Slate says your truck will never track you!
Slate Auto gets serious about privacy for its bare-bones EV pickup
ARSTECHNICA Jonathan M. Gitlin – Jun 2, 2026 10:49 AM
Slate Auto may be one of the most interesting companies in the American automotive industry right now. Based in Warsaw...
Yeah … If they can get pricing to be where they’ve hinted it should be, then the Slate should not be a niche product.
If they can manage to make good on their promise to produce the cheapest EV on the market, and one with great utility and affordable customization options on top of that (maybe even 3rd party customization options), then that’s going to be a highly desirable vehicle for a lot of people. There’s a lot of people out there (I’m one of them) who understand that an EV is the most practical, most affordable way to get around, but are priced out of current EV options. Most EV options are very expensive, and even the cheaper ones still carry pretty hefty price tags when compared to a used Prius or something. An EV with truly economy car pricing is going to be huge, and I bet it will catch on fast, especially when it’s also a very practical car that can potentially handle hauling around a family or cargo.
The one big downside I see that might hamper mass adoption is the lack of a 4-door version. But if the original is a success, I bet they’ll be developing a (slightly more expensive) 4-door version soon after.
Not niche. Would have.
Yeah … If they can get pricing to be where they’ve hinted it should be, then the Slate should not be a niche product.
If they can manage to make good on their promise to produce the cheapest EV on the market, and one with great utility and affordable customization options on top of that (maybe even 3rd party customization options), then that’s going to be a highly desirable vehicle for a lot of people. There’s a lot of people out there (I’m one of them) who understand that an EV is the most practical, most affordable way to get around, but are priced out of current EV options. Most EV options are very expensive, and even the cheaper ones still carry pretty hefty price tags when compared to a used Prius or something. An EV with truly economy car pricing is going to be huge, and I bet it will catch on fast, especially when it’s also a very practical car that can potentially handle hauling around a family or cargo.
The one big downside I see that might hamper mass adoption is the lack of a 4-door version. But if the original is a success, I bet they’ll be developing a (slightly more expensive) 4-door version soon after.