 3>and we're showing great results in that respect. Gravity is

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<v Speaker 3>about to start production imminently. I'm fresh from the factory

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<v Speaker 3>this week, back to Arizona imminently, and we're going to

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<v Speaker 3>start production of what I believe is the best suv

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<v Speaker 3>on the planet very very soon, made with a huge

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<v Speaker 3>dose of pride from Arizona. And we haven't guided for

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<v Speaker 3>next year's production numbers yet, but what we're seeing is

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<v Speaker 3>growth in the deliveries of air and the product that

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<v Speaker 3>everyone's waiting for the Gravity coming. So I think there's

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<v Speaker 3>a lot of good news to expect in twenty five.

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<v Speaker 4>So we'll keep an eye out for that. I actually

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<v Speaker 4>want to go back to what a Trump administration would

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<v Speaker 4>mean for you in twenty twenty five and beyond, because

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<v Speaker 4>outside of the tax credits, when it comes to Lisa's etc.

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<v Speaker 4>It's clear that Donald Trump isn't really a fan of

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<v Speaker 4>the EV industry. I know that he is best friends

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<v Speaker 4>right now with Elon Musk, but that doesn't change his

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<v Speaker 4>feelings about the EV industry. What do you think that

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<v Speaker 4>a Trump administration could mean for Lucid and are you

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<v Speaker 4>taking any action to plan for that?

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<v Speaker 3>Well, I think he's a fan, like so many of

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<v Speaker 3>American innovation. And what better example of American ingenuity and

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<v Speaker 3>innovation than Lucid Motors the most advanced tech in the world.

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<v Speaker 3>And I think America is truly blessed with the technology

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<v Speaker 3>and technology advantage it has in the EV space right now.

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<v Speaker 3>And I think that we need to think of the

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<v Speaker 3>jobs that are created as a consequence of this great

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<v Speaker 3>high tech jobs in Middle America. And you know, any

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<v Speaker 3>incentive is truly an investment in the future American economy

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<v Speaker 3>and jobs creation. So I think we should be cognizant

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<v Speaker 3>of that. But I also would like to state this

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<v Speaker 3>that because Lucid's got the most advanced EV technology on

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<v Speaker 3>the planet, we're able to go further with less batteries.

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<v Speaker 3>So if there was a situation where incentives were removed

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<v Speaker 3>which incentivize the amount of batteries you put in the car, Lucid,

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<v Speaker 3>amongst all the ev makers, is really the most immune

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<v Speaker 3>from that.

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<v Speaker 1>What do you make of the relationship between the President

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<v Speaker 1>elect and Elon Musk? Do you ever worry that perhaps

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<v Speaker 1>Tesla could get more favorable treatment.

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<v Speaker 3>I am eternally optimistic that Lucid will prevail because we

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<v Speaker 3>are a tech company and we've got we've really taken

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<v Speaker 3>the mantle of technology leadership from Tesla right now, and

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<v Speaker 3>this is not really sufficiently recognized. So I think we're

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<v Speaker 3>in a very strong position to weather any such storm.

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<v Speaker 2>I'd say that so I haven't driven a Lucid vehicle,

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<v Speaker 2>and I don't have an emotional connection to the brand,

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<v Speaker 2>but critics overwhelmingly name it as the best electric vehicle

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<v Speaker 2>that a consumer can buy in terms of the technology

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<v Speaker 2>and the driving experience. Nonetheless, you need a lot more cash,

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<v Speaker 2>right you've got I think one estimate is that you

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<v Speaker 2>need about six billion dollars more cash before you can

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<v Speaker 2>get to a break even rate. The Saudis have already

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<v Speaker 2>invested I think eight eight and a half billion, including

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<v Speaker 2>the October equity raise. How are you going to get that?

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<v Speaker 2>Where are you going to reach back to Saudi Arabia

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<v Speaker 2>raise more equity from current investors? Do you bring in

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<v Speaker 2>new investors? Because Rivian has done a great job of

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<v Speaker 2>creating a partnership with Volkswagen and I must look pretty

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<v Speaker 2>appetizing to you.

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<v Speaker 3>Yes, Well, it's a capital intensive business, as we're all aware,

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<v Speaker 3>and we've always stated that we will entrepreneurially raise extra

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<v Speaker 3>cash at appropriate times during the growth of the company,

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<v Speaker 3>and the last rays that October's rais is a great

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<v Speaker 3>example of that, Matt. We raised nearly one point seventy

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<v Speaker 3>five billion dollars, which really helps secure the future of

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<v Speaker 3>the company. That gives us a financial runway well into

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<v Speaker 3>twenty twenty six. And it's proven that with raising over

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<v Speaker 3>four billion this financial year this twenty twenty four, we've

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<v Speaker 3>been able to do that when others have found it

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<v Speaker 3>very challenging. And throughout that the Soundies have stood shoulder

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<v Speaker 3>to shoulder with us, and I think it is it's

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<v Speaker 3>sicilient that they have gone pro rata with their ownership

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<v Speaker 3>in the recent funding round. They've made a commitment to

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<v Speaker 3>retain their percentage shareholding. So it's all about scale, and

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<v Speaker 3>the scale comes in four steps. Brand awareness, driving more

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<v Speaker 3>lucid air deliveries and we've seen successive quarter upon quarter

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<v Speaker 3>record deliveries. Gravity accelerating that with a far greater total

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<v Speaker 3>addressable market. This is the product that All America wants,

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<v Speaker 3>the best SUV on the planet that's coming imminently. We're

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<v Speaker 3>working on mid sized platform. That's our Tesla competitor. That's

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<v Speaker 3>schedule for startup production late twenty six. That's our forty

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<v Speaker 3>eight to fifty thousand dollars product. That's the big one

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<v Speaker 3>for us, and many of my engineering team are already

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<v Speaker 3>working full to chat on that right now.

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<v Speaker 4>Well, Peter, let's quickly talk about shares. We have less

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<v Speaker 4>than a minute left with you, unfortunately, but they're hovering

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<v Speaker 4>your record low. You talk about this opportunity set that

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<v Speaker 4>you have in front of you. What don't you think

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<v Speaker 4>that the market.

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<v Speaker 3>Is here in I think this is a long term play.

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<v Speaker 3>I don't think they're seeing the true value proposition. This

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<v Speaker 3>is a technology play. It's being recognized, and it's about

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<v Speaker 3>scale now and assiduous attention to costs, and that's what

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<v Speaker 3>my team is focused upon.

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<v Speaker 1>Peter, we have to leave it there. We thank you

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<v Speaker 1>for joining us here on set. Certainly an interesting time

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<v Speaker 1>for your industry, and an interesting time for your company,

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<v Speaker 1>that is, Lucid CEO Peter Rolinson