Lucid's $50,000 Tesla Model Y Rival Is Getting Closer To Production. Here's The Latest

The Lucid Cosmos could make or break the company. Production is slated to begin in 2027.

Photo by: Lucid Motors

By: Suvrat Kothari

Nov 10, at 2:33pm ET

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The midsize electric crossover will be made in Saudi Arabia starting next year.
A robotaxi is also planned on the midsize platform, to be rolled out in partnership with Uber and Nuro.
Production of the Cosmos is "on track" and it's a "must-win project," CEO Silvio Napoli said.

Lucid is on track to start producing the Cosmos crossover in the second half of 2027, the California EV startup said in its third quarter earnings call on Monday. The electric crossover will rival the Tesla Model Y and Rivian R2 when it goes on sale and is a "must-win" project for the company, according to new CEO Silvio Napoli.

This week, Lucid provided a few updates on the status of its most important model to date. Here's what we learned.

Lucid Cosmos Factory Is Moving Toward 'Production Readiness'

Lucid is a small player in the EV market, but it has big ambitions. Its third quarter sales plunged to only 3,806 vehicles. However, its January-to-September sales are up 33% thanks to more Gravity SUVs reaching customers. It is now trying to prove it can transition from a niche luxury EV maker into a profitable high-volume carmaker.

The upcoming midsize platform and the EVs that it will underpin is central to that strategy. And progress on the AMP-2 manufacturing plant where production will kick off is coming along, Napoli said.

“AMP-2 is moving towards inauguration and production readiness, and Midsize is now on track,” Napoli said. The company’s second manufacturing plant—and first international one—is located in King Abdullah Economic City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The plant already assembles the Lucid Air sedan, which is also produced at its AMP-1 plant in Casa Grande, Arizona.

Lucid Gravity GT-S

Photo by: Lucid Motors

“Stamping line installation is complete, and commissioning is underway,” Napoli said. “Body shop installation is accelerating. Drive unit installation is progressing and paint is now in finalization with equipment continuing to arrive on site."

The Cosmos was originally scheduled to launch by the end of this year, but Napoli pushed it to 2027 amid a broader turnaround plan. The company said it won’t rush the new EV to the market to avoid the same quality issues faced by the Gravity and Air.

Final-stage Prototyping

Lucid also indicated that the Cosmos itself is getting closer to its final production form.

"The final stage of prototyping is underway including homologation and crash testing. Pilot production in Coolidge is entering its final build phase, including know-how transfer to AMP-2," Napoli said on Monday. Apparent Cosmos prototypes have been spotted near Lucid facilities.

More Lucid Cosmos Details Are Coming

Lucid said this week that it plans to announce reveal and production-start timelines in the first quarter of next year.

We already know a lot about the Cosmos. It will start at around $50,000. Napoli told CNN in August that it will have more than 400 miles of range. At its Investor Day in March, the company said it will get both nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) and lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries.

I also saw a prototype behind closed doors and it looks like a baby Gravity. Inside, a massive touchscreen spans the width of the dashboard. It will get a centralized architecture that’s more powerful and costs less to build, along with an 800-volt platform. It will be powered by one of the most energy dense and compact drive units in the industry, called Atlas.

Lucid Cosmos interior.

Photo by: Suvrat Kothari

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The startup is also planning to roll out tens of thousands of robotaxis through its partnership with Uber and Nuro in the U.S. and Bolt in Europe. Those will include both the Gravity (U.S.) and a midsize EV (For U.S. and Europe). The company is also on track to roll out the first Gravity SUVs in the Bay Area in the first quarter of 2027. (The original timeline was end of 2026.)

To help pull this all off, the company announced that it had received an additional $1.75 billion loan from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which is also its majority owner.