Greg Doherty/Getty Images for Slate
- Slate Auto CEO Chris Barman described five types of buyers interested in the company's low-cost electric truck.The demographic groups included fresh college graduates, newly-licensed drivers, and retirees, she told Sherwood News.The Jeff Bezos-backed company initially promised a truck "under $20,000," but shifted to a "mid-twenties" expected price tag.
Slate Auto's new electric vehicle is expected to be unusually cheap, priced in the mid-twenty-thousand-dollar range.
Given its anticipated price point, Slate says it has seen interest from five different consumer segments as it prepares to enter the market, CEO Chris Barman said in a recent interview with Sherwood News.
First, Barman said that "everyday Americans" are interested in the vehicle, mostly because "it's just an affordable vehicle and a lot of utility and value for the money."
Barman also said that "young professionals" fresh out of college or trade school are interested. "They're looking for value for the money, and what they love is the fact that it's an EV and they love the customization," she said.
Electric vehicle ownership has long veered younger, according to a March Gallup poll, with 64% of 18-34-year-olds surveyed interested in owning an EV, compared to just 41% of those ages 55+. Barman is eyeing an especially young demographic: newly licensed drivers.
"Parents like the fact that there are only two passengers, it doesn't have an infotainment for distraction, it has really high safety standards, and it's affordable," Barman told Sherwood.
Among the older set, Barman points out that "contemporary seniors" are interested in the vehicle. "
"They're individuals who are semiretired or retired and are interested in an electric vehicle, but have been intimidated by all the other technology that has been in an EV," she said. "They just want a simpler form of driving."
Finally, auto junkies are interested in tricking the car out, the CEO added.
Slate's electric pickup truck's "mid-twenties" price target remains relatively inexpensive, a feat especially important as the EV market floods with Chinese competitors outside of the US.
The Jeff Bezos-backed EV producer originally said that its truck would be "under $20,000" after federal incentives. That price would have made the truck substantially cheaper than its EV competitors, like the Nissan Leaf, which starts at $28,140.
When $50 reservations opened in April, the company reported receiving more than 100,000 requests in the first three weeks.
President Donald Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" is set to eliminate many of the country's clean energy incentives, including the $7,500 tax credit for new US-built EVs, which Slate had been counting on to hit the sub-$20,000 pricing threshold.
After Trump's spending bill was signed into law on July 4, Slate Auto changed the expected price online from "under $20,000" to "mid-twenties," where it remains.
