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Canoo

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Not to be confused with canoe.

Canoo Inc.
FormerlyEvelozcity (2017–2019)
Company typePublic
IndustryAutomotive
Founded2017; 7 years ago (2017)
Founders
  • Stefan Krause
  • Ulrich Kranz
Headquarters
Torrance, California, US
,
U.S.[1]
Key people
Tony Aquila (chairman & CEO)
ProductsElectric vehicles
Number of employees
805 (December 31, 2021)
Websitecanoo.com

Canoo Inc. is an American automotive company based in Torrance, California, that develops and manufactures electric vehicles.[2][3] Canoo's research & development team is based in Michigan, in the Detroit region (Auburn Hills, Livonia), and production operations are in Justin, Texas. The company also plans to produce commercial electric vehicles such as vans for fleet, vehicle rental and ride sharing services.[4]

History

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Origins as Evelozcity

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Canoo was founded in 2017 under the name Evelozcity by Stefan Krause and Ulrich Kranz. Krause worked for Deutsche Bank as its chief financial officer while Kranz worked for BMW as a senior executive. Both men had met at rival EV company Faraday Future before leaving together to form their own company in 2017, due to disagreement with Faraday Future's leadership. Krause took on the role of chief executive officer at Evelozcity, and Kranz became chief technology officer.[5] The company received its primary funding from Chinese investor Li "David" Pak-Tam/Botan and German entrepreneur David Stern.[6][7]

In April 2018, Evelozcity Canoo hired Karl-Thomas Neumann, the former head of Opel, as a senior executive.[8]

Renamed to Canoo

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In March 2019 Evelozcity was renamed Canoo.[9] In July 2019, Neumann left Canoo, but he remained an investor in the company.[10]

Canoo Lifestyle Vehicles, all-electric minivans

In September 2019, the company presented its first vehicle prototype, the electric van Canoo, which was later renamed to the Canoo Lifestyle Vehicle.[11]

In February 2020, Hyundai Motor Group, the parent company of Hyundai Motors and Kia Motors, announced that the company would partner with Canoo on the joint development of a new electric vehicle platform. The platform would be used for compact vehicles and for fleet vehicles such as shuttles. The deal is part of Hyundai's Strategy 2025 program which will see Hyundai investing US$87 billion for five years starting in 2020.[12][13][14]

In July 2020, co-founder Stefan Krause left the company. He had previously taken an extended leave of absence in August 2019 for family reasons. Co-founder Ulrich Kranz assumed the role of permanent CEO upon Krause's departure.[15][16] Also in July 2020, Canoo was featured on the TV program Jay Leno's Garage.[17]

Going public

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In September 2020, Canoo announced a merger with the special-purpose acquisition company Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. IV., intending to list Canoo on the NASDAQ valued at $2.4 billion.[18] The expectation was to raise $300 million to help finance the production of the Canoo minivan, planned for launch in 2022.[19][20] On December 22, 2020, Canoo completed its merger with Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp IV.[21]

A few days before its stock exchange debut, the company announced its MPDV (Multi-Purpose Delivery Vehicle) product line. The entry level van was expected to sell for $33,000 on arrival in limited quantities in 2022, ramping up to volume production in 2023.[22]

In mid-January 2021, The Verge reported that in the first half of 2020 Canoo had been in talks with Apple for a potential role in its secretive Titan car project.[23][24]

On March 11, 2021, Canoo announced the Canoo Pickup Truck, an electric pickup set to release in 2023.[25][26] Canoo announced plans to offer both single-motor and dual-motor all-wheel drive options for their pickup truck, with the latter being capable of producing 600 hp (450 kW) and 550 foot-pounds (750 J) of torque.[25] The company said that the truck would have over 200 miles (320 km) of range and a 1,800 lb (820 kg) payload capacity.[25] After the announcement, shares of the company rose by 14%.[26]

It was announced in March 2021 that Canoo had terminated its partnership with Hyundai Motor Group due to a change in corporate strategy. The company also announced that it would shift away from vehicle subscriptions to selling commercial vehicles.[27]

Executive and location changes

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On April 22, 2021, the company announced that co-founder and CEO Ulrich Kranz was stepping down and would be replaced by chairman Tony Aquila as CEO.[28] Also in April 2021, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission launched an investigation into Canoo after its merger with Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. IV due to a string of executive departures, sudden changes to its business model, and class-action lawsuits brought by shareholders.[29]

On June 17, 2021, the company announced they would build a new factory in Pryor, Oklahoma (just outside Tulsa) to manufacture all of their future vehicles.[30][31] The plant will be used to build "pod-shaped vans it calls 'lifestyle vehicles' beginning in 2023."[31] The same day, Dutch media reported that the Dutch company VDL Nedcar would start producing Canoo Minivans for the European market.[32] Later in the year, Canoo and VDL ended the manufacturing agreement.[33] Following receipt of orders in October 2022, Canoo announced plans for construction of a vehicle battery production facility at the MidAmerica Industrial Park (MAIP) in Pryor, Oklahoma.[34] This was in addition to its earlier announcement of plans for a vehicle production plant at MAIP capable of producing 300,000 vehicles per year.[35]

On November 15, 2021, the company announced it would move its headquarters to Bentonville, Arkansas and establish a manufacturing plant there.[36] In January 2022, Canoo entered into a 10-year US$17.7 million lease for a building in Bentonville, which was planned to be an "advanced industrialization facility" for low-volume manufacturing.[37] In August 2022, Canoo disclosed they had contracted with a third party for their initial vehicle production. That December, the company still listed Torrance, California as its headquarters,[1][38] although later coverage showed the headquarters had moved to Justin, Texas by 2024.[39] As of May 2024, the Bentonville facility appeared to be closed with a “Warehouse for Sublease” sign posted outside.[40]

In May 2022, it was reported that Canoo was struggling to find funding, the company saying that it had only enough funding to operate for one more quarter.[41] It was also revealed around the same time that Canoo was suing investor Pak Tim Li, claiming they were selling shares improperly.[42]

In late November 2022, Canoo announced an agreement to purchase of an existing 630,000 sq ft (59,000 m2) plant in Oklahoma City to start vehicle production by 2023, prior to completion of its micro megafactory in Pryor.[43]

In December 2022, the company sued several former executives for stealing Canoo's trade secrets and poaching talent for their new business,[44][45] competing EV startup Harbinger Motors.[46]

In April 2023, the company announced that battery production would commence at Pryor to fulfill a United States Department of Defense contract; and, while vehicle manufacturing was to start in Oklahoma City before the end of 2023, long range plans still included vehicle assembly at Pryor because the OKC facility would not meet full production needs.[47] The Oklahoma City plant transaction was completed on April 7, 2023; the plant was formerly owned and operated by Terex.[48] For 2023, Canoo reported US$886,000 in net revenue after delivering 22 vehicles; expenses paid to CEO Aquila's company for private aircraft and shared services were nearly four times that amount, as noted in the annual earnings report.[39]

In March 2024, Canoo acquired assets from rival EV startup Arrival after it went bankrupt.[49] A disappointing earnings forecast of US$50–100 million for 2024 sent the stock price down.[50]

In August 2024, Canoo co-founder and chief technology officer Sohel Merchant left the company and Canoo announced it was moving its operations out of Los Angeles.[51]

Vehicles

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Main articles: Canoo LV and Canoo MPDV

Firm orders

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On April 13, 2022, NASA selected Canoo to supply crew transportation vehicles for its Artemis program, with a total contract value of $147,855.[52][53]

In July 2022, Walmart entered into a definitive agreement to purchase 4,500 all-electric Lifestyle Delivery Vehicles (LDV) from Canoo, with an option to buy up to 10,000 in the future.[54] Under the terms, Walmart can terminate the agreement for convenience upon 30 days notice.[55]

Canoo announced two major orders in mid-October 2022. Zeeba, a relatively unknown fleet leasing operation, also based in Greater Los Angeles, ordered a combination of 5,450 LDVs and Lifestyle Vehicles (LV), with a binding commitment of 3,000 by 2024.[56][57][58] Some days later, Canoo announced its biggest sale to date, an order from Kingbee, a Utah-based work-ready van fleet rental company. In addition to the binding order of 9,300 LDVs, Kingbee has the option to double the order.[59][60] Kingbee outfits its vans for fleet customers in construction trades (electrical, plumbing, energy), delivery, and mobile health.[61]

In January 2024, Canoo announced the Postal Service (USPS) order for six right-hand-drive LDV vans.[62][63][64]

As of October 2024, less than 12 have been delivered from all orders, appearing to be samples, not regular production.

References

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  1. ^ a b "Canoo Investor Relations". investors.canoo.com. Retrieved December 23, 2022.
  2. ^ "Canoo's electric microbus will start under $35,000 when it comes to market". TechCrunch. May 17, 2021. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
  3. ^ O'Kane, Sean (May 17, 2021). "Canoo's electric van will start at $34,750". The Verge. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
  4. ^ "E-Auto-Start-up aus Los Angeles: Canoo geht an die Börse". Wirtschaftswoche; wiwo.de (in German). August 19, 2020. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  5. ^ O'Kane, Sean (March 13, 2018). "How Faraday Future's former 'savior' plans to take on the EV market". The Verge. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  6. ^ Korosec, Kirsten (October 9, 2019). "EV subscription startup Canoo, co-founder sued for alleged harassment". techcrunch. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  7. ^ O'Kane, Sean (October 8, 2019). "EV startup Canoo's mysterious backers named in new harassment lawsuit". The Verge. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  8. ^ Manthey, Nora (April 23, 2018). "Ex-Opel boss KT Neumann joins Evelozcity". electrive.com. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  9. ^ "Evelozcity: Deutsch kalifornisches Startup heißt jetzt Canoo". Manager Magazin (in German). March 25, 2019.
  10. ^ Hampel, Carrie (July 18, 2019). "Former Opel boss Neumann leaves Canoo". electrive.com. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  11. ^ Valdes-Dapena, Peter (September 25, 2019). "This electric 'lounge on wheels' could be yours – by subscription only". CNN. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  12. ^ O'Kane, Sean (February 11, 2020). "Hyundai will build electric vehicles with EV startup Canoo". The Verge. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  13. ^ Randall, Chris (February 11, 2020). "Canoo & Hyundai to co-develop EV platform". Electrive.com. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  14. ^ Strong, Michael (February 11, 2020). "Hyundai Partnering with Specialty EV Maker Canoo". The Detroit Bureau. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  15. ^ Hampel, Carrie (August 17, 2019). "Stefan Krause steps down as CEO of Canoo". electrive.com. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  16. ^ Randall, Chris (June 19, 2020). "Canoo founder Krause leaves the company". electrive.com. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  17. ^ Inside Look At New Car Company Canoo. Jay Leno's Garage (Video). July 5, 2020. Archived from the original on July 6, 2020 – via YouTube.
  18. ^ Klayman, Ben (August 18, 2020). "U.S. EV startup Canoo to go public at $2.4 billion valuation". Reuters. Thomson Reuters. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  19. ^ Ohnsman, Alan. "Los Angeles EV Startup Canoo Rides SPAC Wave With Plan For Speedy Nasdaq Listing". Forbes. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  20. ^ Korosec, Kirsten (August 18, 2020). "Electric vehicle startup Canoo to go public via SPAC". TechCrunch. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  21. ^ Kilgore, Tomi. "EV maker Canoo's stock set to surge under new ticker symbol 'GOEV'". marketwatch.com. Dow Jones. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  22. ^ Multiple sources:
  23. ^ O'Kane, Sean (January 12, 2021). "Exclusive: Apple held talks with EV startup Canoo in 2020". The Verge. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  24. ^ "Canoo soars 20% on report that Apple held talks last year with the EV startup on potential investment". MSN. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  25. ^ a b c Edelstein, Stephen (March 11, 2021). "Canoo unveils a cute electric pickup truck that's ready for the outdoors". Digital Trends. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  26. ^ a b Wayland, Michael (March 11, 2021). "Shares of EV start-up Canoo surge as much as 14% on new electric pickup truck". CNBC. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  27. ^ Manthey, Nora (April 5, 2021). "Hyundai-Kia won't use Canoo EV platform it appears". electrive.com. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  28. ^ "Executive Chairman Tony Aquila Also Named CEO of Canoo to Lead Next Phase of Company's Growth". canoo.com (Press release). April 22, 2021.
  29. ^ "Canoo is being investigated by the SEC". TechCrunch. May 17, 2021. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  30. ^ "Canoo will build its electric vehicles at a new Oklahoma factory". The Verge. June 17, 2021. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  31. ^ a b "U.S. electric vehicle startup Canoo to build plant in Oklahoma". Reuters.com. June 17, 2021. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
  32. ^ "Canoo will build its electric vehicles in Born, the Netherlands". NOS.nl (in Dutch). June 17, 2021. Archived from the original on June 17, 2021. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  33. ^ Mihalascu, Dan (December 20, 2021). "Canoo to Build First EV in 2022 in Arkansas, Not the Netherlands". insideevs.com. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  34. ^ Morgan, Rhett (November 3, 2022). "Canoo says it will build electric vehicle battery module facility in Pryor". Tulsa World. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  35. ^ Morgan, Rhett (July 1, 2022). "Canoo's proposed electric vehicle plant in Pryor could be delayed, industrial park head says". Tulsa World. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  36. ^ "Canoo is setting up headquarters in Walmart's hometown, picks Panasonic as battery supplier". TechCrunch. November 15, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  37. ^ "Canoo SEC Form 10K". canoo.com. March 1, 2022.
  38. ^ "Canoo Inc. Company Profile". dnb.com. Dun & Bradstreet. Retrieved December 23, 2022.
  39. ^ a b Korosec, Kirsten (April 1, 2024). "Canoo spent double its annual revenue on the CEO's private jet in 2023". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  40. ^ "Canoo drops Arkansas from operations list". 5newsonline.com. May 6, 2024. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
  41. ^ Hawkins, Andrew (May 10, 2022). "EV startup Canoo is running out of cash and doubtful about its future". The Verge. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  42. ^ Bellan, Rebecca (May 10, 2022). "EV startup Canoo sues major investor over sketchy share sales". techcrunch.com. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  43. ^ Morgan, Rhett (November 10, 2022). "Canoo to expand to Oklahoma City with electric vehicle manufacturing plant in repurposed building". Tulsa World. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
  44. ^ Johnson, Peter (December 28, 2022). "Canoo accuses former employees of 'corporate espionage' after launching rival EV startup". Electrek.co. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  45. ^ "EV Startup Canoo Accuses Former Execs of Stealing Technology to Start a Rival Company". Jalopnik.com. December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  46. ^ Rosevear, John (September 7, 2022). "EV startup Harbinger, founded by Canoo and QuantumScape veterans, aims to shake up medium-duty truck market". CNBC. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  47. ^ Krehbiel, Randy (April 6, 2023). "110 new jobs coming soon as Canoo plans to assemble EV batteries in Pryor, CEO says". Tulsa World. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  48. ^ Lackmeyer, Steve (April 7, 2023). "Canoo buys OKC plant for $34.27 million as it prepares for electric vehicle manufacturing". The Oklahoman. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  49. ^ Korosec, Kirsten (March 25, 2024). "Bankrupt EV startup Arrival sold its assets to Canoo". TechCrunch. Retrieved March 26, 2024.
  50. ^ Vanaik, Granth; Roy, Abhirup (April 1, 2024). "EV startup Canoo's 2024 revenue forecast disappoints, shares tumble". Reuters. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  51. ^ Davis, Wes (August 24, 2024). "Canoo is down to one co-founder as its CTO reportedly leaves". The Verge. Retrieved August 25, 2024.
  52. ^ Cawley, James (April 13, 2022). "Artemis Astronauts Will Ride in Style in Crew Transportation Vehicles". NASA.gov. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  53. ^ "Artemis Crew Transportation Vehicles Award".
  54. ^ Rosevear, John; Repko, Melissa (July 12, 2022). "Shares of EV maker Canoo surge after Walmart agrees to buy 4,500 electric delivery vans". CNBC. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  55. ^ "Canoo SEC Form 8K, July 11, 2022".
  56. ^ "Canoo Secures Order For 5,450 Electric Vans And Minivans From Zeeba". MSN.com. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  57. ^ Doll, Scooter (October 11, 2022). "Canoo continues comeback with over 5,000 EVs orders from Zeeba, over half are binding". Electrek.co. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  58. ^ "Bentonville-based Canoo lands large EV order from national fleet company". 5newsonline.com. October 12, 2022. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  59. ^ Doll, Scooter (October 17, 2022). "Canoo secures another binding EV order, this time for 9,300 LDVs from work rental provider Kingbee". Electrek.co. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  60. ^ "Kingbee Places Binding Order for 9,300 Canoo Electric Vehicles". Business Insider. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  61. ^ "Canoo Stock Jumps on Electric-Vehicle Order From Kingbee". MarketWatch. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  62. ^ Gitlin, Jonathan M. (January 24, 2024). "The USPS agrees to buy six Canoo LDV electric vans, delivered by April". Ars Technica. Retrieved January 24, 2024. The multi-purpose platform with steer-by-wire technology and a unique low-profile suspension system allows for a readily configurable right-hand drive system
  63. ^ "Canoo Reaches Agreement with U.S. Postal Service for Purchase of Electric Vehicles". markets.businessinsider.com. January 24, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  64. ^ "We're Not Sure Why The USPS Ordered Six Vans From EV Startup Canoo". Motor1.com. Retrieved January 24, 2024. USPS placed an order for six right-hand-drive versions of the Lifestyle Delivery Vehicle 190 – an extended variant of its electric van with an enclosed rear cargo hold. Yes, just six vehicles… Converting the Canoos to right-hand drive was a relatively simple process, notes Canoo CEO Tony Aquila… The six Canoo vans will be delivered to the USPS early this year, and by the end of 2024, we could see those USPS EVs and Oshkosh mail trucks on the road simultaneously.
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  • Business data for Canoo Inc.:
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