Item 1A. Risk Factors.
A description of the risks and uncertainties associated with our business is set forth below. Investors should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, as well as the other information in this Annual Report, including our consolidated financial statements and the related notes and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” The occurrence of any of the events or developments described below, or of additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial, could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and growth prospects. In such an event, the market price of our common stock could decline, and our stockholders could lose all or part of their investment.
Risk Factor Summary
Our business is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including those highlighted in this section titled Item 1A. “Risk Factors,” that represent challenges that we face in connection with the successful implementation of our strategy and growth of our business. The occurrence of one or more of the events or circumstances described in this section titled Item 1A. “Risk Factors,” alone or in combination with other events or circumstances, may have an adverse effect on our business, cash flows, financial condition and results of operations. Such risks include, but are not limited to:
• Our limited operating history makes evaluating our business and future prospects difficult and may increase the risk of stockholders’ investment.
• We have incurred net losses each year since our inception and expect to incur increasing expenses and substantial losses for the foreseeable future.
• We may be unable to adequately control the substantial costs associated with our operations.
• Failure to attract or retain customers through the purchase process may have a material adverse impact on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
• A global economic recession, downturn or other adverse economic conditions may have a material adverse impact on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
• We currently depend primarily on revenue generated from a limited number of models and anticipate continuing to be significantly dependent on a limited number of models in the foreseeable future.
• Our business and prospects depend significantly on our brand.
• Our distribution model primarily relies on a direct-to-consumer strategy.
• We face challenges providing charging solutions for our vehicles, both domestically and internationally.
• If we fail to manage our growth effectively, we may not be able to develop, manufacture, distribute, market and sell our vehicles successfully.
• We face risks associated with international operations, including possible unfavorable regulatory, political, tax and labor conditions, which could harm our business.
• The automotive industry has significant barriers to entry that we must overcome in order to manufacture and sell EVs at scale.
• The automotive market is highly competitive, and we may not be successful in competing in this industry.
• We have experienced and may in the future experience significant delays in the design, launch and manufacture of our vehicles, including the Lucid Air, the Lucid Gravity and our upcoming Midsize platform, which could harm our business and prospects.
• Our ability to continue production and grow depends upon our ability to maintain relationships with our existing suppliers and source suppliers for our critical components, and to complete building out our supply chain, while effectively managing the risks due to such relationships.
• We are dependent on our suppliers, the majority of which are single-source suppliers, and the inability of these suppliers to deliver necessary components of our products, or our inability to efficiently manage these components, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
• Changes in costs, changes of supply or shortage of materials, in particular for lithium-ion battery cells, could harm our business.
• If we fail to successfully construct or tool our manufacturing facilities or if our manufacturing facilities become inoperable, we will be unable to produce our vehicles and our business will be harmed.
• We have limited experience in high volume manufacture of our vehicles.
• If our vehicles fail to perform as expected, our ability to develop, market and sell or lease our products could be harmed.
• We have limited experience servicing our vehicles and their integrated software. If we or our partners are unable to adequately service our vehicles, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.
• Insufficient reserves to cover future warranty or part replacement needs or other vehicle repair requirements, including any potential software upgrades, could materially adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
• We may not be able to accurately estimate the supply and demand for our vehicles, which could prevent us from maximizing our revenue. If we fail to accurately predict our manufacturing requirements, we could incur additional costs or experience delays.
• Any unauthorized compromise of or access to our products or information technology systems or networks could result in loss of confidence in us and our products, harm our business and materially adversely affect our financial performance, results of operations or prospects.
• We are subject to evolving laws, regulations, standards, policies, and contractual obligations related to data privacy, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence, and failure to comply with such obligations could harm our reputation, subject us to significant fines and liability, or otherwise adversely affect our business.
• The loss of key employees or an inability to attract, retain and motivate qualified personnel may impair our ability to expand our business.
• Changes in U.S. trade policy, including the imposition of, or uncertainties surrounding, tariffs or revocation of normal trade relations and the resulting consequences, could adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
• We are subject to laws and regulations that could impose substantial costs, legal prohibitions or unfavorable changes upon our operations or products, and any failure to comply with these laws and regulations, including as they evolve, could substantially harm our business and results of operations.
• We may face regulatory limitations on our ability to sell vehicles directly, which could materially and adversely affect our ability to sell our vehicles.
• We may fail to adequately obtain, maintain, enforce, defend and protect our intellectual property and may not be able to prevent third parties from unauthorized use of our intellectual property and proprietary technology, which could harm our competitive position and cause us to incur significant expenses to enforce our rights.
• We will require additional capital to support business growth, and this capital might not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all.
• We may not be able to realize the anticipated benefits of our agreements with Aston Martin, Uber, and Nuro.
• If we identify material weaknesses or otherwise fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately or timely report our financial condition or results of operations, which may adversely affect investor confidence in us and the value of our common stock.
• The issuance of additional shares of our common stock or other equity or equity-linked securities, including upon conversion, optional redemption or repurchase of convertible securities, or sales of a significant portion of our common stock, could depress the market price of our common stock.
• We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the applicable Nasdaq rules and, as a result, qualify for exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements. Our stockholders do not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are not controlled companies.
• The PIF and Ayar beneficially own a significant equity interest in us and have significant influence over us.
• Our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock has rights, preferences and privileges that are not held by, and are senior to the rights of, our common stockholders.
Risks Related to Our Business and Operations
Our limited operating history makes evaluating our business and future prospects difficult and may increase the risk of stockholders’ investment.
We have a limited operating history and operate in a rapidly evolving and highly regulated market. Furthermore, we have only released two commercially available vehicles, and we have limited experience manufacturing or selling a commercial product at scale. As a result of the capital-intensive nature of our business, we expect to continue to incur substantial operating losses for the foreseeable future.
We have encountered and expect to continue to encounter risks and uncertainties frequently experienced by companies in rapidly changing markets, including risks relating to our ability to, among other things:
• hire, integrate and retain professional and technical talent, including key members of management;
• continue to make significant investments in research, development, manufacturing, marketing and sales;
• successfully design, build, manufacture and market new variants and models of EVs, such as our upcoming Midsize platform;
• build a well-recognized and respected brand;
• establish, implement, refine and scale our commercial manufacturing capabilities and distribution infrastructure;
• establish and maintain satisfactory arrangements with third-party suppliers;
• establish and expand a customer base;
• anticipate and adapt to changing market conditions, including consumer demand for certain vehicle types, models or trim levels, technological developments and changes in competitive landscape;
• navigate an evolving and complex landscape of regulations, policies, and government incentives; and
• successfully obtain, maintain, protect, defend and enforce our intellectual property and defend against claims of intellectual property infringement, misappropriation or other violation.
We have incurred net losses each year since our inception and expect to incur increasing expenses and substantial losses for the foreseeable future.
We have incurred net losses each year since our inception, including net loss of $2.7 billion for the year ended December 31, 2025. As of December 31, 2025, our accumulated deficit was $15.6 billion. We expect to continue to incur substantial losses and increasing expenses in the foreseeable future as we:
• continue to design, develop and manufacture our vehicles;
• equip and expand our research, service, battery, powertrain, and manufacturing facilities to produce our vehicles in Arizona and in international locations such as Saudi Arabia;
• build up inventories of parts and components for our vehicles;
• manufacture and store an available inventory of our vehicles;
• develop and market EV-related products and technologies, including robotaxis;
• develop and deploy geographically dispersed vehicle charging partnerships;
• expand our design, research, development, maintenance and repair capabilities and facilities;
• increase our sales, service and marketing activities and develop our distribution infrastructure;
• expand into new markets; and
• expand our general and administrative functions to support operations as a public company.
If our product development or commercialization of future vehicles or models is delayed, our costs and expenses may be significantly higher than we currently expect. We will incur the costs and expenses from these efforts before we receive any incremental revenues with respect thereto; therefore, we anticipate our losses in future periods will be significant.
We may be unable to adequately control the substantial costs associated with our operations.
We require significant capital to develop and grow our business. We have incurred and expect to continue to incur significant expenses, including leases, sales and distribution expenses as we build our brand and market our vehicles; expenses relating to developing and manufacturing our vehicles, constructing, tooling and expanding our manufacturing facilities; research and development expenses (including expenses related to the development of the Lucid Air, the Lucid Gravity, our Midsize platform and other future products); raw material procurement costs; and general and administrative expenses as we scale our operations and incur the costs of being a public company. Increased competition and adverse economic conditions have in the past and may continue in the future to require us to spend additional resources to attract customers, which in turn may result in higher marketing and incentive expenses. Furthermore, lower production and sales volumes have in the past and may in the future result in an inability to fully utilize our purchase commitments with suppliers which could result in increased costs and excess inventory as well as potential inventory write-offs. We periodically review and record write-downs for excess or obsolete inventories based upon assumptions about current and future demand forecasts, considering shelf-life and technological obsolescence of certain inventories. Our current and future demand forecasts are based on our historical sales, market share performance, macroeconomic factors and trends in quantities or prices of orders for our products. We evaluate whether raw materials are approaching the end of their shelf-lives or becoming technologically , and the likelihood that we will be to use the raw materials in production. If our inventory on-hand is in excess of future demand forecast and market conditions, the excess amounts are provisioned or written-down.
In addition, we have incurred and expect to continue to incur significant costs servicing and maintaining customers’ vehicles, including establishing our service operations and facilities and undertaking product recalls. We have limited historical experience forecasting and budgeting for any of these expenses, and these expenses could be significantly higher than we currently anticipate. In addition, any disruption to our manufacturing operations, obtaining necessary equipment or supplies, expansion of our manufacturing facilities, or the procurement of permits and licenses relating to our expected manufacturing, sales and distribution model could significantly increase our expenses. In such event, we could be required to seek additional financing earlier than we expect, and such financing may not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all.
In the longer term, our ability to become profitable will depend on our ability to effectively manage our capital expenditures, control costs on a timely basis, and sell in quantities and at prices sufficient to achieve our expected margins. If we are unable to appropriately price and cost-efficiently design, manufacture, market, sell, distribute and service our vehicles, our margins, profitability and prospects will be materially and adversely affected.
Failure to attract customers, failure to complete the purchase process with customers, and customer cancellation of orders may have a material adverse impact on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
Delays in customer deliveries, delays in the availability of options, potential changes in customer preferences, competitive developments, increased interest rates, negative publicity, loss of government incentives, decreased demand for EVs, insufficient charging infrastructure, and other factors could result in failure to attract customers, failure to complete the purchase process with customers, and customer cancellation. Increases in interest rates could make financing unaffordable for segments of our customer base and any event or incident which generates negative media coverage about us or the safety or quality of our vehicles could result in failure to attract customers, failure to complete the purchase process, and customer cancellations. In addition, if we encounter delays in customer deliveries of our vehicles that further lengthen wait times or in the event of media coverage, a significant number of orders may be . As such, no assurance can be given that the purchase process will be completed, orders will not be , and orders will ultimately result in the final purchase, delivery and sale or lease of vehicles.
A global economic recession, downturn or other adverse economic conditions may have a material adverse impact on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
A global economic recession, downturn or other adverse economic conditions, whether due to changes or uncertainties in trade policies, the imposition or proposed imposition of tariffs, export controls, threat of a trade war, persistent inflation, political instability, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events, public health crises, interest rate increases or other central bank policy actions, bank closures and liquidity concerns at other financial institutions, or other factors, may have an adverse impact on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. If any of our suppliers, sub-suppliers or partners experience financial distress, insolvency or disruptions in operations, they may be to fulfill their obligations or meet our production and quality requirements. economic conditions and uncertainty about the current and future domestic or global economic conditions may also cause our customers to purchases or their orders in response to higher interest rates, limited consumer credit availability, lower cash reserves, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, and consumer confidence. A reduction in demand for our products may result in a in product sales, with a corresponding material impact on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. Given our premium brand positioning and pricing, an economic or is likely to have a effect on us compared to our competitors in the EV and traditional automotive sectors, to the extent that consumer demand for luxury goods in favor of more cost-conscious alternatives. In addition, economic conditions and uncertainties surrounding trade policies, tariffs and export controls could also cause supply chain and logistical and operational risks. In particular, the U.S. federal government enacted the law commonly referred to as the One Big, Bill Act (the “OBBBA”), which eliminates, limits or phases out certain tax credits that had previously provided significant benefits to lessees and purchasers of EVs and adds new eligibility requirements on manufacturers to continue tax credits on EV components. It also eliminates certain for with certain fuel standards and introduces certain key tax law modifications. Taken together, economic conditions and uncertainties surrounding trade policies, government grants or incentives, tariffs and export controls, coupled with supply chain and the potential of passing costs to customers or sharing the with suppliers, could reduce demand for our products and have a material effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, the deterioration of conditions in global credit markets may limit our ability to obtain external financing to fund our operations and capital expenditures for business growth on terms favorable to us, if at all. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing or financing on terms satisfactory to us, when we require it, we will have to significantly reduce our spending, delay or cancel our planned activities or substantially change our corporate structure, and we might not have sufficient resources to conduct or support our business as projected, which would have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations, and financial condition. See “—Risks Related to Financing and Strategic Transactions — We will require additional capital to support business growth, and this capital might not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all .”
We currently depend primarily on revenue generated from a limited number of models and anticipate continuing to be significantly dependent on a limited number of models in the foreseeable future.
We currently generate revenue from the Lucid Air and Lucid Gravity, and in the foreseeable future will be significantly dependent on a limited number of models, as we are not scheduled to introduce another vehicle model for sale until late 2026. We expect to rely on sales from the Lucid Air and the Lucid Gravity, among other sources of financing, for the capital that will be required to develop and commercialize future models on our product roadmap. To the extent that production of our current or future models is delayed or reduced, or if our current or future models are not well-received by the market for any reason, our revenue and cash flow would be adversely affected, we may need to seek additional financing earlier than we expect, and such financing may not be available to us on commercially reasonable terms, or at all.
If we are unable to fulfill the orders from the Government of Saudi Arabia or if the Government of Saudi Arabia purchases significantly fewer vehicles than we anticipate for any reason, our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
In August 2023, we entered into the EV purchase agreement with the Government of Saudi Arabia, a related party of the PIF, as represented by the Ministry of Finance (the “EV Purchase Agreement”), which supersedes the letter of undertaking that we entered into in April 2022. Pursuant to the terms of the EV Purchase Agreement, the Government of Saudi Arabia and its entities and corporate subsidiaries and other beneficiaries (collectively, the “Purchaser”) may purchase up to 100,000 vehicles, with a minimum purchase quantity of 50,000 vehicles and an option to purchase up to an additional 50,000 vehicles during a ten-year period. Under the EV Purchase Agreement, the Purchaser may reduce the minimum vehicle purchase quantity by the number of vehicles set out in any purchase order not accepted by us or by the number of vehicles that we fail to deliver within six months from the date of the applicable purchase order. The Purchaser also has the sole and absolute discretion to decide whether to exercise the option to purchase the additional 50,000 vehicles. See Item 1 “Business” and Note 16 “Related Party Transactions” to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for more information.
If we experience delays in manufacturing and delivering vehicles ordered by the Purchaser, fail to or experience delays in complying with Saudi Arabian regulations or the requirements of the EV Purchase Agreement, fail to provide adequate service or support for the vehicles, or fail to appropriately price our vehicles, our revenue, cash flow and results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. Furthermore, if the Purchaser reduces the minimum vehicle purchase quantity, delays the purchase of vehicles, does not exercise its option to purchase additional vehicles, or purchases significantly fewer vehicles than we currently anticipate for any reason, including for reasons beyond our control, our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
Our business and prospects depend significantly on our brand.
Our business and prospects heavily depend on our ab ility to develop, maintain, protect and strengthen the “Lucid” brand association with luxury and technological excellence. Promoting and positioning our brand will likely depend significantly on our ability to provide a consistently high-quality customer experience, an area in which we have gained experience over years but may continue to face challenges. To promote our brand, we will be required to invest in, and over time change our customer development and branding practices, which could result in substantially increased expenses, including the need to use public relations, media, event planning, and advertising firms. Our ability to successfully position our brand could also be adversely affected by perceptions about the quality of our competitors’ vehicles or our competitors’ success. For example, certain of our competitors have been subject to significant scrutiny for incidents involving their self-driving technology and battery fires, which could result in similar scrutiny of us.
With social media, any negative publicity, whether or not factual, can quickly be disseminated and harm consumer perception and confidence in our brand. This risk is heightened by our engagement with influencers, as negative experiences by these high-profile users can be rapidly amplified, damaging our brand credibility and impacting brand loyalty. Viral negative posts or negative reviews that highlight quality issues or compare us unfavorably to competitors could adversely affect consumer perception about our vehicles and reduce demand, potentially causing a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition. Thus, failure to correct misinformation or mitigate negative information concerning us, the products we offer, our customer experience, or any aspect of our brand, our business, sales and results of operations could impact us.
Our sales will depend in part on our ability to establish and maintain confidence in our long-term business prospects among consumers, the investment community and others within our industry.
Consumers may be less likely to purchase our products if they do not believe that our business will succeed or that our operations, including service and customer support operations, will continue for many years. Similarly, suppliers and other third parties will be less likely to invest time and resources in developing business relationships with us if they are not convinced that our business will succeed. Accordingly, to build, maintain and grow our business, we must establish and maintain confidence among customers, suppliers, the investment community and other parties with respect to our liquidity and long-term business prospects.
Maintaining such confidence may be difficult as a result of many factors, including our limited operating history, others’ unfamiliarity with our products, uncertainty regarding the future of EVs, any delays in scaling production, delivery and service operations to meet demand, competition and our production and sales performance compared with market expectations. Many of these factors are largely outside of our control, and any negative perceptions about our long-term business prospects, even if exaggerated or unfounded, would likely harm our business and make it more difficult to raise additional capital in the future. In addition, as discussed above, a significant number of new EV companies have recently entered the automotive industry, which is an industry that has historically been associated with significant barriers to entry and a high rate of failure. Certain of these new entrants or other traditional automotive manufacturers now producing EVs have become insolvent, and if additional manufacturers producing EVs become or are perceived to likely become , production of EVs, produce vehicles that do not perform as expected or otherwise to meet expectations, such may have the effect of increasing of others in the industry, including us, and further customer, supplier and the investment community’s confidence in our long-term prospects.
Our distribution model primarily relies on a direct-to-consumer strategy.
Third-party dealer networks are the traditional method of vehicle sales distribution and service in North America. Currently, we sell directly to consumers; therefore, we do not have a traditional dealer product distribution and service network. We have limited experience distributing directly to consumers, and we expect that continuing to build a national and global in-house sales and marketing function, including an expanded physical sales, marketing and service footprint via our Lucid studios and service centers, will be expensive and time consuming. We have experienced delays in the construction and opening of our Lucid studios and service centers and any significant delays to establish Lucid studios and service centers in key markets in the future could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition. In addition, if our lack of a traditional dealer distribution and service network results in lost opportunities to generate sales, it could limit our ability to grow. Moreover, our business model of selling directly to consumers and directly servicing all vehicles may be limited by regulatory constraints. If our use of an in-house sales, marketing and service team is not effective, our results of operations and financial conditions could be affected. As we expand globally, we are actively evaluating alternative importer and agency models to flexibility and optimize our distribution strategy in response to evolving market dynamics . Such efforts may prove , time-consuming or .
Our ability to generate meaningful product revenue will depend on consumer adoption of EVs.
We are developing and producing EVs and related products and services and, accordingly, our ability to generate meaningful product revenue will highly depend on sustained consumer demand for alternative fuel vehicles in general and EVs in particular. If the market for EVs does not develop as we expect or develops more slowly than we expect, or if there is a decrease in consumer demand for EVs, these factors may harm our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. The market for electric and other alternative fuel vehicles is relatively new, rapidly evolving, characterized by rapidly changing technologies, price competition, market entrants, evolving government regulation (including the availability, reduction or elimination of government incentives and subsidies) and industry standards, frequent new vehicle introductions and changing consumer demands and behaviors. Any number of developments or disruptions in the industry could negatively affect consumer demand for EVs broadly and for our EVs in particular.
In addition, demand for EVs may be affected by factors directly impacting automobile prices or the cost of purchasing and operating automobiles such as the availability, reduction or elimination of sales and financing incentives including tax credits, prices of raw materials and parts and components, cost of fuel, availability of consumer credit, interest rates, and governmental regulatio ns, including tariffs, i mport and export regulation and other taxes. Volatility in demand may lead to lower vehicle unit sales, which may result in downward price pressure and adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. Further, sa les of vehicles in the automotive industry tend to be cyclical in many markets, which may expose us to increased volatility, especially as we expand and adjust our operations and retail strategies. Specifically, it is uncertain how such macroeconomic factors will impact us in an industry that has globally been experiencing a recent decline in sales.
Other factors that may influence the adoption of EVs include:
• perceptions about EV quality, safety, design, performance and cost;
• perceptions about the limited range over which EVs may be driven on a single battery charge;
• considerations about the total cost of ownership of EVs, including the initial purchase price and accumulated depreciation, as well as operating and maintenance costs, both including and excluding the effect of government and other subsidies and incentives designed to promote the purchase of EVs;
• concerns about electric grid capacity and reliability;
• perceptions about the sustainability and environmental impact of EVs, including with respect to both the sourcing and disposal of materials for EV batteries and the generation of electricity provided in the electric grid;
• the availability of other alternative fuel vehicles, including plug-in hybrid EVs;
• improvements in the fuel economy of the internal combustion engine;
• the quality and availability of service for EVs, especially in international markets;
• volatility in the cost of oil and gasoline;
• government regulations and the availability, reduction or elimination of economic incentives promoting fuel efficiency and alternate forms of energy including reductions, limitations or eliminations pursuant to the OBBBA;
• access to charging stations compatible with our vehicles and cost to charge an EV, especially in international markets, and related infrastructure costs and standardization;
• the availability, reduction or elimination of tax and other governmental incentives to purchase and operate EVs or future regulations requiring increased use of nonpolluting vehicles; and
• macroeconomic factors.
The influence of any of the factors described above or any other factors may cause a general reduction in consumer demand for EVs or our EVs in particular, either of which would materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects.
We face challenges providing charging solutions for our vehicles, both domestically and internationally.
Demand for our vehicles will depend in part on the availability of charging infrastructure both domestically and internationally. While the prevalence of charging stations has been increasing, public charging station locations are significantly less widespread than gas stations. Furthermore, public charging stations often experience downtime, leading to customer dissatisfaction. Although we have partnered with third-party EV charging providers to offer charging stations to our customers, the public charging infrastructure available to our customers may be insufficient to meet their needs or expectations, especially in certain international markets. Some potential customers may choose not to purchase our vehicles because of the lack of more widespread and reliable public charging infrastructure. In addition, although we have gained access to Tesla’s Supercharger network, any delay in implementing changes in Lucid vehicles required by Tesla with respect to charge ports may result in Tesla denying our access to their network, and there is no guarantee that our customers will not experience performance, access or other issues with this or other charging networks. The current administration issued an executive order that paused the disbursement of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the “IRA”) or the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, including funds designated for EV charging stations through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program and the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program. Although this pause was lifted in August 2025, there has been continued administrative into funding that supports the EV industry. Consequently, the deployment of public charging stations may not occur at planned levels, which could limit the development of public charging infrastructure and decrease the of EVs. Lastly, Congress may pass or amend legislation related to EVs that could impact the availability of funding under existing programs.
If we fail to manage our growth effectively, we may not be able to develop, manufacture, distribute, market and sell our vehicles successfully.
Any failure to manage our growth effectively could materially and adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. We are expanding our operations significantly and our current and future expansion plans include:
• expanding our management team;
• hiring and training new personnel;
• ramping up the production of our current vehicles and releasing new models in the future;
• establishing or expanding design, manufacturing, distribution, sales and service facilities;
• implementing and enhancing administrative and business infrastructure, governance, systems and processes, including in connection with our maturation as a public company; and
• expanding into new markets and establishing sales, service, administrative, distribution, or manufacturing operations and partnerships in many of those markets.
We require qualified personnel, including design and manufacturing personnel and service technicians for our vehicles. Our vehicles are based on a different technology platform than traditional internal combustion engines, individuals with sufficient training in EVs may not be available to hire, and as a result, we will need to expend significant time and expense training the employees we do hire. Competition for individuals with experience in supply chain management and logistics as well as designing, engineering, manufacturing, producing, selling, and servicing EVs is intense, and we may not be able to identify, attract, train, motivate or retain sufficient highly qualified personnel in the future. Furthermore, we have in the past reduced the size of our workforce, and have recently announced a workforce reduction plan in February 2026. Any such plan in the future may adversely affect our internal programs and initiatives, our ability to recruit and retain skilled and motivated personnel, may be distracting to employees and management and may negatively impact our business operations, reputation, or ability to serve customers. We cannot provide any assurances that we will not have to undertake additional workforce reductions in the future. The failure to identify, attract, train, motivate and retain these employees could seriously our business and prospects. In addition, our employee equity program is a key factor in our ability to attract and retain talent and continue to support the growth of the company. If we are to grant equity awards, or if we are to reduce the value of equity awards to be received by the employees for any reason, we may not be to attract, hire and retain the personnel necessary for our business, which would have a material effect on our business, prospects financial condition and results of operations. In addition, our is substantially dependent upon the continued service and performance of our senior management team and key technical and vehicle management personnel. If any key employees were to separate their employment with us, such separation would likely increase the of managing our current operations and future growth and heighten the foregoing risks.
We also have limited experience to date in high volume manufacturing of our vehicles. We cannot assure our investors that we will be able to develop and implement efficient, automated, low-cost manufacturing capabilities and processes, and reliable sources of component supply that will enable us to meet the desired quality, price, engineering, design and production standards, as well as the production volumes, required to successfully market our vehicles. We have also experienced, and may continue to experience, internal and external logistics challenges with respect to our manufacturing and warehousing facilities, including disruption to manufacturing operations due to the consolidation of our logistics operations with our manufacturing operations at AMP-1 and AMP-2. Any failure to develop and implement such manufacturing processes and capabilities within our projected costs and timelines could impact our future growth and impair our ability to produce, market, service and sell or lease our vehicles . In addition, our rapid growth, competitive real estate markets, and increasing rental rates, may our ability to obtain suitable space to accommodate our growing operations or to renew existing leases on terms to us, if at all. Any to obtain or renew leases for real property on terms to us when we need them may limit our growth, impact our operations and have an impact on our financial condition. If we to manage our growth effectively, such could result in publicity and to our brand and have a material effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
We face risks associated with international operations, including possible unfavorable regulatory, political, tax and labor conditions, which could harm our business.
As we expand our international presence and operations, we will be increasingly subject to the legal, political, regulatory and social requirements and economic conditions in these jurisdictions. Additionally, as part of our growth strategy, we have been expanding and may continue to expand our sales, maintenance and repair services outside of the United States. We are also continuing the construction of AMP-2 in Saudi Arabia and may continue to further expand our manufacturing activities outside the United States. However, we have limited experience to date manufacturing or selling our vehicles outside of the United States, and such expansion has and will continue to require us to make significant expenditures, including the hiring of local employees and establishing facilities and related systems and processes, in advance of generating any significant revenue. We are subject to a number of risks associated with international business activities that may increase our costs, impact our ability to sell, service and manufacture our vehicles, and require significant management attention. These risks include:
• conforming our vehicles to various international regulatory and homologation requirements where our vehicles are sold;
• establishing localized supply chains and managing international supply chain and logistics costs, including the shipping and delivery of kits for the SKD facility;
• establishing sufficient charging points for our customers in those jurisdictions, via partnerships or, if necessary, via development of our own charging networks or accessing those of third parties;
• difficulties staffing and managing foreign operations, especially in jurisdictions where no EV ecosystem exists and qualified personnel must be hired or relocated;
• difficulties attracting customers in new jurisdictions;
• difficulties establishing international manufacturing operations, including difficulties establishing relationships with or establishing localized supplier bases and developing cost-effective and reliable supply chains for such manufacturing operations and financing such manufacturing operations;
• difficulties controlling costs and potential loss of funding, including as a result of delays in the construction or ramp-up of operations at AMP-2;
• difficulties or delays caused by local jurisdictions in implementing infrastructure improvements for manufacturing facilities;
• foreign government taxes, regulations and permit requirements, including foreign taxes that we may not be able to offset against taxes imposed upon us in the United States, and foreign tax and other laws limiting our ability to repatriate funds to the United States;
• inflation as well as fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates, including risks related to any forward currency contracts, interest rate swaps or other hedging activities we may undertake;
• currency fluctuations or localized inflationary pressure;
• United States and foreign government trade restrictions, tariffs, price or exchange controls, and export controls;
• threat of a trade war could impede the transition to EVs, disrupt global supply chains, and delay the implementation of economic competitiveness policies;
• foreign laws, regulations and restrictions, including in the areas of supply chain, labor, sales, service, sustainability and health and safety, and related compliance costs;
• increasingly restrictive and complex foreign data privacy and cybersecurity laws, regulations and obligations;
• changes in diplomatic and trade relationships, including political risk and customer perceptions based on such changes and risks;
• actions that may impede global green transition priorities or policies designed to reduce environmental sustainability efforts;
• political instability, natural disasters, pandemics, wars, military actions, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events (including the war in Ukraine, the recent geopolitical tensions in Venezuela, and the risk of escalation or expansion of conflicts in the Middle East, which affect global energy prices and disrupt supply chain both regionally and globally), or events of terrorism; and
• the strength of international economies.
If we fail to successfully address these risks, they could materially harm our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
The automotive industry has significant barriers to entry that we must overcome in order to manufacture and sell EVs at scale.
The automobile industry is characterized by significant barriers to entry, including large capital requirements, investment costs of designing, manufacturing, and distributing vehicles, long lead times to bring vehicles to market from the concept and design stage, the need for specialized design and development expertise, regulatory requirements, establishing a brand name and image, and the need to establish sales and service locations. Since we are focused on the design of EVs, we face a variety of added challenges to entry that a traditional automobile manufacturer would not encounter, including additional costs of developing and producing an electric powertrain that has comparable performance to a traditional gasoline engine in terms of range and power, inexperience with servicing EVs, regulations associated with the transport of batteries, the need to establish or provide access to sufficient charging locations and unproven high-volume customer demand for EVs. While we have developed and started producing our first electric sedan and SUV and have completed the first two phases of construction of AMP-1 and the SKD portion of AMP-2, we have not finished tooling all production lines for AMP-1, and further construction of AMP-1 and the second phase of AMP-2 is underway. If we are not able to overcome these barriers, our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition will be impacted, and it will our ability to grow our business.
The automotive market is highly competitive, and we may not be successful in competing in this industry.
The global automotive market, particularly for electric and alternative fuel vehicles, is highly competitive, and we expect it will become even more so in the future. In recent years, the EV industry has grown, with the emergence of several companies that focus completely or partially on the EV market. In addition, traditional automotive manufacturers are also producing and selling electric and alternative fuel vehicles. We expect additional companies to enter this market within the next several years. EV manufacturers with which we compete include Tesla, Rivian, an increasing number of U.S.-based and international entrants and traditional automotive manufacturers, many of which have begun, or announced plans to begin, selling their own EVs in the near-term. We also compete with established automobile manufacturers in the luxury vehicle segment, including certain manufacturers who have entered or plan to enter the alternative fuel and EV market with either fully electric or plug-in hybrid versions of their vehicles. We compete for sales of luxury vehicles with internal combustion engines from established manufacturers. Many of our current and potential competitors have significantly greater financial, technical, manufacturing, marketing and other resources than we do and may be able to devote greater resources to the design, development, manufacturing, distribution, promotion, sale, servicing, and support of their products, including the ability to significantly reduce prices of their products. In addition, many of these companies have longer operating histories, name recognition, larger and more established sales forces, broader customer and industry relationships and other resources than we do. Our competitors may be in a position to respond quickly to changing market conditions and new technologies and may be to design, develop, market and sell their products more effectively than we do. For example, some of our competitors have announced vehicle price reductions, which may result in price pressure and reduced demand for our vehicles. We may not be to adjust our pricing strategies effectively, and there can be no assurance that such adjustments will allow us to compete our competitors, which may have a material effect on our brand, business, prospects, inventory levels, results of operations and financial conditions. In addition, increased competition has in the past and may continue to require us to increase marketing and incentive expenses, which may have a material effect on our operating results and financial condition. We expect competition in our industry to significantly intensify in the future in light of the increased demand for alternative fuel vehicles, global competitors, macroeconomic uncertainty, and consolidation in the worldwide automotive industry. Our ability to compete in our industry will be fundamental to our future in existing and new markets. There can be no assurance that we will be to compete in our markets.
Developments in EV or alternative fuel technology or improvements in the internal combustion engine may adversely affect the demand for our vehicles.
We may be unable to keep up with changes in EV technology or alternatives to electricity as a fuel source and, as a result, our competitiveness may suffer. Significant developments in alternative technologies, such as alternative battery cell technologies, hydrogen fuel cell technology, advanced gasoline, ethanol or natural gas, or improvements in the fuel economy of the internal combustion engine, may materially and adversely affect our business and prospects in ways we do not currently anticipate. Existing and other battery cell technologies, fuels or sources of energy may emerge as customers’ preferred alternative to the technologies in our EVs. Any failure by us to develop new or enhanced technologies or processes, or to react to changes in existing technologies, could materially delay our development and introduction of new and enhanced EVs, which could result in the loss of competitiveness of our vehicles, decreased revenue and a loss of market share to competitors. In addition, we expect to compete in part on the basis of our vehicles’ range, , charging speeds, performance and software, and in the technology offered by competitors could reduce demand for our current or future vehicles. As technologies change, we plan to upgrade or adapt our vehicles and introduce new models that reflect such technological developments, but our vehicles may become , and our research and development efforts may not be sufficient to adapt to changes in alternative fuel and EV technology. Additionally, as other companies continue to enter the EV space, we may any technological we may have and a in our competitive position. Any by us to react to changes in existing technologies or the development of new technologies could materially our competitive position and growth prospects.
The unavailability, reduction or elimination of certain government and economic programs could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
We benefit from government and economic programs in the United States and abroad that encourage the development, manufacture or purchase of EVs, such as ZEV credits, production tax credits, GHG credits and similar regulatory credits, the loss of which has and may continue to harm our ability to generate revenue from the sale of such credits to other manufacturers; the availability of tax credits and other incentives to consumers, without which the net cost to consumers of our vehicles could increase, reducing demand for our products; and investment tax credits for equipment, tooling and other capital needs, without which we may be unable to procure the necessary infrastructure for production to support our business and timeline; and certain other benefits, including a California sales and use tax exclusion and certain other hiring and job training credits in California, Michigan and Arizona. In addition, changes to non-financial incentives may also impact demand for our products, such as the federal government’s announcement that electric and other clean air vehicles will no longer be able to use carpool lanes without meeting the high occupancy requirements. We may also benefit from government loan or grant programs. While such EV-related governmental programs and economic incentives have been available in the United States, Canada and the EU, there is no guarantee that they will be available in the future. Any reduction, elimination, or selective application of tax and other governmental programs and economic incentives because of policy changes, fiscal or other reasons may result in the competitiveness of the EV industry generally or our EVs in particular, which would affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. On July 4, 2025, the OBBBA was enacted, which among other things, eliminates the $7,500 tax credit for purchasing a new EV and the $4,500 tax credit for purchasing a used EV September 30, 2025 and the tax credits available for charging stations June 30, 2026. In addition, the OBBBA eliminated the that automakers would pay if they to meet the CAFE standards, effectively eliminating the financial incentive to comply with those standards. Additionally, the current U.S. presidential administration has issued executive orders that aim to or fuel and emissions regulations established by the prior administration, and proposed rulemakings that would repeal federal GHG emission standards for certain vehicles and engines and eliminate our CAFE credits. While certain aspects of the OBBBA and the proposed actions by the administration remain subject to the outcome of pending , the ultimate resolutions of such matters remain uncertain. The administration has issued a policy statement aimed at eliminating the “EV mandate,” which targets state-level emissions waivers and governmental subsidies. The administration also the waiver by the U.S. EPA that had allowed California and certain other states to implement more emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles and to require all new passenger cars, trucks, and SUVs sold in California to be zero-emission by 2035. In particular, the NHTSA has proposed a rule that would, among other things, reset and reduce CAFE standards and eliminate CAFE EV credit trading. In response, California and certain other states have initiated the legal validity of these actions. The outcome of the remains uncertain. See “— to attract customers, to complete the purchase process with customers, and customer of orders may have a material impact on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.” These, and any similar legislative or executive actions in the future, may affect demand for our vehicles as well as our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
We may be unable to offer attractive leasing and financing options for our current and future vehicles, which would adversely affect consumer demand. In addition, offering leasing and financing options to customers could expose us to credit and residual value risk.
We offer leasing and financing of our vehicles to potential customers through third-party financing partners and intend to do the same in new markets, but we cannot provide any assurance that such third-party financing partners will continue, or would be able or willing, to provide such services on terms acceptable to us or our customers, if at all. Furthermore, because we have only sold a limited number of vehicles and only a limited secondary market for our vehicles exists, the future resale value of our vehicles is difficult to predict, and, if the actual resale value of our vehicles is lower than anticipated, it would make providing leasing terms that appeal to potential customers through such third-party financing partners more difficult. We believe that the ability to offer attractive leasing and financing options—whether due to the availability, reduction or continued elimination of tax incentives and certain governmental or economic programs, the availability of agreements with our third-party financing partners on terms acceptable to us or our customers, or other reasons—is particularly relevant to customers in the luxury vehicle segments in which we compete, and if we are unable to offer our customers an attractive option to finance the purchase of or lease the Lucid Air, the Lucid Gravity or planned future vehicles, including the upcoming Midsize platform vehicles, such could substantially reduce the population of potential customers and decrease demand for our vehicles. See “— The , reduction or elimination of certain government and economic programs could have a material effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations .”
Furthermore, offering leasing and financing alternatives to customers could expose us to regulatory risks commonly associated with the extension of consumer credit. Competitive pressure and challenging markets could increase credit risk through leases and loans to financially weak customers, extended payment terms, and leases and loans into new and immature markets, and any such credit risk could be further heightened in light of the economic uncertainty and any economic recession or other downturn, whether due to inflation, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events, or public crises. If we are unable to provide leasing and financing arrangements that appeal to potential customers in a timely manner, or if the provision of such arrangements exposes us to excessive consumer credit risk or regulatory risk, our business, competitive position, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.
In addition, we provide a residual value guarantee to our commercial banking partner in connection with our vehicle leasing program, under which we are contractually obligated to share a portion of the shortfall between the resale value realized by the commercial banking partner and a predetermined resale value. However, actual resale values are subject to fluctuations from various factors such as the condition of the leased vehicle, market price of new vehicles, and general economic conditions. If the resale values of leased vehicles pursuant to the vehicle leasing program are materially lower than our estimates, we may be required to cover some or all of such difference and our results of operations could be negatively impacted.
We may not be able to obtain or agree on acceptable terms and conditions for all or a significant portion of the government grants, loans and other incentives for which we may apply. As a result, our business and prospects may be adversely affected.
We may apply for federal, state and foreign grants, loans and tax incentives under government programs designed to stimulate the economy and support the production of alternative fuel and EVs and related technologies. We anticipate that in the future there may be new opportunities for us to apply for grants, loans and other incentives from the United States federal and state governments, as well as foreign governments. Our ability to obtain funds or incentives from government sources is subject to the availability of funds under applicable government programs and approval of our applications to participate in such programs. The application process for these funds and other incentives will likely be highly competitive. We cannot guarantee that we will be successful in obtaining any of these additional grants, loans and other incentives. If we are not successful in obtaining any of these additional incentives and we are unable to find alternative sources of funding to meet our planned capital needs, our business and prospects could be materially adversely affected.
We are subject to risks associated with autonomous driving and advanced driver assistance system technology, and we cannot guarantee that our vehicles will achieve our targeted assisted or autonomous driving functionality within our projected timeframe, if ever.
We design our vehicles with proprietary ADAS hardware and software. The Lucid Air and Lucid Gravity are equipped with Level 2 (partial automation) ADAS functionality. Additionally, our vehicles are capable of integrating third-party ADAS hardware and software. For example, in July 2025, we entered into an integration agreement with Nuro to install autonomous driving software in Lucid Gravity vehicles, in conjunction with our agreement with Uber, to enable Uber and its designated fleet operators to operate the vehicles with Level 4 autonomy. Over time, we plan to upgrade our vehicles with additional ADAS and AV capabilities. ADAS and AV technologies are emerging and subject to known and unknown risks, and there have been accidents and fatalities associated with such technologies. The safety of such technologies depends in part on user interaction, and users, as well as other drivers on the roadways, may not be accustomed to using or adapting to such technologies. In addition, self-driving technologies are the subject of intense public scrutiny and interest, and previous accidents involving autonomous driving features in other non-Lucid vehicles, including alleged failures or misuse of such features, have generated significant media attention and government . We and others in our industry are subject to a Standing General Order issued by NHTSA that requires us to report any crashes in which certain ADAS features were active, and these crash reports will become publicly available. To the extent associated with our ADAS or third-party technologies occur, we could be subject to significant liability, publicity, government and further regulation. Any of the foregoing could materially and affect our results of operations, financial condition and growth prospects.
In addition, we face substantial competition in the development and deployment of ADAS and AV technologies. Many of our competitors, including established automakers and technology companies, have devoted significant time and resources to developing self-driving technologies. If we are unable to develop or improve competitive Level 2 or more advanced ADAS technologies in-house or acquire access to such technologies via partnerships or investments in other companies or assets, we may be unable to equip our vehicles with competitive ADAS or AV features, which could damage our brand, reduce consumer demand for our vehicles and could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition.
ADAS and AV technologies are also subject to regulatory uncertainty, which exposes us to additional risks. See “— Risks Related to Litigation and Regulation — ADAS and autonomous vehicle technologies are subject to uncertain and evolving regulations. ”
Uninsured or underinsured losses could result in payment of substantial damages, which would decrease our cash reserves and could harm our cash flow and financial condition.
In the ordinary course of business, we may be subject to losses resulting from claims such as product liability, significant accidents, acts of God or other claims brought against us, for which we may have no or insufficient insurance coverage. While we currently carry insurance that is generally customary for a company of our size and operations, we may not maintain as much insurance coverage as other original equipment manufacturers, and in some cases, we may not maintain any at all. Additionally, the policies that we have in place may include significant deductibles, limitations or exclusions, and we cannot be certain that our insurance coverage will be sufficient to cover all or any future claims. A loss that is uninsured or exceeds existing policy limits may require us to pay unexpected and substantial amounts, which could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. Further, insurance coverage may not continue to be available to us or, if available, may be at a significantly higher cost based on insurance market conditions, changes in our risk profile or portfolio. This may require a change in our insurance purchasing philosophy and strategy which can result in the assumption of risks to offset insurance market fluctuations.
Extended periods of low gasoline or other petroleum-based fuel prices could adversely affect demand for our vehicles, which would adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
A portion of the current and expected demand for EVs results from concerns about volatility in the cost of gasoline and other petroleum-based fuel, the dependency of the United States on oil from unstable or hostile countries, government regulations and the availability, reduction or elimination of economic incentives promoting fuel efficiency and alternative forms of energy, as well as concerns about climate change resulting in part from the burning of fossil fuels. If the cost of gasoline and other petroleum-based fuel decreases significantly, the outlook for the long-term supply of oil to the United States improves, the government eliminates or modifies its regulations or economic incentives related to fuel efficiency and alternative forms of energy or there is a change in the perception that the burning of fossil fuels negatively impacts the environment, the demand for EVs, including our vehicles, could be reduced, and our business and revenue may be harmed. In addition to the OBBBA, the current U.S. presidential administration has prioritized efforts that encourage domestic production of fossil-fuel energy, including oil. If increased production of oil lowers gas prices, demand for EV vehicles may .
Gasoline and other petroleum-based fuel prices have historically been extremely volatile and it is difficult to ascertain whether such volatility will continue to persist, which could be exacerbated by geopolitical events. Lower gasoline or other petroleum-based fuel prices over extended periods of time may lower the perception in government and the private sector that cheaper, more readily available energy alternatives should be developed and produced. If gasoline or other petroleum-based fuel prices remain at deflated levels for extended periods of time, the demand for EVs, including our vehicles, may decrease, which would have an adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
Changing and at times, conflicting expectations from global regulations, our investors, customers and employees with respect to sustainability matters may impose additional costs on us or expose us to new or additional risks.
Attention from governmental organizations and our investors, customers and employees, on sustainability issues and disclosure, may cause us to incur additional costs or expose us to additional risks. There can be no certainty that we will be able to meet varying or conflicting stakeholder expectations regarding these matters to our various stakeholders’ satisfaction. Negative public perception, adverse publicity or negative comments in social media about us could damage our reputation. Any harm to our reputation could impact our employees’ engagement and retention and the willingness of our customers and partners to do business with us.
Additional costs and resources may be required to monitor, report, and comply with global regulations on sustainability topics, and the rapidly changing regulatory landscape makes it difficult to plan for future developments. Actual or perceived shortcomings or dissatisfaction with our sustainability practices and reporting may subject us to litigation and could negatively impact our business. In addition, a variety of organizations have developed ratings to measure the performance of companies on these topics, and the results of these assessments are widely publicized. Unfavorable or downgraded ratings of our company or our industries, as well as non-inclusion or removal of our stock on sustainability-oriented investment funds or indexes, may lead to negative investor sentiment and the diversion of investment to other companies or industries, which could have a negative impact on our stock price.
Risks Related to Manufacturing and Supply Chain
We have experienced and may in the future experience significant delays in the design, launch and manufacture of our vehicles, including the Lucid Air, the Lucid Gravity and our upcoming Midsize platform, which could harm our business and prospects.
Our plan to scale our manufacturing capacity and increase sales is dependent upon the timely availability of funds, upon our finalizing of the related design, engineering, component procurement, testing, build-out and manufacturing plans in a timely manner and also upon our ability to execute these plans within the planned timeline. Automobile manufacturers often experience delays in the design, manufacture and commercial release of new vehicle models, as well as in ramping up production, and we have experienced in the past, and may experience in the future, such delays with regard to our vehicles. For example, we have experienced delays in the engineering of certain of our vehicle systems, including as a result of design changes to components. Any future delays in the design, launch and manufacture of our vehicles and variants could materially damage our brand, business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
Our Midsize platform is still under development, and may be delayed or not proceed as planned. Additionally, prior to mass production of our EVs, they must be fully approved for sale in accordance with a range of jurisdiction-specific requirements, including but not limited to regulatory approvals in the various geographies where we intend to launch. Likewise, we have encountered and may continue to encounter delays with the design, construction, and regulatory or other approvals necessary to bring online our future expansions in Arizona and Saudi Arabia, or any other future manufacturing facilities.
Furthermore, we rely on third-party suppliers for the development, manufacture, and supply of many key components and materials used in our vehicles, as well as for provisioning and servicing equipment at our manufacturing facilities. We have been affected by ongoing, industry-wide challenges in logistics and supply chains, such as increased supplier lead times and the limited availability of reliable third-party suppliers. These challenges have affected our ability, as well as the ability of our suppliers, to obtain parts, components and manufacturing equipment on a timely basis, and in some instances, have resulted in increased costs and delays in facilities construction and expansion as well as vehicle production ramp-up. We expect the risk of unexpected disruptions to continue for the foreseeable future. Any delays by our suppliers in delivering or developing necessary components may result in further setbacks to our production and delivery timelines.
Any significant delay or complication in the design of our vehicles, or in the launch, manufacture, and production ramp of our products, features and services, including those related to expanding our production capacity and supply chain, obtaining or maintaining necessary regulatory approvals, or managing such ramps cost-effectively, could materially damage our brand, business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
The continued development, manufacturing and production ramp of our vehicles, including the Lucid Air, the Lucid Gravity and our upcoming Midsize platform, are and will be subject to risks, including with respect to:
• our ability to ensure ongoing readiness of firmware features and functions to be integrated into the Lucid Air as planned and on the desired timeline;
• our ability to finalize release candidate specifications for our future vehicles as planned and on the desired timeline;
• any delays by us in delivering final component designs to our suppliers or any changes to such component designs;
• our or our suppliers’ ability to successfully tool manufacturing facilities as planned and on the desired timeline;
• our ability to ensure a working and reliable supply chain and desired supplier part quality and quantity as planned and on the desired timeline;
• our ability to accurately manufacture vehicles within specified design tolerances;
• our ability to establish, implement, refine and scale, as well as make significant investments in manufacturing, supply chain management and logistics functions, including the related information technology systems and software applications;
• our ability to adequately reduce and control the costs of key parts and materials;
• our ability to significantly reduce freight costs, including in-bound freight costs;
• our ability to manage any transitions or changes in our production process, planned or unplanned;
• the occurrence of product defects that cannot be remedied without adversely affecting the production;
• our ability to secure neces sary funding;
• our ability to negotiate and execute definitive agreements with various suppliers for hardware, software, or services necessary to engineer or manufacture our vehicles;
• our ability to obtain required regulatory approvals and certifications;
• our ability to comply with environmental, safety, and similar regulations and in a timely manner;
• our ability to secure necessary components, services, or licenses on acceptable terms and in a timely manner;
• our ability to attract, recruit, hire, retain and train skilled employees including supply chain management, supplier quality, manufacturing and logistics personnel;
• our ability to design and implement effective and efficient quality control and inventory management processes;
• delays, disruptions or other changes in our supply chain, including raw material supplies and availability, reliability and cost-effectiveness in domestic and international sourcing;
• securing in a timely manner necessary raw materials and components that meet our quality standards, including raw materials and components subject to China’s export control requirements regarding certain rare-earth minerals and semiconductor-related products, such as microchips;
• our ability to maintain arrangements on commercially reasonable terms with our suppliers, delivery and other partners, after sales service providers, and other operationally significant third parties;
• other delays, backlog in manufacturing and research and development of new mo dels, and cost overruns; and
• any other risks identified herein.
We expect that we will require additional financing to fund our planned operations and expansion plans. If we are unable to arrange for required funds under the terms and on the timeline that we anticipate, our plans for tooling and building out our manufacturing facilities and for commercial production of our EVs could be significantly delayed, which would materially adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. See “ — Risks Related to Financing and Strategic Transactions — We will require additional capital to support business growth, and this capital might not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all.”
Our ability to continue production and grow depends upon our ability to maintain relationships with our existing suppliers and source suppliers for our critical components, and to complete building out our supply chain, while effectively managing the risks due to such relationships.
Our success, including our ability to continue production of the Lucid Air and Lucid Gravity, and commence production of our Midsize platform, will depend on our ability to enter into supplier agreements and maintain our relationships with hundreds of suppliers that are critical to the production of our vehicles. To date, we have not secured long-term supply agreements for all of our components, and for some components, our supply agreements do not guarantee sufficient quantities of components for our vehicle production ramp. We seek opportunities to secure long-term committed supply agreements for certain of these components. The supplier agreements we have or may enter into with key suppliers in the future may not be renewed or may contain provisions under which suppliers may refuse to supply. To the extent that we do not have long-term supply agreements with guaranteed pricing for our parts or components, we will be exposed to fluctuations in prices of components, materials and equipment. In addition, our agreements for the purchase of battery cells and other components often contain pricing provisions that are subject to adjustment based on changes in market prices of key commodities or currency values. Substantial increases in the costs for such components, materials and equipment, whether due to supply chain or logistics issues, economic conditions, changes in trade policies or agreements, the uncertainties surrounding domestic and foreign tariffs, export controls, inflation, or increased energy or natural gas costs, would increase our operating costs and could reduce our margins if we cannot offset these increased costs. Any attempts to increase the announced or expected prices of our vehicles in response to increased costs could be viewed by our potential customers and could affect our business, prospects, financial condition or results of operations.
We may also be at a disadvantage in negotiating supply agreements for the production of our vehicles as well as for the design and construction of our manufacturing facilities due to our limited operating history. In addition, given that in many cases we are an aggregator of automotive parts produced by third-party manufacturers, there is the possibility that supply agreements for the parts and components for our vehicles could be at costs that make it difficult for us to operate profitably.
We are dependent on our suppliers, the majority of which are single-source suppliers, and the inability of these suppliers to deliver necessary components of our products according to our schedule and at prices, quality levels and volumes acceptable to us, or our inability to efficiently manage these components or to implement or maintain effective inventory management and other systems, processes and personnel to support ongoing and increased production, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
We rely on hundreds of third-party suppliers for the provision and development of many key components and materials used in our vehicles. While we seek to obtain components from multiple sources whenever possible, many components used in our vehicles will be custom-designed and purchased by us from a single source. Our limited, and in many cases single-source, supply chain exposes us to delivery failure or component shortages for our production, including continued production of the Lucid Air and Lucid Gravity. Our third-party suppliers may not be able to meet our required product specifications and performance characteristics, which would impact our ability to achieve our product specifications and performance characteristics as well. Additionally, our third-party suppliers may be unable to obtain required certifications or provide necessary warranties for their products that are necessary for use in our vehicles.
We have been affected by ongoing, industry-wide challenges in logistics and supply chains, such as increased supplier lead times, limited availability of reliable third-party suppliers, and ongoing constraints in the supply of semiconductors and their related products. We expect that these industry-wide trends may continue to affect the ability of us and our suppliers to obtain parts, components and manufacturing equipment, including for the expansion of AMP-1 and the construction of AMP-2, on a timely basis for the foreseeable future, and may result in increased costs. Changes in our supply chain or production needs in order to meet our desired quality targets, development timelines and production volumes as well as due to design changes and model updates have resulted in cost increases from our suppliers.
Any significant increases in our production, such as production ramp of our vehicles, may require us to procure additional components in a short amount of time and our suppliers may not ultimately be able to sustainably and timely meet our cost, quality and volume needs, requiring us to replace them with other sources. In many cases, our suppliers provide us with custom-designed parts that would require significant lead time to obtain from alternative suppliers, or may not be available from alternative suppliers at all. If we are unable to obtain suitable components and materials used in our vehicles from our suppliers or if our suppliers decide to create or supply a competing product, our business could be adversely affected. Further, if we are unsuccessful in our efforts to control and reduce supplier costs, our results of operations will suffer. Alternatively, if our production decreases significantly below our projections for any reason, we may not meet all of our purchase commitments with suppliers with whom we have non-cancelable long-term purchase commitments. In cases where we are unable to fully utilize our purchase commitments, we have in the past and may continue to face fees, penalties, increased prices, excess inventory or inventory write-offs, and there could be a material effect on our results of operations.
In addition, we have experienced, and in the future could continue to experience, delays if our suppliers do not meet agreed-upon timelines and volumes, experience capacity constraints, or deliver components that do not meet our quality standards or other requirements. Any disruption in the supply of components, including battery cells, magnets and semiconductors, whether or not from a single source supplier, could temporarily disrupt production of our vehicles until an alternative supplier is able to supply the required material. Any such delay, even if caused by a delay or shortage in only one part, could significantly affect our ability to meet our planned vehicle production targets. Even in situations where we may be able to establish alternate supply relationships and obtain or engineer replacement components for our single source components, we may be unable to do so quickly, or at all, at prices or quality levels that are acceptable to us. This risk is heightened by the fact that we have less negotiating leverage with suppliers than larger and more established automobile manufacturers, which could affect our ability to obtain necessary components and materials on a timely basis, on pricing and other terms, or at all. The industry in which we operate has recently experienced supply chain , and we expect these conditions to continue for the foreseeable future. Any such supply could materially and affect our results of operations, financial condition and prospects.
Furthermore, as we scale our vehicle production, we will need to accurately forecast, purchase, warehouse and transport components to our manufacturing facilities and servicing locations internationally and at much higher volumes. We are only beginning to scale production in our manufacturing facilities and in the process we have experienced challenges associated with such activities. If our production decreases significantly below our projections for any reason, we may incur loss due to inventory write-downs or assets impairment. We are also only in the process of scaling our vehicle servicing operations. Accordingly, we have not thoroughly tested our ability to scale production and vehicle servicing and mitigate risks associated with these activities. In addition, our current systems and processes are not mature, which may affect our ability to timely initiate critical and time sensitive projects and increase project costs. If we continue to experience logistics challenges, are unable to accurately match the timing and quantities of component purchases to our actual needs, successfully recruit and retain personnel with relevant experience, timely comply with applicable regulations, or successfully implement automation, inventory management and other systems or processes to accommodate the increased complexity in our supply chain and manufacturing operations, we may incur production , storage, transportation and write-off costs, which could have a material effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
Furthermore, unexpected changes in business conditions, materials pricing, labor issues, wars, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events, governmental changes, political uncertainty, trade policies and agreements, the uncertainties surrounding domestic and foreign tariffs, export controls, natural disasters, health epidemics, and other factors beyond our and our suppliers’ control could also affect these suppliers’ ability to deliver components to us on a timely basis. For example, some of the shipping routes in the Red Sea have been affected by the conflicts in the Middle East, resulting in delays in delivery of components and an increase in shipping costs globally. Additionally, governmental and policy changes may continue to result in new or increased tariffs on imported components. Our ability to mitigate these cost increases may be limited by the lack of alternative suppliers from unaffected countries or domestic suppliers with production capabilities to meet our requirements. Such disruptions or increase in costs could have a material adverse impact on our business, including our ability to timely manufacture and distribute our products in a cost- manner and affect our results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, we have identified certain of our suppliers, including certain suppliers we deem critical, as having poor financial health or being at risk of acquisition, liquidation or bankruptcy. Although we routinely review our suppliers’ financial health and attempt to identify alternate suppliers where possible, the loss of any supplier, particularly a single- or limited-source supplier, or the disruption in the supply of components from our suppliers, has led and may in the future continue to lead to vehicle design changes, production delays, idle manufacturing facilities and potential loss of access to important technology and parts for producing, servicing and supporting our vehicles, any of which could result in negative publicity, damage to our brand and a material and adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, if our suppliers experience substantial financial , operations or otherwise face business , we may be required to provide substantial financial support to ensure supply continuity, which could have an additional effect on our liquidity and financial condition.
Changes in costs, changes of supply or shortage of materials, in particular for lithium-ion battery cells, could harm our business.
As we scale commercial production of our vehicles or any future energy storage systems, we have experienced and may continue to experience increases in the cost of or a sustained interruption in the supply or shortage of materials. Any such increase, supply interruption or shortage could materially and adversely impact our business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition. For example, as we continue the expansion of AMP-1 and the construction of AMP-2, we have experienced increases in material and infrastructure equipment prices and cost of construction labor. In addition, we use various materials in our business, including aluminum, steel, magnets, lithium, nickel, copper, cobalt, neodymium, terbium, praseodymium and manganese, as well as lithium-ion battery cells and semiconductors from suppliers. The prices for these materials fluctuate, and their available supply may be unstable, depending on market conditions, trade policies, tariffs and export controls, inflationary pressure and global demand for these materials, including as a result of increased production of EVs, energy storage products by our competitors and the global supply chain crisis, and could adversely affect our business and results of operations. For instance, we are to multiple risks relating to lithium-ion battery cells. These risks include:
• a change in the cost, or changes in the available supply, of materials, such as cobalt, used in lithium-ion battery cells;
• disruption in the supply of lithium-ion battery cells due to quality issues or recalls by manufacturers;
• our ability to manage our supply and inventory of lithium-ion battery cells; and
• fluctuations in the value of any foreign currencies, in which lithium-ion battery cells and related raw material purchases are or may be denominated against the U.S. dollar.
Our ability to manufacture our vehicles or any future energy storage systems will depend on the continued supply of battery cells for the battery packs used in our products. A growth in popularity of EVs without a significant expansion in battery cell production capacity could result in shortages which would result in increased materials costs to us, and would impact our expected manufacturing and delivery timelines, and adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. We have limited flexibility in changing battery cell suppliers, and any disruption in the supply of battery cells from such suppliers could disrupt production of our vehicles until a different supplier is fully qualified. In addition, pursuant to the agreement we entered into in connection with the supply of lithium-ion battery cells, we have made certain non-can celable long-term purchase commitments. If our production decreases significantly below our projections for any reason, we may not meet all of our purchase commitments. In cases where we are unable to fully utilize our purchase commitments, we have in the past and may continue to face fees, penalties, increased prices, excess inventory or inventory write-offs, and there could be a material effect on our results of operations.
Furthermore, our ability to manufacture our vehicles depends on continued and reliable access to semiconductors and microchips that incorporate them. The ongoing global semiconductor supply shortage, including as a result of China’s export controls over Nexperia’s microchip products, has impacted the automotive industry and affected many suppliers and manufacturers, including us. We have experienced, and may continue to experience, an impact on our operations as a result of such shortages, which could delay or reduce planned production levels of our current and future vehicles and have an adverse effect on our business, prospects and results of operations. Moreover, export controls, particularly those affecting components within our supply chain, such as China’s restrictions on certain rare-earth minerals, has posed, and could continue to pose, risks to our production and distribution capabilities. In addition, foreign currency fluctuations, tariffs, shortages in petroleum or natural gas and other economic or political conditions have contributed to and may continue to result in significant increases in freight charges and raw material costs. These risks could be further magnified by geographical developments, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events, including the war in Ukraine, the recent geopolitical tensions in Venezuela and the risk of escalation or expansion of in the Middle East, which affects shipping routes both regionally and globally. Substantial increases in the prices for our raw materials or components would increase our operating costs and could reduce our margins. Any attempts to raise product prices in response to increased material costs could lead to reduced demand for our vehicles and materially and affect our brand, image, business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition.
We must develop complex software and technology systems, including in coordination with vendors and suppliers, in order to produce our EVs, and there can be no assurance such systems will be successfully developed.
Our vehicles use a substantial amount of third-party and proprietary software and complex technological hardware to operate, some of which is still subject to further development and testing. The development and implementation of such advanced technologies is inherently complex and requires coordination with our vendors and suppliers in order to integrate such technology into our EVs and ensure it interoperates with other complex technology as designed and as expected.
We may fail to detect defects and errors that are subsequently revealed, and our control over the performance of third-party services and systems may be limited. Any defects or errors in, or which are attributed to, our technology, could result in, among other things:
• delayed production and delivery of our vehicles;
• delayed market acceptance of our vehicles;
• loss of customers or inability to attract new customers;
• diversion of engineering or other resources for remedying the defect or error;
• damage to our brand or reputation;
• increased service and warranty costs;
• legal action by customers or third parties, including product liability claims; and
• penalties imposed by regulatory authorities.
In addition, if we are unable to develop the software and technology systems necessary to operate our vehicles, it will harm our competitive position. We rely on third-party suppliers to develop a number of technologies for use in our products. There can be no assurances that our suppliers will be able to meet the technological requirements, production timing and volume requirements to support our business plan. In addition, such technology may not satisfy the cost, performance useful life and warranty characteristics we anticipate in our business plan, which could materially adversely affect our business, prospects and results of operations.
If we fail to successfully construct or tool our manufacturing facilities or if our manufacturing facilities become inoperable, we will be unable to produce our vehicles and our business will be harmed.
We have completed the initial and second phases of construction at AMP-1 and the SKD portion of AMP-2, and further construction of AMP-1 and the second phase of AMP-2 is in progress. We also acquired select assets and assumed leases for certain facilities previously belonging to Nikola Corporation, including Nikola’s former Coolidge manufacturing facility. However, tooling these facilities for production of our vehicles and our future expansion plans are complicated and present significant challenges and may require us to take vehicle production offline. In addition, certain of our suppliers may be unable to complete tooling with respect to finalized components of our vehicles in the planned timeframe after we deliver final component specifications, which could adversely affect our ability to continue commercial production of the Lucid Air and Lucid Gravity on the expected timing and at the quality levels we require. As with any large-scale capital project, these efforts could be subject to delays, cost overruns or other complications. In addition, we may encounter problems or with our vendors for a variety of reasons, including for reasons beyond our control, and such , with or without merit, could also cause significant and cost . These risks could be increased because we are building our facilities from the ground up to support our EV production processes, which differ substantially from traditional automobile production processes for which expertise is more readily available. In connection with the commercial production at AMP-1 and SKD production at AMP-2, we have hired and trained and continue to hire, retain, and train a significant number of employees and integrate a yet-to-be-fully-developed supply chain. Any to continue commercial or SKD production on schedule would lead to additional costs and would our ability to generate meaningful revenues. In addition, it could prevent us from the confidence of potential customers, spur of orders and open the door to increased competition. All of the foregoing could our ability to launch and grow our business and a competitive position in the market.
In addition, if any of our manufacturing facilities are not constructed in conformity with our requirements, repair or remediation may be required to support our planned phased manufacturing build-out and could require us to take vehicle production offline, delay implementation of our planned phased manufacturing build-out, or construct alternate facilities, which could materially limit our manufacturing capacity, delay planned increases in manufacturing volumes, delay the start of production of our future vehicles, or adversely affect our ability to timely sell and deliver our EVs to customers. Any repair or remediation efforts could also require us to bear substantial additional costs, including both the direct costs of such activities and potentially costly litigation or other legal proceedings related to any identified defect, and there can be no assurance that our insurance policies or other recoveries would be sufficient to cover all or any of such costs. Any of the foregoing consequences could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition and could cause our results of operations to differ materially from our current expectations. Although we do not currently expect that we will be required to take vehicle production offline or reduce our planned manufacturing volumes, any such repairs or remediation could entail significant costs, and we may be to recover some or all of such costs from the applicable contractor(s).
The construction of our facilities and our operations are also subject to review and inspection by officials in the jurisdictions where our facilities are located, including without limitation, fire officials and building construction officials. We have received in the past, and could in the future receive, results from inspections by local officials at our facilities, both existing and currently under construction, citing failing marks. When such results have arisen, we actively engaged with the local authorities to address all of the specific issues identified by those officials as well as to devise means and methods that help ensure a safe and compliant work environment. Any future results will be addressed in a similar manner. Failure to address issues raised by local authorities may result in government-ordered temporary cessation of our construction or production operations, which could require us to take vehicle production offline or reduce our planned manufacturing volumes, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows, financial condition or prospects.
We rely on complex machinery for our operations, and production involves a significant degree of risk and uncertainty in terms of operational performance, safety, security and costs.
We utilize a number of new manufacturing technologies, techniques and processes for our vehicles, such as motor winding equipment, and we may utilize additional new technologies, techniques and processes in the future. Certain design features in our vehicles present additional manufacturing challenges, such as large display screens and ADAS hardware. There is no guarantee that we will be able to successfully and timely introduce and scale any such new processes or features.
We also rely heavily on complex machinery for our operations, and our production involves a significant degree of uncertainty and risk in terms of operational performance and costs. Our manufacturing plant employs large-scale, complex machinery combining many components, which may suffer unexpected malfunctions from time-to-time and will depend on repairs and spare parts that may not be available when needed. Furthermore, AMP-1 and AMP-2, and the equipment we use to manufacture our vehicles, will be costly to repair or replace and could require substantial lead-time to repair or replace and qualify for use.
Unexpected malfunctions of the manufacturing plant components may significantly decrease our operational efficiency, including by forcing manufacturing shutdowns in order to conduct repairs or troubleshoot manufacturing problems. Our facilities may also be harmed or rendered inoperable by natural or man-made disasters or events, including but not limited to earthquakes, tornadoes, flooding, fire, power outages, sandstorms, environmental hazards and remediation, costs associated with decommissioning of equipment, labor disputes and strikes, lack of availability of qualified construction or operational labor, difficulty or delays in obtaining governmental permits and licenses, damages or in electronic systems, industrial , health epidemics, political changes or , wars, military actions, global or regional , or other geopolitical events, which may render it or for us to manufacture our vehicles for some period of time. The to produce our vehicles or the backlog that could develop if our manufacturing plant is inoperable for even a short period of time may result in the of customers or our reputation. Although we maintain insurance for to our property, this insurance may not be sufficient to cover all of our potential and may not continue to be available to us on acceptable terms, if at all, based on insurance market conditions or our evolving risk profile. Should operational risks materialize, they may result in the personal to or death of our workers, the of production equipment, to manufacturing facilities, monetary , and fluctuations in production, environmental , administrative , increased insurance costs and potential legal liabilities, all of which could have a material effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows, financial condition or prospects.
If we update or discontinue the use of our manufacturing equipment more quickly than expected, we may have to shorten the useful lives of this equipment, and the resulting acceleration in our depreciation could negatively affect our financial results.
We have invested and expect to continue to invest significantly in what we believe is state of the art tooling, machinery and other manufacturing equipment, and we depreciate the cost of such equipment over their expected useful lives. However, manufacturing technology may evolve rapidly, and we may decide to update our manufacturing processes more quickly than expected. Moreover, as we ramp the commercial production of our vehicles, our experience may cause us to discontinue the use of already installed equipment in favor of different or additional equipment. The useful life of any equipment that would be retired early as a result would be shortened, causing the depreciation on such equipment to be accelerated, and our results of operations could be negatively impacted.
We have limited experience in high volume manufacture of our vehicles.
We cannot provide any assurance as to whether we will be able to develop and implement efficient, automated, low-cost logistics and production capabilities and processes and reliable sources of component supply that will enable us to meet the quality, price, engineering, design and production standards, as well as the production volumes, required to successfully mass market and ramp up production of our vehicles. Even if we are successful in developing our high volume production capability and processes and reliably source our component supply, no assurance can be given as to whether we will be able to do so in a manner that avoids significant delays and cost overruns, including as a result of factors beyond our control such as problems with suppliers and vendors, political changes or instability, wars, military actions, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events or force majeure events, or in time to meet our commercialization schedules, or to store and deliver parts in sufficient quantities to the manufacturing lines in a manner that us to maintain our production ramp curve and rates, the requirements of customers and potential customers or fully utilize our purchase commitments with suppliers. For example, as result of the in the Middle East, we have experienced an impact on our shipping routes in the Red Sea, which has resulted in shipping and increased shipping costs globally. Any to develop, implement and maintain such logistics, production, quality control, and inventory management processes and capabilities within our projected costs and timelines could have a material effect on our business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition. Moreover, we have experienced logistics as we continue to refine our manufacturing, logistics and inventory management processes, and efforts to implement or such processes may cause halts or in production and result in additional costs. and other have and may continue to arise as we continue commercial production of the Lucid Air and Lucid Gravity, and it will be important that we address them promptly while continuing to control our logistics and manufacturing costs. If we are not in doing so, or if we experience issues with our logistics and manufacturing process , we could face further in establishing and sustaining our production ramps or be to meet our related cost and targets.
If our vehicles fail to perform as expected, our ability to develop, market and sell or lease our products could be harmed.
Our vehicles or the components installed therein have in the past and may in the future contain defects in design or manufacture, including components designed or manufactured by suppliers, that may cause them not to perform as expected or that may require repairs, recalls, or design changes, any of which would require significant financial and other resources to successfully navigate and resolve. Our vehicles use a substantial amount of software code to operate, and software products are inherently complex and may contain defects and errors. If our vehicles contain defects in design or manufacture that cause them not to perform as expected or that require repair, or if certain features of our vehicles take longer than expected to become available, are legally restricted or become subject to additional regulations, our ability to develop, market and sell our products and services could be adversely affected. In addition, our OTA software updates may fail to achieve their intended repair and performance goals, our customers’ vehicles to , or have consequences, and may require our customers to bring their vehicles to our service centers.
Any defects, delays or legal restrictions on vehicle features, failed OTA software updates, or other failure of our vehicles to perform as expected, could harm our brand and reputation and result in delivery delays, product recalls, product liability claims, breach of warranty claims or significant warranty and other expenses, and could have a material adverse impact on our business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition. Any such defects or noncompliance with legal requirements could also result in safety recalls. See “— Risks Related to Litigation and Regulation — We have in the past and may choose in the future, or we may be compelled, to undertake product or take other actions, which could affect our business, prospects, results of operations, reputation and financial condition.” As we build customer relationships and earn trust, these effects could be significantly to us. Additionally, and experienced by other consumer EVs could by association have a impact on perception and customer demand for our vehicles.
In addition, even if our vehicles function as designed, we expect that the battery efficiency, and hence the range, of our EVs, like other EVs that use current battery technology, will decline over time. Other factors, such as usage, time and stress patterns, may also impact the battery’s ability to hold a charge, or could require us to limit vehicles’ battery charging capacity, including via OTA or other software updates, for safety reasons or to protect battery capacity, which could further decrease our vehicles’ range between charges. Such decreases in or limitations of battery capacity and therefore range, whether imposed by deterioration, software limitations or otherwise, could also lead to consumer complaints or warranty claims, including claims that prior knowledge of such decreases or limitations would have affected consumers’ purchasing decisions. Further, there can be no assurance that we will be able to the performance of our battery packs, or increase our vehicles’ range, in the future. Any such battery or capacity and related decreases in range may influence potential customers’ willingness to purchase our vehicles and impact our brand and reputation, which could affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
We have limited experience servicing our vehicles and their integrated software. If we or our partners are unable to adequately service our vehicles, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.
We have limited experience servicing or repairing our vehicles and their integrated software. Servicing EVs is different than servicing vehicles with internal combustion engines and requires specialized skills, including high voltage training and servicing techniques. Furthermore, some vehicle repairs may be done via OTA software updates, which poses additional risks to the vehicles’ software if any issues arise during an update. In addition, we may partner with certain third parties to perform some of the service on our vehicles, and there can be no assurance that we will be able to enter into acceptable arrangements with any such third-party providers or develop and implement the necessary information technology infrastructure to support them. Further, although such servicing partners may have experience in servicing other EVs, they will initially have limited experience in servicing our vehicles. We also have a limited network of locations to perform service and may also rely upon mobile service vans with Lucid technicians to provide service to customers. There can be no assurance that our service arrangements will adequately address the service requirements of our customers to their satisfaction, or that we and our servicing partners will have sufficient resources, experience or inventory to meet these service requirements in a timely manner as the volume of vehicles we deliver increases. This risk is by our limited operating history and our limited data regarding our vehicles’ real-world reliability and service requirements. In addition, if we are to roll out and establish a widespread service network that provides customer service, our customer loyalty, brand and reputation could be affected, which in turn could materially and affect our sales, results of operations, prospects and financial condition.
Further, the motor vehicle industry laws in some states require that service facilities be available to service vehicles physically sold from locations in the state, and we may be unable to scale our service operations as we sell more vehicles in such locations. In addition, the motor vehicle franchise laws in some states may preclude us from providing direct warranty service to consumers in that state. While we anticipate developing a service program that would satisfy regulatory requirements in these circumstances, the specifics of our service program are still being refined, and at some point may need to be restructured to comply with state law, which may impact our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Our customers also depend on our customer support team to resolve technical and operational issues relating to the integrated software underlying our vehicles, a large portion of which we have developed in-house. As we grow, additional pressure may be placed on our customer support team or partners, and we may be unable to respond quickly enough to accommodate short-term increases in customer demand for technical support or service. We also may be unable to modify the future scope and delivery of our technical support to compete with changes in the technical support provided by our competitors. Increased customer demand for support, without corresponding revenue, could increase costs and negatively affect our results of operations. If we are unable to successfully address the service requirements of our customers, or if we establish a market perception that we do not provide high-quality support, our brand and reputation could be adversely affected, and we may be subject to claims from our customers, which could result in loss of revenue or , and our business, results of operations, prospects and financial condition could be materially and affected.
Insufficient reserves to cover future warranty or part replacement needs or other vehicle repair requirements, including any potential software upgrades, could materially adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
We provide a new vehicle limited warranty on all new vehicles and a genuine spare parts and accessories limited warranty on Lucid genuine spare parts and accessories we sell. We maintain warranty reserves to cover part replacement and other vehicle repair needs, including any potential software upgrades or warranty claims. In addition, we expect to provide a manufacturer’s warranty on any future products we sell and may provide additional warranties on installation workmanship or performance guarantees. Warranty reserves include our management team’s best estimate of the projected costs to repair or to replace items under warranty. Such estimates are inherently uncertain, particularly in light of our limited operating history and the limited field data available to us, and changes to such estimates based on real-world observations may cause material changes to our warranty reserves in the future. If our reserves are inadequate to cover future maintenance requirements on our vehicles, this could materially and adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. We may become subject to significant and unexpected expenses as well as claims from our customers, including loss of revenue or . There can be no assurances that then-existing reserves will be sufficient to cover all . In addition, future laws or regulations may impose additional warranty obligations on us that go beyond our manufacturer’s warranty, which may us to materially higher warranty, parts replacement and repair expenses than we expect, and our reserves may be to cover such expenses.
We may not be able to accurately estimate the supply and demand for our vehicles, which could result in a variety of inefficiencies in our business and hinder our ability to generate revenue. If we fail to accurately predict our manufacturing requirements, we could incur additional costs or experience delays.
It is difficult to predict our future revenues and appropriately budget for our expenses, and we have limited insight into trends that may emerge and affect our business. We will be required to provide forecasts of our demand to our suppliers several months prior to the scheduled delivery of vehicles to our prospective customers. Currently, there is limited historical basis for making judgments about the demand for our vehicles or our ability to develop, manufacture, and deliver vehicles, or our profitability in the future. If we overestimate our requirements, our suppliers may have excess inventory, which has in the past and may continue to indirectly increase our costs. If we underestimate our requirements, our suppliers may have inadequate inventory, which could interrupt manufacturing of our products and result in delays in shipments and revenues. In addition, lead times for materials and components that our suppliers order may vary significantly and depend on factors such as the specific supplier, contract terms and demand for each component at a given time. If we fail to order sufficient quantities of product components in a timely manner or to establish the delivery processes and infrastructure to make deliveries, the delivery of vehicles to our customers could be , which would our business, financial condition and results of operations. Tariffs announced by the United States and resulting tariffs and other trade , including China’s changes to its export controls for rare-earth minerals and semiconductor-related products have had and may continue to have, an impact on our ability to predict our manufacturing requirements, costs and production, and our ability to receive raw materials and components.
Our facilities or operations could be adversely affected by events outside of our control, such as natural disasters, wars, military actions, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events, health epidemics or pandemics, or security incidents.
We and our suppliers may be impacted by weather events, natural disasters, wars, military actions, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events, health epidemics or pandemics, security incidents or other events outside of our control. For example, our corporate headquarters are located in seismically active regions in Northern California, and our manufacturing facilities in Arizona and Saudi Arabia are located in sandstorm-, flood-, or tornado-prone areas. If major disasters such as earthquakes, wildfires, floods, tornadoes or other events occur, or our information technology systems or communication networks break down or operate improperly, our headquarters and manufacturing facilities may be seriously damaged, or we may have to stop or delay production and shipment of our products. Furthermore, we could be impacted by physical security incidents at our facilities, which could result in significant damage to such facilities that could require us to or production of our vehicles. In addition, we have established a foreign trade zone with respect to certain of our facilities in Casa Grande, Arizona. To the extent any such physical security are determined to result from security measures, we could face the risk of of our foreign trade zone approval, as well as financial or , which could increase the cost of our duties and tariffs. See “— Risks Related to and Regulation — A to properly comply with foreign trade zone laws and regulations could increase the cost of our duties and tariffs. ” In addition, global or regional or other geopolitical events may increase the likelihood of supply chain and may our ability to compete in current or future markets, or otherwise subject us to potential liability. See “—Risks Related to Manufacturing and Supply Chain — if we to tool our manufacturing facilities or if our manufacturing facilities become inoperable, we will be to produce our vehicles and our business will be .” and “— Risks Related to and Regulation — Changes in U.S. trade policy, including the imposition of or uncertainties surrounding tariffs or of normal trade relations and the resulting consequences, could affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition .” We may incur significant expenses or relating to such events outside of our control, which could have a material impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Our vehicles make use of lithium-ion battery cells, which, if not appropriately managed and controlled, have been observed to catch fire or vent smoke and flame.
The battery packs within our vehicles use, and any future energy storage systems may make use of, lithium-ion cells. On rare occasions, lithium-ion cells can rapidly release the energy they contain by venting smoke and flames in a manner that can ignite nearby materials as well as other lithium-ion cells. While we have designed our battery packs to passively contain a single cell’s release of energy without spreading to neighboring cells, a field or testing failure of our vehicles or other battery packs that we produce could occur. In addition, although we equip our vehicles with systems designed to detect and warn vehicle occupants of such thermal events, there can be no assurance that such systems will function as designed or will provide vehicle occupants with sufficient, or any, warning in all crashes. Any such events or failures of our vehicles, battery packs or warning systems could subject us to lawsuits, product recalls, or redesign efforts, all of which would be time consuming and expensive. Also, negative public perceptions regarding the suitability of lithium-ion battery cells for automotive applications, disposal and recycling of lithium-ion battery cells, or any future involving lithium-ion battery cells, such as a vehicle or other fire, even if such does not involve our vehicles, could our business and reputation.
In addition, as we expand our service network, increase our recycling practices and scale the manufacturing of our vehicles and any future energy storage products, we will need to store lithium-ion battery cells at our facilities and we have experienced, and may in the future experience, thermal events. Any mishandling of battery cells or safety issue or fire related to the cells could disrupt our operations. Such damage or injury could also lead to adverse publicity and potentially a safety recall. In addition, the transportation and effective storage of lithium-ion batteries is also tightly regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation and other regulatory bodies, and any failure to comply with such regulation could result in fines, loss of permits and licenses or other regulatory consequences, which could limit our ability to manufacture and deliver our vehicles and negatively affect our results of operations and financial condition. Moreover, any of a competitor’s EV or energy storage product may cause indirect publicity for us and our products. Such publicity could affect our brand and our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
Risks Related to Cybersecurity and Data Privacy
Any unauthorized control, manipulation, interruption or compromise of or access to our products or information technology systems or networks could result in loss of confidence in us and our products, harm our business and materially adversely affect our financial performance, results of operations or prospects.
Our products contain complex information technology systems. For example, our vehicles are designed with built-in data connectivity to accept and securely install periodic remote updates to improve their functionality.
In addition, we collect, store, transmit and otherwise process data from vehicles, customers, employees and other third parties as part of our business operations, some of which includes personal, or confidential or proprietary information. We also work with third-party service providers and vendors that collect, store and process such data and information on our behalf. We have taken certain measures designed to prevent unauthorized access to our information technology systems, networks and information (including personal data) and plan to continue to deploy additional measures as we grow. Our third-party service providers and vendors also take steps designed to protect the security and integrity of information technology systems and networks and customer information (including personal data). However, there can be no assurance that such systems, networks and measures will not be compromised, including as a result of intentional misconduct by employees, contractors, vendors, or other third parties as well as a result of software bugs, human error, or technical malfunctions.
Furthermore, cyber threat actors may in the future attempt to gain unauthorized access to, modify, alter or use our vehicles, products, systems and networks to (i) gain control of, (ii) change the functionality, user interface or performance characteristics of or (iii) gain access to data stored in or generated by, our vehicles, products, systems and networks. Advances in technology, such as artificial intelligence, new vulnerability discoveries, an increased level of sophistication and diversity of our products and services, an increased level of expertise of cyber threat actors and new discoveries in the field of cryptography could lead to a compromise or breach of the measures that we or our third-party service providers use. Some of our products and information technology systems contain or use open-source software, which can create additional risks, including potential security vulnerabilities. Increasing use of such products and services in our vehicles, including with our partnerships with Nuro and Uber for AV capabilities, heightens the risk and potential impacts of a cybersecurity of our or our third-party partners’ systems. We and our third-party service providers’ systems have in the past and may in the future be affected by security . Our systems and networks are also to or from, among other things, software bugs, server , software or hardware , computer viruses, malware, ransomware, killware, wiperware, computer or of service attacks, telecommunications , social engineering schemes (such as vishing, phishing or smishing), domain name spoofing, insider theft, physical theft, fire, terrorist attacks, natural , power , war, , , , or other events that may our vehicles, products, systems and networks. Our data center and our third-party service providers’ or vendors’ data centers could be subject to -ins, and acts of causing potential . We implement comprehensive measures to prevent, mitigate and identified exposures and , and maintain layered security practices designed to prevent or reduce the likelihood of a cybersecurity . We may also be subject to certain laws and regulations, such as “right to repair” laws that could require us to provide third-party access to certain vehicle and vehicle-connected systems. Some of our systems will not be fully redundant, and our recovery planning cannot account for all eventualities. Any at our or our third-party service providers’ or vendors’ data centers or cloud infrastructure could result in lengthy in our service and our business operations. There can be no assurance that any security or other operational measures that we or our third-party service providers or vendors have implemented will be any of the foregoing or issues.
These risks have been heightened in connection with ongoing global or regional conflicts and other geopolitical events and we cannot be certain how this new risk landscape will impact our operations. When geopolitical conflicts develop, government systems as well as critical infrastructures such as financial services and utilities may be targeted by state-sponsored cyberattacks even if they are not directly involved in the conflict. There can be no assurance that our business will not become a potential target as adversaries may attack networks and systems indiscriminately. Such cyberattacks may potentially cause unauthorized access to our personal, confidential or proprietary information (including our proprietary software code), products, systems and networks, resulting in a data breach, or disruption, modification or destruction to our systems and networks. As a result, we may suffer monetary , business , and long-lasting operational issues, to our reputation and brand or of our intellectual property (including trade secrets).
If we are unable to protect our personal, confidential or proprietary information (including our proprietary software code), products, systems and networks from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, destruction or other breach, such threats or security breaches could have negative consequences for our business and future prospects, including compromise of vehicle integrity and physical safety, causing monetary losses, giving rise to liabilities under our contracts or to the owners of the applicable information, subjecting us to substantial fines, penalties, damages and other liabilities under applicable laws and regulations, incurring substantial costs to respond to, investigate and remedy such , reducing customer demand for our products, our reputation and brand and compromising or to a of protection of our intellectual property (including trade secrets). In addition, regardless of their veracity, reports of access to our vehicles, products, systems and networks, as well as other factors that may result in the perception that our vehicles, products, systems and networks are to being “hacked,” could affect our brand.
Furthermore, we are continuously expanding and improving our information technology systems. In particular, our volume production of our current and planned future vehicles will necessitate continued development, maintenance and improvement of our information technology and communication systems and networks in the United States and abroad, such as systems and networks for product data management, vehicle management tools, vehicle security systems, vehicle security management processes, procurement of bill of material items, supply chain management, inventory management, production planning and execution, lean manufacturing, sales, service and logistics, dealer management and financial, tax and regulatory compliance. Our ability to operate our business will depend on the availability and effectiveness of these systems and networks and could be impacted by system outages or similar events. The implementation, maintenance, segregation, and improvement of these systems and networks require significant management time, support and cost. Moreover, there are inherent risks associated with developing, improving and expanding our core systems and networks as well as implementing new systems and networks, including the disruption of our data management, procurement, manufacturing execution, finance, supply chain, inventory management, and sales and service processes. We cannot be certain that these systems and networks or their required functionality will be effectively and timely developed, implemented, maintained or expanded as planned. If we are in any of the foregoing, our operations may be , our ability to accurately or timely report our financial results could be , and may arise in our internal control over financial reporting, which may impact our ability to certify our financial results. If these systems and networks or their functionality do not operate as we expect them to, we may be required to expend significant resources to make or find alternative sources for performing these functions. Any of the foregoing could materially affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, our vehicles depend on the ability of software and hardware to store, retrieve, process and manage immense amounts of data. Our software and hardware, including any OTA or other updates, may contain, errors, bugs, design defects or other vulnerabilities, and our systems may be subject to technical limitations that may compromise our ability to meet our objectives. Some errors, bugs, design defects or other vulnerabilities may reside in third-party intellectual property or open-source software and be inherently difficult to detect and may only be discovered after code has been released for external or internal use. We attempt to remedy any issues we observe in our vehicles as effectively and rapidly as possible, including issuing patches for zero-day vulnerabilities and deploying OTA updates to resolve errors, bugs, design defects or other in our vehicle software, but such efforts may not be timely, may production or may not be to the of our customers. Additionally, if we deploy software updates to address any issues but our OTA update procedures , our customers will need to work with our service personnel to install these updates, and their vehicle will remain until installation of the updates. Any compromise of our personal, confidential or proprietary information (including our proprietary software code), products, systems or networks or to prevent or effectively remedy , bugs, design or other may cause us to lengthy to our ability to operate our business and our customers’ ability to operate their vehicles, compromise of vehicle and physical safety, to our reputation, of customers, of revenue, governmental , or or liability for , any of which could materially affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
We may not have adequate insurance coverage, if any, to cover losses associated with any of the foregoing. The costs of investing and remediating a large data breach, or the successful assertion of one or more large claims against us that exceeds our available insurance coverage, or results in changes to our insurance policies (including premium increases, imposition of large deductible, exclusions or co-insurance requirements), could have an adverse effect on our business. In addition, we cannot be certain that our existing insurance coverage will continue to be available on acceptable terms or at all or that our insurers will not deny coverage as to any future claim.
We are subject to evolving laws, regulations, standards, policies, and contractual obligations related to data privacy, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence, and any actual or perceived failure to comply with such obligations could harm our reputation and brand, subject us to significant fines and liability, or otherwise adversely affect our business.
In the course of our operations, we collect, use, store, disclose, transfer and otherwise process personal information from our customers, employees and third parties with whom we conduct business, including names, accounts, driver license information, user IDs and passwords, and payment or transaction-related information. Additionally, we use our vehicles’ electronic systems to log information about each vehicle’s use, such as charge time, battery usage, geolocation, mileage and driving behavior, in order to aid it in vehicle diagnostics, repair and maintenance, as well as to help us customize and improve the driving and riding experience.
Accordingly, we are subject to or affected by a number of federal, state, local and international laws and regulations, as well as contractual obligations and industry standards, that impose certain obligations and restrictions with respect to data privacy and cybersecurity and govern our collection, storage, retention, protection, use, transmission, sharing, disclosure and other processing of personal information including that of our employees, customers and other third parties with whom we conduct business. These laws, regulations and standards may be interpreted and applied differently over time and from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and it is possible that they will be interpreted and applied in ways that may have a material and adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations. As we expand our global footprint, our risk profile changes, and we will need to manage against the varied applicable data protection rules and regulations in the context of the new jurisdictions, business models and market strategies. The global data protection landscape is rapidly evolving, and implementation standards and enforcement practices are likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. We may not be able to monitor and react to all developments in a timely manner. For example, at the international level, the EU adopted the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) , which became effective in May 2018, as well as the European Data Act, the EU Artificial Intelligence Act (the “AI Act”), and the Cyber Resilience Act in 2024. Canada adopted and continued to amend the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA”) in addition to applicable provincial laws. The United Arab Emirates adopted the Data Protection Law (“DPL”), which became in January 2022. Saudi Arabia enacted the Personal Data Protection Law (“PDPL”) which came into effect in September 2023. Similarly, China’s Data Security Law (“DSL”) and Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”) have been since 2021. Additionally, we are also subject to the data privacy laws of the UK, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (“UK GDPR”). Each of these regulations impose additional obligations on companies regarding the handling of personal data and provide certain individual privacy rights to persons whose data is collected. Compliance with existing, proposed and recently enacted laws and regulations (including implementation of the privacy and process called for under applicable laws and regulations) can be , and any to comply with these regulatory standards could subject us to legal and reputational risks.
For example, failure to comply with the GDPR can result in significant fines and other liability, including fines of up to EUR 20 million or four percent (4%) of global revenue, whichever is greater. European data protection authorities have already imposed fines for GDPR violations up to, in some cases, hundreds of millions of Euros. The cost of compliance, and the potential for fines and penalties for non-compliance, with the GDPR may have a significant adverse effect on our business and operations. While the UK GDPR currently imposes substantially the same obligations as the GDPR, the UK GDPR will not automatically incorporate changes to the GDPR going forward (which would need to be specifically incorporated by the UK government) and may deviate in a way that creates a risk of divergent parallel regimes and related uncertainty, along with the potential for increased compliance costs and risks for affected businesses. Legal developments in the European Economic Area (“EEA”), including rulings from the Court of Justice of the European Union and from various EU member state data protection authorities, have also created complexity and uncertainty regarding transfers of personal data from the EEA to the United States and other countries outside the EEA. Similar complexities and uncertainties also apply to transfers from the UK to third countries. While we have taken steps to mitigate the impact on us, the efficacy and longevity of these mechanisms remain uncertain. Additionally, we are monitoring our compliance obligations with a final rule adopted by the U.S. Department of Justice, which prohibits and restricts certain covered data transactions that result in the transfer or access to bulk U.S. sensitive personal data by countries of or covered persons, April 8, 2025, as well as a final rule adopted by the Bureau of Industry and Security that prohibits specific transactions involving the import or sale of connected vehicles and certain hardware and software with a sufficient nexus to China, applicable to vehicles from model year 2030. These regulations may impact our potential future business operations in China.
At the U.S. federal level, we are subject to, among other laws and regulations, the rules and regulations promulgated under the authority of the Federal Trade Commission (which has the authority to regulate and enforce against unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce, including with respect to data privacy and cybersecurity) (“FTC”) and the Gramm Leach Bliley Act (which regulates the confidentiality and security of customer information obtained by financial institutions, including non-banking financial institutions such as mortgage brokers, motor vehicle dealers, and payday lenders). Our financial services program, for example, will be subject to, among other applicable laws and regulations, the Safeguards Rule, as recently amended by the FTC (the “FTC Safeguards Rule”), which, among other things, requires non-banking financial institutions to design and implement safeguards to protect customer information, and the financial data collected as part of the financial services program consequently requires additional security and administrative controls. Additionally, there has been increasing regulatory scrutiny from the SEC with respect to adequately disclosing risks concerning cybersecurity and data privacy, which increases the risk of investigations into the cybersecurity practices, and related disclosures, of companies within its jurisdiction, which at a minimum can result in of management and of resources for targeted businesses. SEC cybersecurity disclosure rules (the “SEC Cybersecurity Disclosure Rules”) for public companies require disclosure regarding cybersecurity risk management (including the corporate board’s role in overseeing cybersecurity risks, management’s role and expertise in assessing and managing cybersecurity risks, and processes for assessing, identifying and managing cybersecurity risks) in annual reports. See Item 1C “Cybersecurity” included elsewhere in this Annual Report for further information.
At the U.S. state level, we are subject to laws and regulations such as the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020, collectively, the “CCPA”). The CCPA establishes a privacy framework for covered businesses, including an expansive definition of personal information and data privacy rights for California residents, including expanded rights with respect to certain sensitive personal information. The CCPA includes a framework with potentially severe statutory damages for violations and a private right of action for certain data breaches. The CCPA requires covered businesses to provide California residents with certain privacy-related disclosures and rights related to their personal information. As we expand our operations, the CCPA may increase our compliance costs and potential liability. The California Privacy Rights Act also established a state agency, the California Privacy Protection Agency, vested with the authority to implement and enforce the CCPA. Some observers have noted that the CCPA marked the beginning of a trend toward more stringent privacy legislation in the United States, and a number of other states have enacted or are in the process of enacting, or considering similar laws. Complian ce with these state statutes, other similar state or federal laws that may be enacted in the future, and other applicable data privacy and cybersecurity laws and regulations is a rigorous and time-intensive process, and we may be required to put in place additional mechanisms to comply with such laws and regulations, which could cause us to incur substantial costs or require us to change our business practices, including our data practices, in a manner to our business.
We post public privacy policies and other documentation regarding our collection, use, disclosure, and other processing of personal information. Although we endeavor to comply with our published policies and other documentation, we may at times fail to do so or may be perceived to have failed to do so. Moreover, despite our efforts, we may not be successful in achieving compliance if our employees, contractors, service providers, vendors or other third parties fail to comply with our published policies and documentation. Such failures could carry similar consequences or subject us to potential local, state and federal action if they are found to be deceptive, unfair or misrepresentative of our actual practices. Claims that we have violated individuals’ privacy rights or failed to comply with applicable privacy notices or applicable data privacy laws, regulations, standards, policies, or contractual obligations could, even if we are not found liable, be expensive and time-consuming to and could result in publicity that could our business.
Most jurisdictions have enacted laws requiring companies to notify individuals, regulatory authorities and other third parties of security breaches involving certain types of data. For example, laws in all 50 U.S. states generally require businesses to provide notice under certain circumstances to consumers whose personal information has been disclosed as a result of a breach. Such laws may be inconsistent or may change or additional laws may be adopted. In addition, our agreements with certain customers may require us to notify them in the event of a security breach. Furthermore, the SEC Cybersecurity Disclosure Rules require the disclosure of material cybersecurity incidents in a Form 8-K, generally within four business days of determining an incident is material. Additionally, upon discovery of an incident in which the unencrypted customer information of at least 500 consumers is acquired without authorization by the consumers to whom the information pertains, the FTC Safeguards Rule requires notifying the FTC as soon as possible, and no later than 30 days after discovery of such incident. Such mandatory disclosures are , could lead to publicity, or , and our customers confidence in the effectiveness of our security measures and could require us to expend significant capital and other resources to respond to or alleviate caused by the actual or perceived security .
We are also impacted by regulations obligating us to share vehicle repair-related information, including location information, with third parties, including repair shops and repair tool hardware developers, under what are commonly called “right-to-repair” laws. Other state, federal, and foreign jurisdictions are exploring expanding right-to-repair obligations in this area as well. Furthermore, some entities within the U.S. federal government, including certain members of Congress and the NHTSA, have focused attention on automotive cybersecurity issues and may in the future propose or implement regulations specific to automotive cybersecurity. In addition, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (“UNECE”) has introduced regulations governing connected vehicle cybersecurity in the EU which are mandatory for all new vehicle types from July 2022 and all new vehicles produced from July 2024. Similar regulations are also in effect, or expected to come into effect, in certain other international jurisdictions. These and other regulations could adversely affect our business in European or other markets, and if such regulations or other future regulations are inconsistent with our approach to automotive cybersecurity, we would be required to modify our systems to comply with such regulations, which would impose additional costs and delays and could expose us to potential liability to the extent our automotive cybersecurity systems and practices are with such regulations.
New products, services and business lines may face scrutiny from regulators as well. Any changes in laws, rules or regulations regulating artificial intelligence technologies could require us to expend significant resources to modify our products, services, or operations to facilitate compliance or remain competitive. As our engagement with artificial intelligence tools and technologies increases, we may be impacted by emerging artificial intelligence rules, regulations, and frameworks globally, including the AI Act and the EU Product Liability Directive (the “Directive”). This Directive extends the EU’s existing strict product liability regime to artificial intelligence technologies and artificial intelligence-enabled products, and facilitates civil claims in respect of harm caused by artificial intelligence. Other nascent data privacy and cybersecurity laws and regulations are still subject to a high degree of uncertainty as to their interpretation and application. If such laws and regulations are implemented, interpreted or applied in a manner inconsistent with our current or future practices or policies, or if we fail to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as well as contractual obligations, policies and industry standards, or to secure personal information, we could be subject to , enforcement actions and other proceedings, which could result in substantial , , , orders to change our business practices, and other liability as well as to our reputation and credibility, which could have a impact on revenues and profits. Any of the foregoing could materially affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
Risks Related to Our Employees and Human Resources
The loss of key employees or an inability to attract, retain and motivate qualified personnel may impair our ability to expand our business.
Our success is substantially dependent upon the continued service and performance of our senior management team and workforce. Our employees, including our senior management team, are generally at-will employees, and therefore may terminate employment with us at any time with no advance notice. We could lose some key employees, especially if we are unable to grant sufficient or competitive compensation, including equity awards and bonuses, or if the volatility of our stock price continues to increase.
Our future success also depends, in part, on our ability to continue to attract and retain highly skilled personnel. We have faced and continue to face potent competition for highly skilled workers in the United States, especially in California. As with any company with finite resources, there can be no guarantee that we will be able to attract such individuals or that the presence of such individuals will necessarily translate into our business success. Because we operate in a newly emerging industry, there may also be limited personnel available with relevant expertise or business experience, and such individuals may be subject to non-competition and other agreements that restrict their ability to work for us. This challenge may be amplified by our ongoing transition to full-scale, high-volume commercial vehicle manufacturing, where—despite significant progress in a short time—we continue to face complexities due to our relatively limited experience compared to established industry players, heightened by geopolitical volatility and market disruptions. Any failure to attract and retain key employees may materially and affect our business operations. Any by our management to effectively anticipate, implement and manage the changes required to sustain our growth would have a material effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
In addition, any workforce reduction plan may also be distracting to employees and management and may negatively impact our ability to continue to attract and retain highly skilled personnel. We have in the past reduced the size of our workforce, and have recently announced a workforce reduction plan in February 2026. Any such plan in the future may adversely affect our business operations, reputation, or ability to serve customers. The replacement of any members of our senior management team or other key employees could involve significant time and costs and may significantly delay or prevent the achievement of our business objectives.
On February 21, 2025, our former Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer, Peter Rawlinson, resigned from his positions and as a member of our board of directors (“Board of Directors” or “Board”). Our Board of Directors appointed our Chief Operating Officer, Marc Winterhoff, to serve as Interim CEO until a qualified replacement is found. Mr. Rawlinson is available as Strategic Technical Advisor to the Chairman of the Board through February 21, 2027.
We are currently conducting a search for a new CEO. Although we intend to hire a qualified candidate for CEO, no assurance can be given that we will be able to attract and retain a suitable CEO. An extended period of delay in hiring such candidate could potentially have an adverse effect on our operations or financial condition. Furthermore, in the event we are unable to transition seamlessly from our Interim CEO to a new CEO, or if a new CEO should unexpectedly prove to be unsuitable for our Company, the resulting disruption could have an adverse effect on our operations or financial condition or impede our ability to execute our strategic plan.
We will need to hire, retain, and train a significant number of employees for our business operations, and our business could be adversely affected by labor and union activities.
We will need to hire, retain, and train a significant number of employees to engage in full capacity commercial manufacturing operations and for us to scale commercial production and sales and service operations. There are various risks and challenges associated with hiring, retaining, training and managing a large workforce, such as establishing and maintaining efficient communication channels, procedures and rules of conduct, hiring an adequate number of experienced manufacturing, supply chain management and logistics managerial personnel and creating and maintaining an eff ective company culture. Although the area surrounding our AMP-1 facility in Casa Grande, Arizona and the area surrounding our AMP-2 facility in KAEC are home to highly trained workforces with experience in engineering and manufacturing, these workforces may not have significant experience with EV manufacturing, and related processes such as inventory management, logistics and quality. Many jobs will require significant training and we may need to spend significant resources to ensure employees obtain and adhere to such training. Further, competition for employees in the Casa Grande, Arizona area has increased and may continue to increase in the future, which may impact the ability or cost to hire in the area; this same competition for talent may eventually intensify in KAEC as well. In addition, as we progress in constructing our AMP-2 facility in Saudi Arabia, we will need to hire, retain, and train a significantly larger number of employees in the local region to fully support the facility’s manufacturing operations. Any to comply with local labor laws and customs could have an effect on our business or operations. If we are in hiring , retaining and training a workforce in a timely and cost- manner, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be affected.
Furthermore, although none of our United States or international based employees is currently represented by a labor union that we are aware of at this time, it is common throughout the automobile industry generally for many employees at automobile companies to belong to a union, which can result in higher employee costs and increased risk of work stoppages. Some unions may attempt and have announced to attempt to organize non-union automakers in the U.S., including us. Moreover, regulations in some jurisdictions outside of the U.S. mandate employee participation in industrial collective bargaining agreements, work councils, or similar activities with certain consultation rights with respect to the relevant companies’ operations, or companies are required to apply collective bargaining agreements, implement works councils or similar bodies with certain consultation rights related to the activities of the companies involved. In the event our employees seek to join or form a labor union, we could be subject to risks as we engage in an attempt to address such organizing or to finalize negotiations with any such union, including potential work slowdowns or stoppages, delays, and increased costs. Furthermore, we may be directly or indirectly dependent upon companies with unionized work forces, such as parts suppliers, construction contractors, and trucking and freight companies, and work stoppages or strikes organized by such unions could have a material impact on our business, financial condition, ability to expand our facilities, or results of operations. If a work occurs, it could the manufacture and sale of our products and have a material effect on our business, prospects, results of operations, or financial condition.
Misconduct by our employees and independent contractors during and before their employment with us could expose us to potentially significant legal liabilities, reputational harm or other damages to our business.
Many of our employees play critical roles in ensuring the safety and reliability of our vehicles and our compliance with relevant laws and regulations. Certain of our employees have access to sensitive information and proprietary technologies and know-how. While we have adopted codes of conduct for all of our employees and implemented detailed policies and procedures relating to intellectual property, proprietary information, and trade secrets, we cannot guarantee that our employees will always abide by these codes, policies, and procedures nor that the precautions we take to detect and prevent employee misconduct will always be effective. If any of our employees engage in any misconduct, illegal or suspicious activities, including but not limited to misappropriation or leakage of sensitive information, proprietary information, know-how or trade secrets, we and such employees could be subject to legal claims and liabilities and our reputation and business could be adversely affected as a result.
In addition, while we have screening procedures during the recruitment process, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to uncover misconduct of job applicants that occurred before we offered them employment, or that we will not be affected by legal proceedings against our existing or former employees as a result of their actual or alleged misconduct. Any negative publicity surrounding such cases, especially in the event that any of our employees is found to have committed any wrongdoing, could negatively affect our reputation and may have an adverse impact on our business.
Furthermore, we face the risk that our employees and independent contractors may engage in other types of misconduct or other illegal activity, such as intentional, reckless or negligent conduct that violates production standards, workplace health and safety regulations, fraud, abuse or consumer protection laws, other similar non-U.S. laws or laws that require the true, complete, and accurate reporting of financial information or data. It is not always possible to identify and deter misconduct by employees and other third parties, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to be in compliance with such laws or regulations. In addition, we are subject to the risk that a person or government could such or other , even if none occurred. If any such actions are instituted us, and we are not in ourselves or asserting our rights, those actions could have a significant impact, including, without , the imposition of significant civil, , and administrative , , monetary , , oversight and reporting obligations to of non-compliance, , other sanctions, contractual , reputational , profits and future earnings and of our operations, any of which could affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
Risks Related to Litigation and Regulation
Changes in U.S. trade policy, including the imposition of or uncertainties surrounding tariffs or revocation of normal trade relations and the resulting consequences, could adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
The U.S. government has adopted an evolving approach to trade policy and, in some cases, has attempted to renegotiate or terminate certain existing bilateral or multi-lateral trade agreements. The current U.S. presidential administration has issued executive orders to review U.S. trade policies, practices and agreements to address trade deficits and other economic security matters. It has also imposed, or proposed to impose, blanket import tariffs or tariffs on imports, in many cases significantly, including steel, aluminum, and certain vehicle parts and software, which have resulted in increased costs for imports and may cause shortages and delays in the supply of certain components, materials, tooling and equipment necessary to produce our vehicles. In response to these tariffs, a number of U.S. trading partners have imposed or threatened to impose retaliatory measures, including tariffs on U.S. products and enhanced export controls, which could increase the cost and complexity of exporting our vehicles to affected markets. For example, Canada has announced countermeasure tariffs on select U.S.-manufactured vehicles. Further, the current U.S. presidential administration has imposed tariffs on goods imported from China on top of existing tariffs, and has expanded its export and transfer restrictions on foreign companies and subsidiaries involving sensitive technology, which has resulted in uncertainty regarding the future of international trade between the U.S. and China. In response, China has imposed tariffs and implemented export restrictions on certain rare-earth minerals and semiconductor-related products, including microchips. recent negotiations, U.S.-China trade relations remain and uncertain, and there can be no assurance that further actions by the U.S., China or another country will not have an impact on our business, operations and access to products manufactured in China or elsewhere outside the U.S.
The exact scope of any such tariffs that may be ultimately implemented remains uncertain at this time. We cannot predict whether, or to what extent, international trade agreements may be altered, nor can we predict whether, or to what extent, duties, additional tariffs, export controls, or other trade restrictions will be modified or imposed by the United States or other countries. If we are unable to pass the costs of such tariffs on to our customer base or otherwise mitigate such costs, or if demand for our exported vehicles decreases due to the higher cost or preferences in foreign countries for domestically manufactured products, our results of operations could be materially adversely affected. Additionally, the threat of retaliatory tariffs and trade wars between the United States and foreign countries could further impede the transition to EVs, disrupt global supply chains, and delay the implementation of economic competitiveness policies. Further, while the administration has recently issued an executive order and announced other arrangements to reduce certain previously announced tariffs on automobiles and auto parts, there can be no assurance that there will not be further changes. Taken together, these uncertainties surrounding domestic and foreign tariffs and the resulting environment of trade practices could increase costs and our ability to obtain necessary inputs or sell our vehicles at prices customers are willing to pay, which could have a material effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”) creates a rebuttable presumption that any goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured in whole or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Administrative Region of China or that are produced by certain entities are prohibited from importation into the United States and are not entitled to entry. While we are not presently aware of any direct impacts these restrictions have on our supply chain, the UFLPA may materially and negatively impact our ability to import the goods and products we rely on to manufacture our products and operate our business. The UFLPA may further impact our supply chain and costs of goods as it may restrict the available supply of goods and products eligible for importation into the United States, including among other things, electronics assemblies and aluminum. As the United States government continues to investigate claims of forced labor in China, the enforcement of the UFLPA continues to evolve, making the potential for impacts on Chinese suppliers (and non-Chinese suppliers using supply chains extending into China) difficult to assess.
In 2022, in response to actions taken by Russia against Ukraine, the United States and other countries worldwide implemented significant economic sanctions, embargoes, financial restrictions, trade controls and other governmental measures and restrictions against Russia, Belarus, and certain related entities and persons. Additionally, risk of escalation or expansion of conflicts in the Middle East have introduced new uncertainties to trade relations and policies. The United States has enacted, or may enact in the future, federal regulations that significantly constrain trade relations with Russia, Belarus or other countries. Consequently, imports of certain products or merchandise originating from these jurisdictions may be subject to higher import duty rates. To the extent such products or merchandise are found in our cross-border supply chains and subject to higher duties, the suspension of normal trade relations with Russia, Belarus and other countries could increase our input costs, which could adversely impact our business and financial condition.
Although we are not aware of any company-related operations or activities in these jurisdictions, economic sanctions and other laws and regulations targeting these jurisdictions could disrupt our supply chains, impair our ability to compete in current or future markets, or otherwise subject us to potential liability. While we have implemented, or may implement in the future, certain procedures to facilitate compliance with applicable laws and regulations in connection with the sanctions and trade control programs around the globe related to Russia, Belarus or other countries, we cannot be assured that these procedures are always effective or that we, or third parties, many of whom we do not control, have complied with all laws or regulations in this regard. Failure by our employees, representatives, contractors, agents, intermediaries, or other third parties to comply with applicable laws and regulations could have negative consequences that could impact us, including reputational harm, government investigations, loss of export privileges, and penalties or . These economic sanctions and other restrictions continue to evolve, and the long-term potential impact on our operations and business remains unclear.
We are subject to laws and regulations that could impose substantial costs, legal prohibitions or unfavorable changes upon our operations or products, and any failure to comply with these laws and regulations, including as they evolve, could substantially harm our business and results of operations.
At various jurisdictional levels, we are or will be subject to complex and evolving environmental, manufacturing, health and safety laws and regulations, including laws relating to the use, handling, storage, recycling, disposal and human exposure to lithium-ion batteries and hazardous materials and with respect to constructing, expanding and maintaining our facilities. The costs of compliance, including remediating contamination, if any, for our properties and any changes to our operations mandated by new or amended laws, may be significant. We may also face unexpected delays in obtaining permits and approvals required by such laws in connection with our facilities, which could affect our ability to continue our operations. Such costs and delays may adversely impact our business prospects and operations. Furthermore, any violations of these laws may result in substantial fines and penalties, remediation costs, third party damages, or a suspension or cessation of our operations.
In addition, motor vehicles and associated service activities are subject to substantial regulation under international, federal, state and local laws. We have incurred, and expect to continue to incur, significant costs in complying with these regulations. Any failures to comply could result in significant expenses, delays or fines. In the United States, vehicles must meet or exceed all federally mandated motor vehicle safety standards to be certified under the federal regulations. Rigorous testing and the use of approved materials and equipment are among the requirements for achieving federal certification. The Lucid Air, the Lucid Gravity and any future vehicle programs, including the upcoming Midsize platform will be subject to such regulation under international, federal, state and local laws and standards. These regulations include those promulgated by the EPA, NHTSA, other federal agencies, various state agencies and boards; and compliance certification is required for each individual vehicle we manufacture for sale. These laws and standards are subject to change from time-to-time, and we could become subject to additional regulations in the future, which could increase the effort and expense of compliance. If compliance results in delays or substantial expenses, this could adversely affect our business. Laws and industrial standards for EVs continue to evolve, and we face risks associated with changes to these regulations, which could have an impact on the adoption of EVs.
We currently are, and expect to become, subject to laws and regulations applicable to the supply chain, manufacture, import, sale and service of automobiles in an increasing number of international jurisdictions. Applicable regulations in countries outside of the U.S., such as standards relating to vehicle safety, transportation of dangerous goods, fuel economy and emissions, battery recycling, among other things, are often materially different from requirements in the United States and also e volving. For example, the EU has enacted a battery regulation that affects Lucid vehicles and batteries delivered in Europe with increasing requirements for the durability, marking, supply chain transparency, and recycled content of the high-voltage batteries in our vehicles each year, among other requirements. Compliance with such regulations will require additional time and resources . This process may include official review and verification of our batteries and related documentation prior to market entry. There can be no assurance that we will be able to achieve foreign regulatory compliance in a timely manner and at our expected cost, or at all; and the costs of achieving international regulatory compliance or the failure to achieve international regulatory compliance could our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
We may face regulatory limitations on our ability to sell vehicles directly, which could materially and adversely affect our ability to sell our vehicles.
Our business plan includes the direct sale of vehicles to retail consumers, both at retail locations and over the internet. The laws governing licensing of dealers and sales of motor vehicles vary from state to state. Most states require a dealer license to sell new motor vehicles within the state, and many states prohibit manufacturers or their affiliates from becoming licensed dealers and directly selling new motor vehicles to retail consumers from within that state. In addition, most states require that we have a physical dealership location in the state before we can be licensed as a dealer. Currently, we are licensed as a motor vehicle dealer in several states. In some states, we have also opened or expect to open Lucid studios to educate and inform customers about our vehicles, but those Lucid studios will not actually transact in the sale of vehicles. The application of these state laws to our operations continues to be difficult to predict. Laws in some states have limited our ability to obtain dealer licenses from state motor vehicle regulators and may continue to do so.
We may face legal challenges to this distribution model. For example, in states where direct sales are not permitted, dealers and their lobbying organizations may raise complaints to the government or regulatory agencies that we are acting in the capacity of a dealer without a license. Alternatively, we have and may continue to initiate legal action against such states that prohibit direct sales, which may be protracted and expensive, and the results are difficult to predict. In some states, regulators may restrict or prohibit us from directly providing warranty repair service, or from contracting with third parties who are not licensed dealers to provide warranty repair service. Even if regulators decide to permit us to sell vehicles, such decisions may be challenged by dealer associations and others as to whether such decisions comply with applicable state motor vehicle industry laws. Further, even in jurisdictions where we believe applicable laws and regulations do not currently prohibit our direct sales model or where we have reached agreements with regulators, legislatures may impose additional limitations. Because the laws vary from state-to-state, our distribution model must be carefully established, and our sales and service processes must be continually monitored for compliance with the various state requirements, which change from time-to-time. Regulatory compliance and likely to the distribution model may add to the cost of our business.
We have in the past and may choose in the future, or we may be compelled, to undertake product recalls or take other actions, which could adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations, reputation and financial condition.
Product recalls may result in adverse publicity, damage our reputation and adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. For example, we have conducted several vehicle recalls due to a number of potential issues in the past and we may in the future voluntarily or involuntarily initiate additional recalls if any of our EVs or components (including our batteries) prove to be defective or noncompliant with applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards. If a large number of vehicles are the subject of a recall or if we are unable to obtain the necessary replacement parts, we may be unable to service and repair recalled vehicles for a significant period of time. These types of disruptions could our ability to fulfill existing contractual commitments or demand for our EVs and could also result in the of business to our competitors. Such , whether caused by systems or components engineered or manufactured by us or our suppliers, would involve significant expense, the possibility of lawsuits, and of management’s attention and other resources, which could affect our brand image in our target markets and our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
We are subject to legal proceedings, regulatory disputes and governmental inquiries that could cause us to incur significant expenses, divert our management’s attention, and adversely affect our business, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition.
From time-to-time, we may be subject to claims, lawsuits, government investigations and other proceedings involving product liability, consumer protection, competition and antitrust, intellectual property, data privacy, cybersecurity, securities, tax, labor and employment, health and safety, our direct distribution model, motor vehicle dealership licenses and state licensing laws, environmental claims, contractual and commercial disputes and other matters that could adversely affect our business, brand, reputation, results of operations, cash flows, financial condition, and the trading price of our common stock. These claims could be asserted against us by individuals, either acting individually or through class actions, by governmental entities in civil or criminal investigations and proceedings, or by other entities. For example, we are currently the subject of a class action filed against us and our former CEO, alleging of securities laws. We are also the subject of multiple shareholder derivative lawsuits of fiduciary duties and related certain of our former and current directors. For details regarding these legal proceedings, refer to Note 12 “Commitments and Contingencies” to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for more information.
Litigation and regulatory proceedings may be protracted an d expensive, and the results are difficult to predict. Additionally, our litigation and legal defense costs could be significant, even if we achieve favorable outcomes. Adverse outcomes with respect to litigation or any other legal proceedings may result in significant settlement costs or judgments, criminal and civil penalties and fines, or injunctive relief, including suspension or revocation of licenses to conduct business or other changes to our business practices, all of which could negatively affect our sales and revenue growth and adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition. See Part I, Item 3 “Legal Proceedings.”
We may become subject to product liability and warranty-related claims, which could harm our financial condition and liquidity if we are not able to successfully defend or insure against such claims.
We may become subject to product liability and warranty-related claims, which could harm our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. The automotive industry experiences significant product liability claims, and we face inherent risks of exposure to claims in the event our production vehicles do not perform or are claimed not to perform as expected or malfunction, resulting in property damage, personal injury or death. We also expect that, as is true for other automakers, our vehicles will be involved in crashes resulting in death or personal injury, and even if not caused by the failure of our vehicles, we may face product liability claims and adverse publicity in connection with such incidents. In addition, we may face claims arising from or related to , claimed or of new technologies that we expect to offer, including ADAS and AV features in our vehicles. See “— Risks Related to and Regulation — ADAS and autonomous vehicle technologies are subject to uncertain and evolving regulations. ” In addition, the battery packs that we produce make use of lithium-ion cells. On rare occasions, lithium-ion cells can rapidly release the energy they contain by venting smoke and flames in a manner that can ignite nearby materials as well as other lithium-ion cells. While we have designed our battery packs to passively contain a single cell’s release of energy without spreading to neighboring modules, there can be no assurance that a field or testing of our vehicles or other battery packs that we produce will not occur, in particular due to a high-speed crash. See “— Risks Related to Manufacturing and Supply Chain — Our vehicles make use of lithium-ion battery cells, which, if not appropriately managed and controlled, have been observed to catch fire or vent smoke and flame. ” In addition, although we equip our vehicles with systems designed to detect and vehicle occupants of such thermal events, there can be no assurance that such systems will function as designed or will provide vehicle occupants with sufficient, or any, in all circumstances. Any such events or of our vehicles, battery packs or systems could subject us to lawsuits, product or redesign efforts, all of which would be time-consuming and expensive. Furthermore, if our products contain design , manufacturing , or other in materials or workmanship that cause them to not conform to applicable express or implied warranties, or we are to service or repair vehicles within a reasonable period of time or number of repair attempts, we may be subject to of warranty, lemon law, and other consumer protection .
A successful product liability or warranty-related claim against us could result in a substantial monetary loss. Our risks in this area are particularly pronounced in light of the limited field experience of our vehicles. Moreover, a product liability or warranty-related claim against us or our competitors could generate substantial negative publicity about our vehicles and business and inhibit or prevent commercialization of our future vehicles, which would have material adverse effect on our brand, business, prospects and results of operations. Our insurance coverage might not be sufficient to cover all potential product liability and warranty-related claims, and insurance coverage may not continue to be available to us or, if available, may be at a significantly higher cost. Any lawsuit seeking significant monetary damages or other product liability or warranty-related claims may have a material adverse effect on our reputation, business and financial condition.
We may be exposed to delays, limitations and risks related to the environmental permits and other operating permits required to construct and operate our manufacturing facilities.
Construction and operation of an automobile manufacturing facility requires land use and environmental permits and other construction and operating permits from federal, state and local government entities. While we believe that we have the permits necessary to carry out and perform our current plans and operations at our Casa Grande, Arizona and Saudi Arabia manufacturing facilities based on our current target production capacity, we plan to expand our manufacturing facilities and construct additional manufacturing facilities over time to achieve a future target production capacity and will be required to apply for and secure various environmental, wastewater, hazardous materials, construction and land use permits and certificates of occupancy necessary for the commercial operation of such expanded and additional facilities. Delays, denials or restrictions on any of the applications for or granting of the permits to construct or operate our manufacturing facilities could adversely affect our ability to execute on our business plans and objectives based on our current target production capacity or our future target production capacity. See “— Risks Related to Manufacturing and Supply Chain — We have experienced and may in the future experience significant delays in the design, manufacture, launch and financing of our vehicles, including the Lucid Air, the Lucid Gravity and our upcoming Midsize platform, which could our business and prospects. ”
We are subject to various environmental, health and safety laws and regulations that could impose substantial costs on us and cause delays in expanding our production facilities.
Our operations are subject to international, federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations relating to the use, handling, storage, disposal of and exposure to hazardous materials and batteries. Environmental, health and safety laws and regulations are complex and evolving. For example, regulations regarding battery storage, recycling, disposal and processing are relatively new and the current lack of consistent standards may increase our cost of compliance. Moreover, we may be affected by future amendments to such laws or other new environmental, health and safety laws and regulations which may require a change in our operations, potentially resulting in a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. These laws can give rise to liability for administrative oversight costs, cleanup costs, property damage, bodily injury, fines and penalties. Capital and operating expenses needed to comply with environmental laws and regulations can be significant, and violations could result in substantial fines and penalties, third-party , of production or a cessation of our operations.
If contamination is discovered at properties we own or operate, properties we formerly owned or operated or properties to which we sent hazardous substances, we may be subject to liability under environmental laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, and Compensation and Liability Act, which can impose liability for the full amount of remediation-related costs without regard to fault, for the investigation and cleanup of contaminated soil and ground water, for building contamination and impacts to human health and for damages to natural resources. The costs of complying with environmental laws and regulations and any claims concerning noncompliance, or liability with respect to contamination in the future, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations.
Our operations are also subject to international, federal, state, and local workplace safety laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the rules promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which require compliance with various workplace safety requirements. These laws and regulations can give rise to liability for oversight costs, compliance costs, bodily injury (including workers’ compensation), fines, and penalties. Additionally, non-compliance could result in delay or suspension of production or cessation of operations. The costs required to comply with workplace safety laws can be significant, and non-compliance could adversely affect our production or other operations, including with respect to the production of our vehicles, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects and results of operations.
ADAS and autonomous vehicle technologies are subject to uncertain and evolving regulations.
We expect to introduce certain ADAS and AV technologies into our vehicles over time. ADAS and AV technologies are subject to regulatory uncertainty as the law evolves to catch up with the rapidly evolving nature of the technologies, all of which is beyond our control. There is a variety of international, federal and state regulations that may apply to self-driving and driver-assisted vehicles, which include many existing vehicle standards that assume a human driver will be controlling the vehicle at all times. Currently, there are no federal U.S. regulations in effect pertaining to the safety of self-driving vehicles; however, NHTSA has established recommended guidelines. Certain states have legal restrictions on self-driving vehicles, and many other states are considering them. In Europe, certain vehicle safety regulations apply to self-driving braking and steering systems, and certain treaties also restrict the legality of certain higher levels of self-driving vehicles. Both the U.S. and Europe are considering new rules for ADAS and AV technologies that are expected to come into effect in future years. Self-driving laws and regulations are expected to continue to evolve in numerous jurisdictions in the United States and foreign countries, which increases the likelihood of a patchwork of complex or conflicting regulations or may delay products or restrict self-driving features and availability, which could adversely affect our business. Our vehicles may not compliance with the regulatory requirements in some countries or jurisdictions for certification and rollout to consumers or changing regulatory requirements which could require us to redesign, modify or update our ADAS or AV hardware and related software systems. Any such requirements or could impose significant expense or and could our competitive position, which could affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
We are subject to U.S. and foreign anti-corruption, anti-money laundering and anti-boycott laws and regulations. We can face criminal liability and other serious consequences for violations, which can harm our business.
We are subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, the U.S. domestic bribery statute, the U.S. Travel Act, the USA PATRIOT Act and possibly other anti-bribery and anti-money laundering laws in countries in which we expect to conduct activities, as well as the antiboycott regulations of the U.S. Export Administration regulations. Anti-corruption laws are interpreted broadly and prohibit companies and their employees, agents, contractors and other collaborators from authorizing, promising, offering or providing, directly or indirectly, improper payments or anything else of value to recipients in the public or private sector. We can be held liable for the corrupt or other illegal activities of our employees, agents, contractors and other collaborators, even if we do not explicitly authorize or have actual knowledge of such activities. Anti-money laundering laws and regulations of the U.S. and other countries may require additional due diligence of counterparties and for us to provide ownership and financial information to counterparties. The antiboycott regulations of the U.S. Export Administration require us to to comply with the Arab League of Israel and report any requests to do so. Any of the laws and regulations described above may result in substantial civil and and , , the of export or import privileges, , tax , of contract and , reputational and other consequences.
We are subject to governmental export and import controls and laws that could subject us to liability if we are not in compliance with such laws.
Our vehicles and the equipment we use are subject to export control, import and economic sanctions laws and regulations, including the U.S. Export Administration Regulations, U.S. Customs regulations and various economic and trade sanctions regulations administered by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. Exports of our vehicles and technology must be made in compliance with these laws and regulations. If we fail to comply with these laws and regulations, we and certain of our employees could be subject to substantial civil or criminal penalties, including the possible loss of export or import privileges; fines, which may be imposed on us and responsible employees or managers; and, in extreme cases, the incarceration of responsible employees or managers. In addition, our existing and future international operations for the reassembly or manufacture of our vehicles may subject us to additional constraints under applicable export and import controls and laws.
In addition, changes to our vehicles, or changes in applicable export control, import or economic sanctions laws and regulations, may create delays in the introduction and sale of our vehicles and solutions or, in some cases, prevent the export or import of our vehicles to certain countries, governments, or persons altogether. Any change in export, import, or economic sanctions laws and regulations, shift in the enforcement or scope of existing laws and regulations or change in the countries, governments, persons or technologies targeted by such laws and regulations could also result in decreased use of our vehicles, as well decreasing our ability to export or market our vehicles to potential customers. Any decreased use of our vehicles or limitation on our ability to export or market our vehicles could adversely affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
A failure to properly comply with foreign trade zone laws and regulations could increase the cost of our duties and tariffs.
We have established a foreign trade zone with respect to certain of our facilities in Casa Grande, Arizona, through qualification with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Materials received in a foreign trade zone are not subject to certain U.S. duties or tariffs until the material enters U.S. commerce. We expect to benefit from the adoption of a foreign trade zone by reduced duties, deferral of certain duties and tariffs, and reduced processing fees, which we expect to help us realize a reduction in duty and tariff costs. However, the operation of our foreign trade zone requires compliance with applicable regulations, including with respect to the physical security of the foreign trade zone, and continued support of U.S. Customs and Border Protection with respect to the foreign trade zone program. If we are unable to maintain the qualification of our foreign trade zone, or if foreign trade zones are limited or unavailable to us in the future, our duty and tariff costs could increase, which could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
Risks Related to Intellectual Property
We may fail to adequately obtain, maintain, enforce, defend and protect our intellectual property and may not be able to prevent third parties from unauthorized use of our intellectual property and proprietary technology. If we are unsuccessful in any of the foregoing, our competitive position could be harmed and we could be required to incur significant expenses to enforce our rights.
Our ability to compete effectively is dependent in part upon our ability to obtain, maintain, enforce, defend and protect our intellectual property and proprietary technology. We may not be able to prevent third parties from unauthorized use of our intellectual property and proprietary technology, which could harm our business and competitive position. We establish and protect our intellectual property and proprietary technology through a combination of licensing agreements, third-party nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements and other contractual rights, as well as through patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret laws in the United States and other jurisdictions. Monitoring unauthorized use of our intellectual property is costly and challenging, and the steps we have taken or will take to prevent infringement, misappropriation and other violations may not be successful. our efforts to obtain and protect intellectual property rights, there can be no assurance that these protections will be available in all cases or will be adequate to prevent our competitors or other third parties from copying, reverse engineering or otherwise obtaining and using our technology or products or seeking court declarations that they do not , or otherwise our intellectual property. to obtain, maintain, enforce, and protect our intellectual property could result in our competitors offering identical or similar products, potentially resulting in the of our competitive and a decrease in our revenue which would affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
The measures we take to obtain, maintain, protect, defend and enforce our intellectual property, including preventing unauthorized use by third parties, may not be effective for various reasons, including the following:
• any trademark or patent applications we file may not result in the issuance of trademarks or patents;
• we may not be the first inventor of the subject matter to which we have filed a particular patent application, and we may not be the first party to file such a patent application;
• the claims under any of our issued patents may not be broad enough to (i) protect our inventions and proprietary technology nor (ii) prevent third parties from creating, developing, or implementing technologies that are similar to ours or offer similar performance;
• our issued patents may be challenged or invalidated by our competitors or other third parties;
• patents have a finite term, and competitors and other third parties may offer identical or similar products after the expiration of our patents that cover such products;
• our employees, contractors or business partners may breach their confidentiality, non-disclosure and non-use obligations;
• competitors and other third parties may independently develop technologies that are the same or similar to ours;
• the intellectual property rights of others could also bar us from licensing and exploiting any patents that issue from our pending applications;
• the costs associated with enforcing patents or other intellectual property rights, or confidentiality and invention assignment agreements may make enforcement impracticable; and
• competitors and other third parties may circumvent or otherwise design around our patents or other intellectual property.
Patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret laws vary significantly throughout the world. The laws of some foreign countries, including countries in which our products are sold, may not be as protective of intellectual property rights as those in the United States, and mechanisms for obtaining and enforcing intellectual property rights may be inadequate. Therefore, our intellectual property may not be as strong or as easily obtained or enforced outside of the United States. Further, policing the unauthorized use of our intellectual property in foreign jurisdictions may be difficult. In addition, third parties may seek to challenge, invalidate or circumvent our patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets or other intellectual property, or applications for any of the foregoing, which could permit our competitors or other third parties to develop and commercialize products and technologies that are the same or similar to ours.
While we have registered and applied for trademarks in an effort to protect our brand and goodwill with customers, competitors or other third parties have in the past and may in the future oppose our trademark applications or otherwise challenge our use of the trademarks and other brand names in which we have invested. Such oppositions and challenges can be expensive and may adversely affect our ability to maintain the goodwill gained in connection with a particular trademark. In addition, we may lose our trademark rights if we are unable to submit specimens of use by the applicable deadline to perfect such trademark rights. For example, in June 2024, we reached an agreement with Gravity, Inc. to settle a claim before the USPTO that opposed and requested cancellation of our trademark application and registration for the use of “Gravity.”
It is our policy to enter into confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with our employees and contractors that have developed material intellectual property for us, but these agreements may not be self-executing and may not otherwise adequately protect our intellectual property, particularly with respect to conflicts of ownership relating to work product generated by the employees and contractors. Furthermore, we cannot be certain that we have entered into these agreements with every such employee and contractor, that these agreements will not be breached or that third parties will not gain access to our trade secrets, know-how or other proprietary technology. Third parties may also independently develop the same or substantially similar proprietary technology. Monitoring unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult and costly, as are the steps we have taken or will take to prevent misappropriation.
We have licensed and plan to further license patents and other intellectual property from third parties, including, but not limited to, suppliers and service providers, and we may face claims that our use of this in-licensed intellectual property infringes, misappropriates or otherwise violates the intellectual property rights of third parties. In such cases, we will seek indemnification from our licensors. However, our rights to indemnification may be unavailable or insufficient to cover our costs and losses. Furthermore, disputes may arise with our licensors regarding the intellectual property subject to, and any of our rights and obligations under, any license or other commercial agreement. The resolution of such disputes could narrow what we believe to be the scope of our rights to the relevant intellectual property or increase what we believe to be our financial or other obligations under the relevant agreement. If we are unable to renew our key license or other intellectual property-related agreements on acceptable terms, or our current and future licensors conclude that we have materially our obligations under our license agreements and such license agreements, we may the legal right to use some of the intellectual property we employ to manufacture certain products or only be to maintain such right at a substantially higher cost. In some circumstances, we may not have the right to control the maintenance, , preparation, filing, enforcement, defense or of patents and patent applications that we license from third parties and are reliant on our licensors to do so. We cannot be certain that activities such as patent maintenance and by our licensors have been or will be conducted consistent with our interests or in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, or will result in valid and enforceable patents and other intellectual property rights. It is possible that our licensors’ proceedings or defense activities may be less vigorous than had we conducted them ourselves or may not be conducted in accordance with our interests.
To prevent unauthorized use of our intellectual property, it may be necessary to prosecute actions for infringement, misappropriation or other violation of our intellectual property against third parties. Any such action may be time-consuming and could result in significant costs and diversion of our resources and management’s attention, and there can be no assurance that we will be successful in any such action. Furthermore, many of our current and potential competitors have the ability to dedicate substantially greater resources to enforce their intellectual property rights than we do. Accordingly, despite our efforts, we may not be able to prevent third parties from infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating our intellectual property. Any of the foregoing could affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
We may be sued by third parties for alleged infringement, misappropriation or other violation of their intellectual property, which could be time-consuming and costly and result in significant legal liability.
There are considerable issued patents, pending patent applications, and other intellectual property development, ownership, and activity in our industry. Companies, organizations and individuals, including our competitors, may hold or obtain patents, trademarks or other intellectual property that would prevent, limit or interfere with our ability to make, use, develop, sell, lease, market or otherwise exploit our vehicles, components or other technology, which could make it more difficult for us to operate our business. Our success depends in part on not infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating the intellectual property of third parties. From time-to-time, we may receive communications from third parties, including our competitors, alleging that we are infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating their intellectual property or otherwise asserting their rights and urging us to take licenses, and we may be found to be , or otherwise such rights. There can be no assurance that we can mitigate the risk of potential suits or other legal demands by our competitors or other third parties. Patent and other types of intellectual property can involve complex factual and legal , and their outcome is uncertain. Even if we believe such are without merit, a court of competent jurisdiction could hold that such third-party intellectual property is valid, enforceable and , which could affect our ability to commercialize our products or technologies. Accordingly, we may consider entering into license agreements with respect to such rights, although no assurance can be given that such licenses can be obtained on acceptable terms or at all or that will not occur, and such licenses and associated could significantly increase our operating expenses. We may be of the intellectual property and other proprietary rights of third parties that may cover some or all of our products or technologies. Any or could cause us to incur significant expenses and, if asserted it, could have effects on our business, including requiring that it:
• pay substantial damages, including treble damages for willful infringement, or ongoing royalty payments;
• cease developing, selling, leasing, using or incorporating certain components into vehicles or offering goods or services that incorporate or use the asserted intellectual property;
• seek a license from the owner of the asserted intellectual property, which license may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all;
• comply with other unfavorable terms; or
• establish and maintain alternative branding for our products and services.
If any of our customers or indemnitees are alleged to have infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated any third-party intellectual property, we would in general be required to defend or settle the litigation on their behalf. In addition, if we are unable to obtain licenses or modify our products or technologies to make them non-infringing, we may have to refund a portion of license fees paid to us and terminate those agreements, which could further exhaust our resources. In addition, we may pay substantial settlement amounts or royalties on future product sales to resolve claims or litigation, whether or not legitimately or successfully asserted against us. Even if we were to prevail in the actual or potential or us, any claim or regarding our intellectual property could be and time-consuming and the attention and resources of our management and key employees from our business operations. Such , with or without merit, could also cause potential customers to refrain from purchasing our products or otherwise cause us reputational and publicity.
Furthermore, many of our employees were previously employed by other automotive companies or by suppliers to automotive companies, or related industries. We may be subject to claims that we or our employees have inadvertently or otherwise used or disclosed trade secrets or other proprietary information of these employees’ former employers. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these claims. If we fail in defending such claims, in addition to paying monetary damages, we may be enjoined from using certain technology, product, services, or knowledge or, we may lose valuable intellectual property or employees. A loss of key employees, our trade secrets, or our other work product could or prevent our ability to commercialize our products, which could our business. Even if we are in these , could result in substantial costs and demand on management resources. Any of the foregoing could materially affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
Some of our products contain open-source software, which may pose particular risks to our proprietary software, products and services in a manner that could harm our business.
We use open-source software, available from third parties, in our products and anticipate using open-source software in the future. Some open-source software licenses require those who distribute open-source software as part of their own software product to publicly disclose all or part of the source code to such software product or to make available any derivative works of the open-source code on unfavorable terms or at no cost, and we may be subject to such terms. The terms of many open-source licenses to which we are subject have not been interpreted by U.S. or foreign courts, and there is a risk that open-source software licenses could be construed in a manner that imposes unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to provide or distribute our products or services. Any actual or claimed requirement to disclose our proprietary source code or pay damages for breach of contract could harm our business and could help third parties, including our competitors, develop products and services that are similar to or better than ours. While we monitor our use as well as our third-party software suppliers’ use of open-source software and compliance with open-source licenses and try to ensure that none is used in a manner that would require us to our proprietary source code or that would otherwise the terms of an open-source license, such use could occur or be claimed to have occurred. Additionally, we could face from third parties ownership of, or demanding release of, the open-source software or derivative works that we developed using such software, which could include our proprietary source code, or otherwise seeking to enforce, or non-compliance with the terms of the applicable open-source license. These could result in and could require us to make our proprietary source code freely available, purchase a license or offering the products or services unless and until we can re-engineer them to avoid , which may be a and time-consuming process, and we may not be to complete the re-engineering process .
Additionally, the use of certain open-source software can lead to greater risks than use of third-party commercial software, as open-source licensors generally do not provide warranties or controls on the origin of software or other contractual protections regarding infringement claims or the quality of the code, including with respect to security vulnerabilities. Moreover, some open-source projects have known security and other vulnerabilities and architectural instabilities, or are otherwise subject to security attacks due to their wide availability, and are provided on an “as-is” basis. There is typically no support available for open-source software, and we cannot ensure that the authors of such open-source software will implement or push updates to address security risks or will not abandon further development and maintenance. Many of the risks associated with the use of open-source software, such as the lack of warranties or assurances of title or performance, cannot be eliminated, and could, if not properly addressed, negatively affect our business. Any of these risks could be difficult to eliminate or manage and, if not addressed, could have a material effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
Risks Related to Financing and Strategic Transactions
We will require additional capital to support business growth, and this capital might not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all.
We have funded our operations since inception primarily through equity and debt financings. We anticipate that we will continue to raise additional funds through equity, equity-linked or debt financings. Our business is capital-intensive, and we expect the costs and expenses associated with our planned operations will continue to increase in the near term. We do not expect to achieve positive cash flow from operations for several years, if at all. In addition, we have settled, and we expect to settle, tax withholding obligations in connection with vesting of the restricted stock units granted to certain employees through “net settlement,” i.e., by remitting the Company’s cash to satisfy the tax withholding obligation and simultaneously withholding a number of the vested shares on each vesting date with a value equal to that remitted cash. The amount of the tax withholding due on each vesting date will be based on the fair value of our common stock on such vesting date. Depending on the fair value of our common stock and the number of restricted stock units vesting on any applicable vesting date, such net settlement could require us to expend substantial funds to satisfy tax withholding.
Our plan to continue the commercial production of our vehicles and grow our business is dependent upon the timely availability of funds and further investment in design, engineering, component procurement, testing, and the build-out of manufacturing capabilities. For example, as of December 31, 2025, pursuant to the terms of the agreements we entered into in connection with the supply of lithium-ion battery cells, we have remaining minimum purchase commitments of an aggregate of approximately $2.56 billion of lithium-ion battery cells using the current base prices, which could vary period-to-period primarily as a result of changes in raw material indexes. In addition, the fact that we have a limited operating history means that we have limited historical data on the demand for our vehicles. As a result, our future capital requirements are uncertain, and actual capital requirements may be greater than what we currently anticipate.
If we raise additional funds through further issuances of equity or equity-linked securities, our stockholders could experience significant dilution, and any new equity securities we issue could have rights, preferences and privileges superior to those of holders of our common stock. Any debt financing in the future could involve additional restrictive covenants relating to our capital raising activities and other financial and operational matters, which may make it more difficult for us to obtain additional capital and to pursue business opportunities, including potential acquisitions.
We may not be able to obtain additional financing on terms favorable to us, if at all. Our ability to obtain such financing could be adversely affected by a number of factors, including general conditions in the global economy and in the global financial markets, including volatility and disruptions in the capital and credit markets, including as a result of inflation, bank closures and liquidity concerns at financial institutions, the risk of a global economic recession or other downturn, interest rate changes, global or regional conflicts or other geopolitical events, or investor acceptance of our business model. These factors may make the timing, amount, terms and conditions of such financing unattractive or unavailable to us. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing or financing on terms to us, when we require it, we will have to significantly reduce our spending, or our planned activities or substantially change our corporate structure, and we might not have sufficient resources to conduct or support our business as projected, which would have a material effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
We may not be able to realize the anticipated benefits of our agreements with Aston Martin, Uber, and Nuro.
In June 2023, we entered into the Implementation Agreement with Aston Martin under which we and Aston Martin have established a long-term strategic technology arrangement. On November 6, 2023, pursuant to the terms of the Implementation Agreement, integration and supply arrangements became effective, under which we will provide Aston Martin access to our powertrain, battery system, and software technologies, work with Aston Martin to integrate our powertrain and battery components with Aston Martin’s battery EV chassis, and supply powertrain and battery components to Aston Martin. However, we may not be able to realize the anticipated benefits of this agreement if we experience delays, fail to successfully integrate our powertrain and battery components with Aston Martin’s vehicles, or fail to enter into a long form supply agreement on terms acceptable to us, or if we experience delays or fail to deliver the components ordered by Aston Martin. See Item 1 “Business” and Note 16 “Related Party Transactions” to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for more information.
In July 2025, we entered into the Vehicle Production Agreement (“VPA”) with Uber under which Uber and its designated fleet operators have agreed to purchase a minimum commitment of 20,000 Lucid Gravity Plus vehicles over a six-year period following the start of production. We will collaborate with Nuro to install autonomous driving software in Lucid Gravity vehicles, to enable Uber and its designated fleet operators to operate the vehicles as robotaxis with Level 4 autonomy . See Note 9 “Stockholders’ Equity” to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for more information.
We may not be able to realize the anticipated benefits of the VPA if we fail to meet certain volume and other requirements and specifications with respect to the Lucid Gravity Plus vehicles, including continued production of the base Lucid Gravity vehicles, meeting certain quality thresholds, and timely fulfillment of orders for the Lucid Gravity Plus vehicles. In addition, we will depend on Nuro to meet its requirements in order to fulfill some of these conditions.
Any such delay or failure for any reason, including financial distress, insolvency or disruptions in operations experienced by our partners or for any other reasons beyond our control, may have an adverse effect on our brand and reputation, and our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.
The accounting method for reflecting the Convertible Senior Notes on our consolidated balance sheet, accruing interest expense for the Convertible Senior Notes and reflecting the underlying shares of our common stock in our reported diluted earnings per share may adversely affect our reported earnings and financial condition.
In August 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board published an Accounting Standards Update, which we refer to as ASU 2020-06, which simplifies certain of the accounting standards that apply to convertible debt such as the Convertible Senior Notes. ASU 2020-06 will be effective for SEC-reporting entities for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2021 (or, in the case of smaller reporting companies, December 15, 2023), including interim periods within those fiscal years. However, early adoption is permitted in certain circumstances for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020, including interim periods within those fiscal years. We adopted ASU 2020-06 for the year ended December 31, 2021, including interim periods within that fiscal year.
In accordance with ASU 2020-06, we accounted for the issuance of the Convertible Senior Notes as a liability on our balance sheets, with the initial carrying amount equal to the principal amount of the Convertible Senior Notes, net of issuance costs. The issuance costs will be treated as a debt discount for accounting purposes, which will be amortized into interest expense over the term of the Convertible Senior Notes. As a result of this amortization, the interest expense that we expect to recognize for the Convertible Senior Notes for accounting purposes will be greater than the cash interest payments we will pay on the Convertible Senior Notes, which will result in a higher reported loss.
In addition, the shares underlying the Convertible Senior Notes will be reflected in our diluted earnings per share using the “if converted” method, in accordance with ASU 2020-06. Under that method, diluted earnings per share would generally be calculated assuming that all the Convertible Senior Notes were converted solely into shares of common stock at the beginning of the reporting period, unless the result would be anti-dilutive. The application of the if-converted method may reduce our reported diluted earnings per share, and accounting standards may change in the future in a manner that may adversely affect our diluted earnings per share.
Furthermore, if any of the conditions to the convertibility of the Convertible Senior Notes is satisfied, then we may be required under applicable accounting standards to reclassify the liability carrying value of the Convertible Senior Notes as a current, rather than a long-term liability. This reclassification could be required even if no noteholders convert their Convertible Senior Notes and could materially reduce our reported working capital.
Servicing our current and future debt and potential payment obligations, including under the terms of our Convertible Senior Notes and Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, may restrict our flexibility in operating our business and require a significant amount of cash, and we may not have sufficient cash flow from our business to pay our indebtedness or satisfy our payment obligations.
We issued $2.0 billion principal amount of our 1.25% convertible senior notes due 2026 (the “2026 Notes”) in December 2021, issued $1.1 billion principal amount of our 5.00% convertible senior notes due 2030 (the “2030 Notes”) in April 2025, issued $975.0 million principal amount of our 7.00% convertible senior notes due 2031 (the “2031 Notes”) in November 2025, and have entered into several credit facilities since 2022. Concurrent with the 2030 Notes offering, we repurchased $1,052.5 million principal amount of the 2026 Notes, reducing its remaining principal amount to $960.0 million. Concurrent with the 2031 Notes offering, we repurchased $755.7 million principal amount of the 2026 Notes, further reducing its remaining principal amount to $204.3 million. See Note 6 “Debt” to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for further information on our outstanding debt obligations. Our ability to make scheduled payments of the principal of, to pay interest on, or to refinance our indebtedness from time-to-time depends on our future performance, which is subject to economic, financial, competitive and other factors beyond our control.
Noteholders may, subject to a limited exception, require us to repurchase their Convertible Senior Notes following a fundamental change at a cash repurchase price generally equal to the principal amount of the Convertible Senior Notes to be repurchased, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any. Holders of the 2031 Notes may also require us to repurchase their 2031 Notes on November 1, 2029 at a cash optional repurchase price equal to the principal amount of the 2031 Notes to be repurchased. In addition, upon conversion, we will satisfy part or all of our conversion obligation in cash unless we elect to settle conversions solely in shares of our common stock. We may not have sufficient available cash or be able to obtain financing at the time we are required to repurchase the Convertible Senior Notes or pay any cash amounts due upon conversion. In addition, applicable law, regulatory authorities and the agreements governing our other indebtedness, such as the covenants in the ABL Credit Facility and Certificate of Designations, may restrict our ability to repurchase the Convertible Senior Notes or pay any cash amounts due upon conversion. Our failure to repurchase the Convertible Senior Notes or pay any cash amounts due upon conversion when required will constitute a default under the indentures of such Convertible Senior Notes. A under the indentures of such Convertible Senior Notes or the fundamental change itself could also lead to a under agreements governing our other indebtedness, which may result in that other indebtedness becoming immediately payable in full. We may not have sufficient funds to all amounts due under the other indebtedness and the Convertible Senior Notes.
In addition, under the loan agreement entered into with Saudi Industrial Development Fund (“SIDF”), a related party of the Public Investment Fund (“PIF”), which is an affiliate of Ayar Third Investment Company, the controlling stockholder of the Company (“Ayar”), in February 2022 (as subsequently amended, the “SIDF Loan Agreement”), the SAR 1.9 billion credit facility with Gulf International Bank (“GIB”) maturing in February 2028 (the “2025 GIB Credit Facility”), five-year senior secured asset-based revolving credit facility (the “ABL Credit Facility”), and $750.0 million five-year unsecured delayed draw term loan credit facility (as amended to increase the aggregate principal to $1.98 billion in November 2025, the “DDTL Credit Facility”), we are subject to customary affirmative and negative covenants regarding our business and operations, including limitations on our ability to, among other things, pay dividends, incur debt, create liens and encumbrances, redeem or repurchase stock, dispose of assets (including dispositions of material intellectual property), consummate acquisitions or other investments, prepay certain debt, engage in transactions with affiliates, engage in certain sale and leaseback transactions, consummate mergers and other fundamental changes, enter in to restrictive agreements or modify their organizational documents.
In March 2024, we issued 100,000 shares of our Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Series A Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock”) and in August 2024, we issued 75,000 shares of our Series B Convertible Preferred Stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Series B Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock”, together with the Series A Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, the “Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock”). The holders of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock have the right to receive payment in cash upon a mandatory conversion or redemption at our option, or upon the occurrence of a fundamental change (as defined in the Certificate of Designations), if certain liquidity conditions are not satisfied. In general, we are entitled to exercise a mandatory conversion right regarding the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock to convert into shares of common stock after the third anniversary of the date of original issuance if the daily VWAP (as defined in the Certificate of Designations) has been at least 200% of the Conversion Price (as defined in Note 8 “Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock” to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report) for at least twenty (20) trading days (whether or not consecutive) during any thirty (30) consecutive trading day period (including the last day of such period), and we are entitled to redeem all or any portion of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock on or after the fifth anniversary of the date of original issuance at a redemption price specified in the Certificate of Designations. The holders of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock also have the right to receive certain Minimum Consideration (as defined in Note 8 “Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock” to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report) upon a mandatory conversion, optional redemption, fundamental change or event. While we largely can control the occurrence of such events, if we are required to cash settle any of these obligations as a result of the liquidity conditions not being met, the amount of such cash settlement is subject to factors beyond our control and we cannot presently predict the amount of such cash settlement, which increases over time is not subject to any cap or . A requirement to cash settle any obligations in relation to the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock may have a material effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. See “— The issuance of additional shares of our common stock or other equity or equity-linked securities, including upon conversion, optional redemption or repurchase of convertible securities, or sales of a significant portion of our common stock, could the market price of our common stock. ”
Our business may not generate cash flow from operations in the future sufficient to service our debt, our obligations under the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock and make necessary capital expenditures. If we are unable to generate such cash flow, we may be required to adopt one or more alternatives, such as selling assets, restructuring debt or preferred stock or obtaining additional debt financing or equity capital on terms that may be onerous or highly dilutive. Our ability to refinance any current or future indebtedness or preferred stock will depend on the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. Our obligations to the holders of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock could also limit our ability to obtain additional financing, which could have an adverse effect on our financial condition. We may not be able to engage in future financing on desirable terms, which could result in a default on our debt obligations. In addition, our existing debt agreements contain, and any of our future debt agreements may contain restrictive covenants that may prohibit us from selling assets, restructuring debt or preferred stock or obtaining additional debt financing or equity capital, which may make it more for us to obtain additional capital to pursue business , including potential acquisitions or . Our to comply with these covenants could result in an event of which, if not cured or waived, could result in the acceleration of our debt, and may limit our ability to obtain additional financing, which in turn may have an effect on our cash flows and liquidity.
Further, shares of our common stock are subordinate in right of payment to all of our current and future debt and Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock. We cannot assure that there would be any remaining funds for any distribution to our stockholders after the payment of all of our debt or, in the case of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, payment of all of our obligations upon liquidation or, in certain limited circumstances where cash settlement is required, our obligations upon mandatory conversion, optional redemption or a fundamental change. See “— We may be unable to raise the funds necessary to pay the cash amounts due upon mandatory conversion, redeem our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock or repurchase the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock upon a fundamental change .”
In addition, our indebtedness and our obligations under our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, combined with our other existing and future financial obligations and contractual commitments, could have other important consequences. For example, it could:
• make us more vulnerable to adverse changes in general U.S. and worldwide economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation;
• limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and our industry;
• place us at a disadvantage compared to our competitors who have less debt or other obligations;
• limit our ability to borrow or raise additional amounts to fund acquisitions, for working capital and for other general corporate purposes; and
• make an acquisition of our company less attractive or more difficult.
Any of these factors could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, if we incur additional indebtedness or issue additional Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, the risks related to our business and our ability to service or repay our indebtedness would increase.
We have incurred and may still incur substantially more debt.
We and our subsidiaries have incurred and may need to incur substantial additional debt in the future, subject to the restrictions contained in our debt instruments, some of which may be secured debt. The ABL Credit Facility, the certificate of designations of Series A Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock (the “Series A Certificate of Designations”) and the certificate of designations of the Series B Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock (the “Series B Certificate of Designations”) (together, the “Certificate of Designations”), impose certain restrictions on our ability to incur additional debt, but we are not restricted under the terms of the indentures governing our Convertible Senior Notes from incurring additional debt, securing existing or future debt, recapitalizing our debt or taking a number of other actions that could have the effect of diminishing our ability to make payments on our Convertible Senior Notes when due.
The conditional conversion feature of the Convertible Senior Notes, if triggered, may adversely affect our financial condition and operating results.
For the 2026 Notes, before the close of business on the business day immediately before September 15, 2026, noteholders will have the right to convert their 2026 Notes upon the occurrence of certain events, and they may elect to convert their 2026 Notes regardless of the occurrence of such events from and after September 15, 2026 until the close of business on the second scheduled trading day immediately before December 15, 2026. For the 2030 Notes, before the close of business on the business day immediately before January 1, 2030, noteholders will have the right to convert their 2030 Notes upon the occurrence of certain events, and they may elect to convert their 2030 Notes regardless of the occurrence of such events from and after January 1, 2030 until the close of business on the second scheduled trading day immediately before April 1, 2030. For the 2031 Notes, before the close of business on the business day immediately before August 1, 2031, noteholders will have the right to convert their 2031 Notes upon the occurrence of certain events, and they may elect to convert their 2031 Notes regardless of the occurrence of such events from and after August 1, 2031 until the close of business on the second scheduled trading day immediately before November 1, 2031. If holders of the Convertible Senior Notes elect to convert their notes, unless we elect to satisfy our conversion obligation by delivering solely shares of our common stock, we would be required to settle a portion or all of our conversion obligation through the payment of cash, which could adversely affect our liquidity. In addition, in certain circumstances, such as conversion by holders or redemption, we could be required under applicable accounting rules to reclassify all or a portion of the outstanding principal of the Convertible Senior Notes as a current rather than long-term liability, which would result in a material reduction of our net working capital.
The holders of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock are entitled to vote on an as-converted to common stock basis and have rights to approve certain actions, which reduces the relative voting power of the holders of our common stock.
The holders of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock are entitled to vote, on an as-converted basis together with holders of our common stock, the number of votes (subject to a voting cap in accordance with Nasdaq listing rules) equal to the number of whole shares of common stock into which the shares of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock held by such holder are convertible on the record date for determining stockholders entitled to vote on such matter, which reduces the relative voting power of our common stockholders.
In addition, as long as at least 10% of the aggregate number of shares of the Series A and Series B Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock originally issued remain outstanding, respectively, and subject to certain other conditions, holders of such Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock are entitled to a separate class vote with respect to, among other things, amendments to our organizational documents that have an adverse effect on the respective Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, authorizations or issuances by us of capital stock that ranks senior or equal to the respective Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock with respect to dividends or distributions on liquidation or the terms of which provide for cash dividends (other than the common stock), winding-up or dissolution, and decreases in the number of authorized shares of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock.
As a result of these consent and voting rights of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, holders of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock have significant power to influence the outcome over any matter submitted for the vote of the holders of our common stock and to influence certain matters affecting our governance and capitalization.
Our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock has rights, preferences and privileges that are not held by, and are senior to the rights of, our common stockholders.
The Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock ranks senior to the common stock with respect to dividends and distributions of assets upon the Company’s liquidation, dissolution or winding up. In addition, the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock creates substantial obligations upon us in the case of a conversion, mandatory conversion, optional redemption, fundamental change or liquidation event that may have an adverse effect upon our financial condition and the interests of the holders of our common stock. The Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock ranks senior to the common stock with respect to dividends, which substantially limits our ability to issue parity securities, junior securities or cash dividend securities, and may in some circumstances limit our ability to pay dividends on our common stock. Furthermore, the Certificate of Designations also provides that as long as Ayar owns at least 50% of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, we are required to comply with certain debt incurrence covenants in our ABL Credit Facility.
Holders of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock also have rights to a guaranteed Minimum Consideration in the event that the Company exercises its right to mandatory conversion or optional redemption of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, and in the event of a fundamental change or liquidation event. See “— The issuance of additional shares of our common stock or other equity or equity-linked securities, including upon conversion, optional redemption or repurchase of convertible securities, or sales of a significant portion of our common stock, could depress the market price of our common stock. ” In addition, holders of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock have the right to receive payment in cash upon a mandatory conversion, optional redemption or a fundamental change if certain liquidity conditions are not satisfied. See “— Servicing our current and future debt and potential payment obligations, including under the terms of our Convertible Senior Notes and Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, may restrict our flexibility in operating our business and require a significant amount of cash, and we may not have sufficient cash flow from our business to pay our indebtedness or satisfy our payment obligations. ” and “— We may be unable to raise the funds necessary should any cash amounts become payable upon mandatory conversion or in connection with a fundamental change or optional redemption in relation to our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock .”
We may be unable to draw down the full amounts available under the ABL Credit Facility, the SIDF Loan Agreement, the 2025 GIB Credit Facility or the DDTL Credit Facility.
The ABL Credit Facility has an initial aggregate principal commitment amount of up to $1.0 billion. However, availability of the committed amounts under the ABL Credit Facility is subject to the value of the eligible borrowing base and certain debt compliance covenants in the Certificate of Designations. We are currently able to draw down only a portion of the full amount available under the ABL Credit Facility. In addition, there is no guarantee that we will have sufficient eligible borrowing base in the future to be able to draw down the full amount available under the ABL Credit Facility. In addition, amounts committed under the SIDF Loan Agreement and the 2025 GIB Credit Facility are only available for certain specific purposes and subject to conditions on drawdowns. The DDTL Credit Facility provides for an approximately $1.98 billion delayed draw term loan credit facility, subject to drawdown conditions, including the requirement that there is no availability under the ABL Credit Facility. Any inability to draw down the full amounts committed under these facilities, should the need arise, may have an adverse effect on our cash flows and liquidity.
We may not be able to identify adequate strategic relationship opportunities or form strategic relationships, in the future.
Strategic business relationships have been and will continue to be an important factor in the growth and long-term success of our business. From time-to-time, we explore opportunities to enter into such relationships, including partnerships with original equipment manufacturers, service and charging providers, and technology innovators. However, there are no assurances that we will be able to identify or secure suitable business relationship opportunities in the future or that we will be able to maintain such relationships. In addition, our competitors may capitalize on such opportunities before we do and we may not be able to offer similar benefits to other companies with which we would like to establish and maintain strategic relationships, which could impair our ability to establish such relationships. For example, we have partnered with third-party EV charging providers to provide our customers with access to charging infrastructure, and we will rely on ongoing access to such infrastructure to provide our customers with charging solutions. If third-party EV charging providers their partnerships or otherwise to deliver the anticipated benefits of their partnerships, our ability to provide a customer experience will be . In addition, although we have access to Tesla’s Supercharger network, any in implementing changes in Lucid vehicles required by Tesla by a certain milestone date may result in Tesla our access to their network. Our current and future could subject us to a number of risks, including risks associated with sharing proprietary information, non-performance by the third party and increased expenses in establishing new strategic , any of which may materially and affect our business. We may have limited ability to monitor or control the actions of these third parties and, to the extent any of these strategic third parties publicity or to their reputation from events relating to their business, we may also publicity or to our reputation by virtue of our association with any such third party.
Moreover, identifying and executing on such opportunities could demand substantial management time and resources, and negotiating and financing relationships involves significant costs and uncertainties. If we are unable to successfully source and execute strategic relationship opportunities in the future, our overall growth could be impaired, and our business, prospects and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
We may acquire other businesses, which could require significant management attention, disrupt our business, dilute stockholder value and adversely affect our results of operations.
As part of our business strategy, we may make investments in complementary companies, solutions or technologies. We may not be able to find suitable acquisition candidates, and we may not be able to complete such acquisitions on favorable terms, if at all. In addition to possible stockholder approval, we may need approvals and licenses from relevant government authorities for the acquisitions and to comply with any applicable laws and regulations, which could result in increased delay and costs, and may disrupt our business strategy if we fail to do so. If we do complete acquisitions, we may not ultimately strengthen our competitive position or achieve our goals. In addition, if we are unsuccessful at integrating such acquisitions or developing the acquired technologies, the revenue and results of operations of the combined company could be adversely affected.
Further, the integration of acquired businesses, assets or personnel typically requires significant time and resources, which could result in a diversion of resources from our existing business, which could have an adverse effect on our operations, and we may not be able to manage the integration process successfully. For instance, in April 2025, we acquired select facilities and assets in Arizona previously belonging to Nikola Corporation, including Nikola’s former Coolidge manufacturing facility and the Phoenix facility, and we offered employment to certain former Nikola employees in roles across our Arizona facilities. We may not successfully evaluate or utilize the acquired technology or personnel or accurately forecast the financial impact of an acquisition transaction, including accounting charges. We may have to pay cash, incur debt or issue equity securities to pay for any such acquisition, each of which could adversely affect our financial condition or the value of our common stock. The sale of equity or equity-linked securities to finance any such acquisitions could result in dilution to our stockholders. The incurrence of indebtedness could result in increased fixed obligations and exposure to potential unknown liabilities of the acquired business and could also include covenants or other restrictions that could our ability to manage our operations.
Our financial results may vary significantly from period-to-period due to fluctuations in our production levels, operating costs, product demand and other factors.
Our period-to-period financial results may vary based on our production levels, operating costs and product demand, which we anticipate will fluctuate as we continue to design, develop and manufacture new vehicles (which could also reduce sales of our existing vehicles), increase production capacity, design and develop new EV-related products and technologies including robotaxis, and establish or expand design, research and development, production, sales and service facilities. Our revenues from period-to-period may fluctuate as we identify and investigate areas of demand, adjust volumes and add new incentives or product derivatives based on market demand and margin opportunities, develop and introduce new vehicles or introduce existing vehicles to new markets for the first time. Our production levels also depend on our ability to obtain vehicle components from our suppliers, the effective operation of our manufacturing facilities, our ability to expand our production capacity, and our ability to timely deliver finished vehicles to customers. Lower production and sales volumes and an inability to fully utilize our purchase commitments with suppliers may result in increased costs and excess inventory as well as potential inventory write-offs. See “—Risks Related to Manufacturing and Supply Chain — if we fail to successfully tool our manufacturing facilities or if our manufacturing facilities become inoperable, we will be to produce our vehicles and our business will be . ” In addition, automotive manufacturers typically experience significant seasonality, with comparatively low sales in the first quarter and comparatively high sales in the fourth quarter, and we expect to experience similar seasonality as we scale commercial production and sale of our current and future vehicles. Our period-to-period results of operations may also fluctuate because of other factors including labor availability and costs for hourly and management personnel; of our vehicles in all of our markets, including price adjustments and incentives; changes in interest rates; of long-lived assets; macroeconomic conditions, including changes in trade policies and imposition or proposed imposition of tariffs; publicity relating to our vehicles; changes in consumer preferences and competitive conditions; investment in expansion to new markets; or increase in our sales, service and marketing activities. See “— Risks Related to and Regulation — Changes in U.S. trade policy, including the imposition of or uncertainties surrounding tariffs or of normal trade relations and the resulting consequences, could affect our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. ” As a result of these factors, we believe that quarter-to-quarter comparisons of our financial results, especially in the short-term, may have limited utility as an indicator of future performance. Significant variation in our quarterly performance could also significantly and affect the trading price of our common stock.
Risks Related to Tax
Our ability to use net operating loss carryforwards and certain other tax attributes may be limited.
We have accumulated U.S. federal and state net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforwards and research and deve lopment credits which may be available to offset and reduce future taxable income. While our U.S. federal NOL carryforwards arising in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017, will not be subject to expiration, some of our U.S. federal and state NOL carryforwards of $10.8 billion and $7.8 billion, respectively, from taxable years prior to 2018 will begin to expire in 2027. See Note 13 “Income Taxes” to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for more information. As of December 31, 2025, we also had U.S. federal research and development credit carryforwards which will begin to expire in 2036 and state research and development credit carryforwards do not have an expiration date. As of December 31, 2025, we had foreign net operating loss carryforwards, the majority of which will begin to expire in 2043. As of December 31, 2025, we maintain a full valuation allowance for our U.S. and the majority of our non-U.S. net deferred tax assets.
Our U.S. federal and state NOL carryforwards and certain tax credits may be subject to significant limitations under Section 382 and Section 383 of the U.S. tax code, respectively, and similar provisions of state law. Un der those sections of the U.S. tax code, if a corporation undergoes an “ownership change,” the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change NOL carryforwards and other pre-change attributes, such as research tax credits, to offset its post-change income or tax may be limited.
In general, an “ownership change” will occur if there is a cumulative change in our ownership by “5-percent shareholders” that exceeds 50 percentage poin ts over a rolling three-year period. Similar rules may apply under state tax laws. We have completed a formal Section 382 study of our equity transactions through December 31, 2020. The study determined that we experienced an “ownership change” in 2016, and we will not be able to utilize $12 million of our U.S. federal NOL and $3 million of U.S. federal research and development tax credit carryforwards. Similar provisions of state law may also apply to limit our use of accumulated state tax attributes from the same period.
We have not yet completed an analysis of whether the business combination between the Company and Legacy Lucid also caused an “ownership change.” In addition, future changes in our stock ownership may be outside of our control. If we undergo an ownership change, we may be prevented from fully utilizing the NOL carryforwards and tax credits existing at the time of the ownership change prior to their expiration. Future regulatory changes could also limit our ability to utilize NOL carry forwards and tax credits. To the extent we are not able to offset future taxable income with our NOL carryforwards and tax credits, our net income and cash flows may be adversely affected.
It is more likely than not that we will not generate taxable income in time to use any of our NOL carryforwards and research and development credits before their expiration.
Unanticipated tax laws or any change in the application of existing tax laws to us or our customers or any change to our corporate structure may adversely impact our profitability and business.
We are subject to income and other taxes in the United States and a growing number of foreign jurisdictions. Existing domestic and foreign tax laws, statutes, rules, regulations, or ordinances could be interpreted, changed, modified, or applied adversely to us (possibly with retroactive effect), which could require us to change our transfer pricing policies and pay additional tax amounts, fines or penalties, surcharges, and interest charges for past amounts due, the amounts and timing of which are difficult to discern. Existing tax laws, statutes, rules, regulations, or ordinances could also be interpreted, changed, modified, or applied adversely to our customers (possibly with retroactive effect) and, if our customers are required to pay additional surcharges, it could adversely affect demand for our vehicles.
Furthermore, changes to federal, state, local, or international tax laws on income, sales, use, import/export, indirect, or other tax laws, statutes, rules, regulations, or ordinances on multinational corporations continue to be considered by the United States and other countries where we currently operate or plan to operate. For example, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 introduced a Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax which imposes a minimum tax on adjusted income of corporations with average applicable gross receipt of at least $500 million for prior three tax years and that make certain payments to related foreign persons. In addition, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has issued model rules in connection with the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting integrated framework that determine multi-jurisdictional taxing rights and the rate of tax applicable to certain types of income.
These contemplated tax initiatives, if finalized and adopted by the United States or other countries where we do business, and the other tax issues described above may materially and adversely impact our operating activities, transfer pricing policies, effective tax rate, deferred tax assets, cash flows and financial results in the current or future reporting periods.
We may change our corporate structure, our business operations or certain agreements that we have entered into relating to taxes in a particular jurisdiction. These changes may materially and adversely impact our consolidated financial statements.
Our warrants are accounted for as liabilities and the changes in value of our warrants could have a material effect on our financial results.
On April 12, 2021, the Acting Director of the Division of Corporation Finance and Acting Chief Accountant of the SEC together issued a public statement (the “SEC Warrant Accounting Statement”) on accounting and reporting considerations for warrants issued by special purpose acquisition companies (“SPACs”). The SEC Warrant Accounting Statement discussed “certain features of warrants issued in SPAC transactions” that “may be common across many entities.” The SEC Warrant Accounting Statement indicated that when one or more of such features is included in a warrant, the warrant “should be classified as a liability measured at fair value, with changes in fair value each period reported in earnings.” In light of the SEC Warrant Accounting Statement and guidance in Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 815-40, “Derivatives and Hedging — Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity,” Churchill’s management evaluated the terms of the Warrant Agreement entered into in connection with the Churchill IPO and concluded that the warrants include provisions that, based on the SEC Warrant Accounting Statement, preclude the warrants from being classified as components of equity. As a result, Churchill classified the warrants as liabilities. Under this accounting treatment, we are required to measure the fair value of the privately placed common stock warrants issued in connection with the Churchill IPO (the “Private Placement Warrants”) at the end of each reporting period and recognize changes in the fair value from the prior period in our operating results for the current period. As a result of the recurring fair value measurement, our financial statements and results of operations may fluctuate quarterly based on factors which are outside our control. We expect that we will recognize non-cash or due to the quarterly fair valuation of the warrants and that such or could be material.
Risks Related to Public Company Requirements
The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources and distract our management, which could make it difficult to manage our business.
We are required to comply with various regulatory and reporting requirements, including those required by the SEC and Nasdaq. Complying with these reporting and other regulatory requirements is time-consuming and will result in increased costs to us and could have a negative effect on our results of operations, financial condition or business. Those requirements and their interpretation and application may also change from time-to-time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or business. A failure to comply with such requirements, as interpreted and applied, could also have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or business. These obligations and constituents will require significant attention from our senior management and could divert their attention away from the day-to-day management of our business, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations, cash flows, and financial condition.
As a public company, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act and the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. These requirements may place a strain on our systems and resources. The Exchange Act requires that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with respect to our business and financial condition. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we implement and maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal controls over financial reporting. In addition, changing laws, regulations, and standards related to corporate governance and public disclosure are creating uncertainty for public companies, increasing legal and financial compliance costs, and making some activities more time-consuming. These laws, regulations, and standards are subject to varying interpretations, in many cases due to their lack of specificity, and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies. This could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices.
To implement, maintain and improve the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures, we will need to commit significant resources, hire additional staff and provide additional management oversight. To comply with the requirements of being a public company, we have undertaken, and expect to continue to further undertake in the future, various actions, such as hiring additional accounting staff and implementing new internal controls and procedures for the purpose of addressing the standards and requirements applicable to public companies. Sustaining our growth also will require us to commit additional management, operational and financial resources to identify new professionals to join us and to maintain appropriate operational and financial systems to adequately support expansion. These activities may divert management’s attention from other business concerns, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or business.
If we identify material weaknesses or otherwise fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately or timely report our financial condition or results of operations, which may adversely affect investor confidence in us and the value of our common stock.
We are subject to the SEC’s internal control over financial reporting requirements. Internal control over financial reporting is complex and may be revised over time to adapt to changes in our business, or changes in applicable accounting rules.
As part of such requirements, we are required to provide management’s attestation on the report on internal control over financial reporting by our independent registered public accounting firm. The design of internal controls over financial reporting for our business has required and will continue to require significant time and resources from management and other personnel.
In addition, we are required to report any control deficiencies that constitute a “material weakness” in our internal control over financial reporting. We cannot guarantee that our internal control over financial reporting will be effective in the future or that a material weakness will not be discovered with respect to a prior period for which we had previously believed that our internal control over financial reporting was effective. If we are not able to maintain or document effective internal control over financial reporting, our independent registered public accounting firm will not be able to certify as to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. Matters impacting our internal control over financial reporting may result in material misstatements of our consolidated financial statements, cause us to be unable to report our financial information on a timely basis, or may cause us to restate previously issued financial information, and thereby subject us to regulatory consequences, including sanctions or by the SEC, or of applicable stock exchange listing rules. There could also be a reaction in the financial markets due to a of investor confidence in us and the reliability of our financial statements. This could materially affect us by, for example, to a in our stock price and our ability to raise capital.
We may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment or other charges that could have a significant negative effect on our financial condition, results of operations and stock price, which could cause our stockholders to lose some or all of their investment.
We may be required to write-down or write-off assets, restructure operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in losses. Even though these charges may be non-cash items and not have an immediate impact on our liquidity, charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about us or our securities. Accordingly, any of our stockholders could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares.
Risks Related to Our Common Stock
The price of our common stock has been, and may continue to be, volatile, and this volatility may negatively impact the trading price of our common stock and the Convertible Senior Notes.
The trading price of our common stock has fluctuated substantially. The trading price of our securities depends on many factors, including those described elsewhere in this “Risk Factors” section, many of which are beyond our control and may not be related to our operating performance. These fluctuations could cause investors to lose all or part of the investment in our securities since investors might be unable to sell them at or above the price the investor paid for them. Any of the factors listed below could have a material adverse effect on stockholders’ investment in our securities and our securities may trade at prices significantly below the price stockholders paid for them. In such circumstances, the trading price of our securities may not recover and may experience a further decline.
Factors affecting the trading price of our securities may include:
• market conditions in the broader stock market in general, or in our industry in particular;
• actual or anticipated fluctuations in our quarterly financial or operating results or the quarterly financial or operating results of companies perceived to be similar to ours;
• changes in the market’s expectations about our operating results;
• the public’s reaction to our press releases, other public announcements and filings with the SEC;
• the public’s reaction to financial projections and any other guidance or metrics that we may publicly disclose, including any decision to adjust or withdraw such financial projections, guidance or metrics;
• speculation in the press or investment community;
• actual or anticipated developments in our business, competitors’ businesses or the competitive landscape generally;
• lower-than-anticipated industry-wide EV adoption rates or perception that EV demand is slowing;
• the operating results failing to meet the expectation of securities analysts or investors in a particular period;
• the timing of the achievement of objectives under our business plan and the timing and amount of costs we incur in connection therewith;
• changes in financial estimates and recommendations by securities analysts concerning us or the market in general;
• operating and stock price performance of other companies that investors deem comparable to ours;
• market reaction to any of our strategic partners;
• changes in laws and regulations affecting our business;
• commencement of, or involvement in, litigation or investigations involving us;
• changes in our capital structure, such as future issuances of securities or the incurrence of additional debt;
• the volume of our common stock available for public sale, including as a result of conversion of our Convertible Senior Notes or our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock;
• any major change in our Board or management;
• sales of substantial amounts of our common stock by our directors, officers or significant stockholders or the perception that such sales could occur;
• general economic and political conditions, such as uncertainties in trade policies, the imposition or proposed imposition of tariffs, export controls, threat of a trade war, recessions, interest rate changes, inflation, bank closures and liquidity concerns at financial institutions, changes in diplomatic and trade relationships, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, acts of war or terrorism, and natural disasters; and
• other risk factors listed in this section “Risk Factors.”
Broad market and industry factors may materially harm the market price of our securities irrespective of our operating performance. The stock market in general and Nasdaq have experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of the particular companies affected. The trading prices and valuations of these stocks, and of our securities, may not be predictable. A loss of investor confidence in the market for the stocks of other companies which investors perceive to be similar to ours could depress our stock price and the trading price of the Convertible Senior Notes regardless of our business, prospects, financial conditions or results of operations. Broad market and industry factors, including global or regional conflicts and other geopolitical events, natural disasters, and any other global pa ndemics, as well as general economic, political and market conditions such as recessions, inflation, bank closures and liquidity concerns at financial institutions, or interest rate changes, may affect the market price of our common stock and other securities, regardless of our actual operating performance. A in the market price of our securities also could affect our ability to issue additional securities and our ability to obtain additional financing in the future.
Furthermore, the stock markets in general, and the markets for technology and EV stocks in particular, have experienced extreme volatility that has sometimes been unrelated to the operating performance of the companies. The trading price of our common stock may be adversely affected by third parties trying to drive down or drive up the market price. Short sellers and others, some of whom post anonymously on social media, may be positioned to profit if our stock declines or otherwise exhibits volatility, and their activities can negatively affect our stock price and increase the volatility of our stock price. These broad market and industry factors may seriously harm the market price of our common stock, regardless of our operating performance. In addition, hedging activity by holders of the Convertible Senior Notes may impact the market price of our common stock, in particular during any redemption conversion period in connection with a redemption of the Convertible Senior Notes or any observation period for a conversion of the Convertible Senior Notes.
In addition, in the past, following periods of volatility in the overall market and the market prices of particular companies’ securities, securities class action litigations have often been instituted against these companies. Litigation of this type, if instituted against us, could result in substantial costs and a diversion of our management’s attention and resources. Any adverse determination in any such litigation or any amounts paid to settle any such actual or threatened litigation could require that we make significant payments.
The issuance of additional shares of our common stock or other equity or equity-linked securities, including upon conversion, optional redemption or repurchase of convertible securities, or sales of a significant portion of our common stock, could depress the market price of our common stock.
Future issuan ces of shares of our common stock, or of securities convertible into or exercisable for our common stock, could depress the market price of our common stock and result in significant dilution for holders of our common stock. This includes the potential issuance of a substantial number of shares of our common stock upon the conversion, optional redemption, or repurchase of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock. The Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock is convertible into our common stock at specified conversion prices, subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments, and the number of shares issuable upon conversion may increase over time due to the compounding of dividends at an initial rate of 9% per annum, which are not subject to any cap or sunset provisions and may accrue in perpetuity. As a result, the number of shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock may continue to increase, further diluting the ownership interests of existing common stockholders.
In addition, in certain circumstances, including in connection with a mandatory conversion, optional redemption, or a fundamental change (as defined in the Certificate of Designations), holders of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock may be entitled to receive “Minimum Consideration.” If the value of the Minimum Consideration exceeds the Accrued Value of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, we would be required to issue a number of shares of common stock that is presently indeterminable and, particularly if our stock price is substantially below the initial conversion price, such issuances could result in significant dilution to the common stockholders which could have a material adverse effect on the market prices of our common stock and on our financial condition, liquidity, and ability to obtain additional financing.
The exercise of our outstanding warrants and options, the vesting and settlement of our restricted stock units and the conversion of our Convertible Senior Notes may also result in additional dilution to holders of our common stock. In the future, we may issue additional shares of our common stock, or securities convertible into or exercisable for common stock, in connection with generating additional capital, future acquisitions, repayment of outstanding indebtedness, under our stock incentive plan, or for other reasons.
The market price of shares of our common stock could decline as a result of substantial sales of common stock or securities convertible into shares of common stock, particularly by our significant stockholders, a large number of shares of common stock becoming available for sale or the perception in the market that holders of a large number of shares intend to sell their shares.
In addition, pursuant to the Investor Rights Agreement, dated February 22, 2021 (as amended from time-to-time, the “Investor Rights Agreement”) , Ayar, and certain other parties thereto are entitled to, among other things, certain registration rights, including demand, piggy-back and shelf registration rights with respect to their shares of common stock (including shares of common stock underlying the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock held by Ayar) and Ayar’s shares of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock. We also provided certain registration rights to SMB with respect to the shares of common stock issued to SMB pursuant to the 2025 Subscription Agreement. If either pursuant to any registration statement or through another avenue, one or more of these stockholders were to sell a substantial portion of the securities they hold, including any common stock issued upon conversion, redemption or repurchase of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, it could cause the trading price of our common stock to decline. Furthermore, given Ayar’s substantial concentration in ownership of our common stock and the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, if Ayar were to elect to sell in the open market or in private placement transactions, it could have the effect of increasing the volatility in our stock price or putting significant downward pressure on the price of our common stock.
We are a “controlled company” withi n the meaning of the applicable Nasdaq rules and, as a result, qualify for exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements. Our stockholders will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are not controlled companies.
As of December 31, 2025 , the PIF, both directly and indirectly through A yar, held over 50% of t he voting power for the election of our directors . As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the Nasdaq rules, and as a result, we qualify for exemptions from ce rtain corporate governance requirements. Under these rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power for the election of directors is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including the requirements to have: (a) a majority of independent directors on the board; (b) a nominating committee comprised solely of independent directors; (c) compensation of executive officers determined by a majority of the independent directors or a compensation committee comprised solely of independent directors; and (d) director nominees selected, or recommended for the selection by the board, either by a majority of the independent directors or a nominating committee comprised solely of independent directors. Although currently we do not utilize any of these exemptions, we may elect to utilize one or more of these exemptions for so long as we remain a “controlled company.” As a result, our stockholders may not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the Nasdaq corporate governance requirements. Ayar also has the ability to nominate five of the eight directors to our Board.
In addition, for so long as Ayar holds the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock and as result of the consent and voting rights of the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock, coupled with the voting rights associated with Ayar’s existing ownership of common stock in the Company, Ayar has significant power to influence the outcome over any matter submitted for the vote of the holders of our common stock and to influence certain matters affecting our governance and capitalization. Further, Ayar is entitled to receive additional shares of our common stock under the prepaid forward transactions entered into with a forward counterparty that is an affiliate of one of the initial purchasers of the 2030 Notes and the 2031 Notes (the “Forward Counterparty”) in connection with the pricing of the 2030 Notes and the 2031 Notes. This concentration of ownership and voting power allows Ayar to exercise control over certain decisions, in particular with regards to governance and capitalization matters, including matters requiring approval by our stockholders (such as, subject to the Investor Rights Agreement, the election of directors and the approval of mergers or other extraordinary transactions), regardless of whether or not other stockholders believe that the transaction is in their own best interests.
The interests of Ayar may differ from the interests of our other stockholders and, as such, Ayar’s voting power and influence over us may decrease the relative interests of our other stockholders or of the Company. Such concentration of voting power could also have the effect of delaying, deterring or preventing a change of control or other business combination that might otherwise be beneficial to our stockholders, could deprive our stockholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their common stock as part of a sale of our company and might ultimately affect the market price of our common stock and the trading price of the Convertible Senior Notes.
The PIF and Ayar beneficially own a significant equity interest in us and may take actions that conflict with other stockholders’ interests.
The interests of the PIF and Ayar may not align with our interests and the interests of our other stockholders or securityholders. The PIF and Ayar are each in the business of making investments in companies and may acquire and hold interests in businesses that compete directly or indirectly with us. The PIF and Ayar and their respective affiliates, may also pursue acquisition opportunities that may be c omplementary to our business and, as a result, those acquisition opportunities may not be available to us.
Securities or industry analysts may or may not publish research or reports about us, our business, our market, or change their recommendations regarding our common stock adversely, which could cause the price and trading volume of our common stock to decline.
The trading market for our common stock can be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts may publish about us, our business and operations, our market, or our competitors. Similarly, if any of the analysts who do cover us change their recommendation regarding our stock adversely, or provide more favorable relative recommendations about our competitors, the price of our common stock may decline. If any analyst who covers us were to cease coverage of us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline.
We do not anticipate paying any cash dividends for the foreseeable future.
We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our capital stock, and we do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. In addition, the ABL Credit Facility, the DDTL Credit Facility and our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock limits our and certain of our subsidiaries’ ability to pay cash dividends. We currently intend to retain our future earnings, if any, for the foreseeable future, to fund the development and growth of our business.
Any future determination to pay cash dividends will be at the discretion of our Board and will be dependent upon our financial condition, results of operations, capital requirements, applicable contractual restrictions and such other factors as the Board may deem relevant. As a result, capital appreciation in the price of our common stock, if any, will be our stockholders’ only source of gain on an investment in our common stock.
There is no guarantee that an active and liquid public market for our securities will be sustained.
If a liquid trading market for our common stock is not sustained:
• holders of our common stock may not be able to liquidate their investment in shares of our common stock;
• holders of our common stock may not be able to resell their shares of our common stock at favorable prices, or at all;
• the market price of shares of our common stock may experience significant price volatility; and
• there may be less efficiency in carrying out purchase and sale orders with respect to our common stock.
Additionally, if our securities become delisted from Nasdaq for any reason, and are quoted on the OTC Bulletin Board, an inter-dealer automated quotation system for equity securities that is not a national securities exchange, the liquidity and trading of our securities may be more limited than if we were quoted or listed on Nasdaq or another national securities exchange. Our stockholders may be unable to sell their securities unless a market can be established or sustained.
Our current bylaws designate a state court within the State of Delaware, to the fullest extent permitted by law, as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit the ability of our stockholders to obtain a favorable judicial forum f or disputes with us or with our directors, officers or employees and may discourage stockholders from bringing such claims.
Under our current bylaws, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the sole and exclusive forum will be a state court within the State of Delaware (or, if no state court located within the State of Delaware has jurisdiction, the federal district court for the District of Delaware) for:
• any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf;
• any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or employees to us or our stockholders;
• any action asserting a claim against us or any of our directors or officers or other employees arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our certificate of incorporation or bylaws (as either may be amended, restated, modified, supplemented or waived from time-to-time); or
• any action asserting a claim against us or any of our directors or officers or other employees governed by the internal affairs doctrine.
For the avoidance of doubt, the foregoing provisions of our current bylaws will not apply to any action or proceeding asserting a claim under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act. Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. Accordingly, both state and federal courts have jurisdiction to entertain such claims. To prevent having to litigate claims in multiple jurisdictions and the threat of inconsistent or contrary rulings by different courts, among other considerations, our current bylaws provide that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the federal district courts of the United States will be the exclusive forum for resolving any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act. Although investors cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder, any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock will be deemed to have notice of, and consented to, the provisions of our current bylaws described in the preceding sentences. These provisions of our current bylaws could limit the ability of our stockholders to obtain a judicial forum for certain with us or with our directors, officers or other employees, which may such lawsuits us and our directors, officers and employees. Alternatively, if a court were to find these provisions of our current bylaws inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the types of actions or proceedings listed above, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. While the Delaware courts have determined that such choice of forum provisions are valid at face value, a stockholder may nevertheless seek to bring a claim in a venue other than those designated in the forum provisions, and there can be no assurance that such provisions will be enforced by a court in those other jurisdictions.
Some provisions of Delaware law, our current certificate of incorporation and our current bylaws, our Certificate of Designations and the indentures for the Convertible Senior Notes may deter third parties from acquiring us and diminish the value of our common stock, the Convertible Senior Notes and the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock.
Our current certificate of incorporation and our current bylaws provide for, among other things:
• the ability of our Board to issue one or more series of preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could have the effect of impeding the success of an attempt to acquire us or otherwise effect a change in control;
• subject to the Investor Rights Agreement, advance notice for nominations of directors by stockholders and for stockholders to include matters to be considered at stockholder meetings; and
• certain limitations on convening special stockholder meetings.
In addition, in our current certificate of incorporation, we have not opted out of Section 203 of the DGCL, which prohibits a Delaware corporation from engaging in certain “business combinations” with any “interested stockholder” for a three-year period following the time that the stockholder became an interested stockholder, unless:
• prior to such time, the Board approved either the business combination or the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder;
• upon consummation of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of voting stock outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, excluding certain shares; or
• at or subsequent to that time, the business combination is approved by our Board and by the affirmative vote of holders of at least two-thirds of the votes of our outstanding voting stock that is not owned by the interested stockholder.
Generally, a “business combination” includes a merger, asset or stock sale or other transaction resulting in a financial benefit to the interested stockholder. Subject to certain exceptions, an “interested stockholder” is a person who, together with that person’s affiliates and associates, owns, or within the previous three years owned, 15% or more of the votes of our outstanding voting stock. For purposes of this provision, “voting stock” means any class or series of stock entitled to vote generally in the election of directors.
Under certain circumstances, this provision will make it more difficult for a person who would be an “interested stockholder” to effect various business combinations with us for a three-year period. This provision may encourage companies interested in acquiring us to negotiate in advance with our Board because the stockholder approval requirement would be avoided if our Board approves either the business combination or the transaction that results in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder. These provisions also may have the effect of preventing changes in our Board and may make it more difficult to accomplish transactions that stockholders may otherwise deem to be in their best interests.
In addition, certain terms of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock and the Convertible Senior Notes may make it more difficult for an entity to acquire us. As the current holder of our Convertible Preferred Stock, Ayar has certain repurchase, conversion and consent rights, including the right, at the option of Ayar, to require us to repurchase for cash or, if under the terms of our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock we are then permitted, and we so elect, shares of our common stock (or other securities to be received by a holder of common stock in such fundamental change) in connection with a fundamental change, based on the applicable Minimum Consideration. See “ — Risks Related to Financing and Strategic Transactions— Our Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock has rights, preferences and privileges that are not held by, and are senior to the rights of, our common stockholders .” Similarly, the indentures governing the Convertible Senior Notes generally requires us, at the option of the holders, to repurchase the Convertible Senior Notes for cash upon the occurrence of a fundamental change and, in certain circumstances, to increase the conversion rate for a holder that converts its Convertible Senior Notes in connection with a make-whole fundamental change, as defined in the indentures for the Convertible Senior Notes. These provisions may make it more costly for a potential acquirer to engage in a business combination transaction with us.
These provisions in our current certificate of incorporation, our current bylaws, our Certificate of Designations and the indentures for the Convertible Senior Notes as well as D elaware law could increase the cost and difficulty of acquiring us or may discourage, delay or prevent a transaction involving a change in our control that is in the best interest of our minority stockholders. Even in the absence of a takeover attempt, the existence of these provisions may adversely affect the prevailing market price of our common stock or the value of the Convertible Senior Notes or the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock if they are viewed as discouraging future takeover attempts. These provisions could also make it more difficult for stockholders to nominate directors for election to our Board and take other corporate actions, which could also affect the price investors are willing to pay for our common stock, the Convertible Senior Notes or the Redeemable Convertible Preferred Stock.
