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Aptera Corp funding status
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Aptera Corp funding status
updated 8 hours, 36 minutes ago
62 Members
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149
Replies
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That’s great, hopefully the Accelerator Program will bring even more funds. I hope there are some good news about the Davos and St. Moritz potential investor meetings to finalize the production funds requirements.
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Is this the matching funds grant that has been discussed before, or a different one? Does Aptera get 100% of the money, or do they get 60% matching funds of what is raised in the Accelerator Program?
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Same one, so the funds have to be matched etc.
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Am I the only one wondering if Aptera already secured a $75 million investor?
I’m hoping they now have one or two $50M investors and are keeping it quiet until Accelerate Aptera concludes.
$50M won’t cut it. More is needed now, double would ensure survival. Us small investors alone can’t help Aptera start production.
🤞🤞
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You might be right about a big investor or 2.
I’m thinking the big money will come in with the IPO, after production starts. That is what they’ll use to ramp up production.
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I believe they positioned the Accelerate program as a way to quicken the pace in lieu of large investors they were cultivating. They said those agreements take time. The inference I got from Steve (I believe) was that these potential large investors would be coming more like summertime and Accelerate allowed them to get critical long lead items on order to help the timeline.
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How is the ATVM loan looking?
Where are we in the process? https://www.energy.gov/lpo/advanced-technology-vehicles-manufacturing-loan-program#process
When should we expect a decision?
Thanks!
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More transparency would help.
However.
Investors are playing a slot machine at 10k a pull or more, but the dials are turning at a snails pace, they won’t know if they’ve won or lost until actual production and IPO happen.
I’m not willing to play that risk. More transparency would help me make a decision on said risk, if I had better than a 50/50 chance. I might risk 10k
However as a startup. 90% of startups fail, I’m not sure what percentage never make it to the start line, just that 90% fail.
So I’m pulling a slot machine handle at 10k a pull and have a 9/10 chance of losing 10k. Not doing it ,25c – $1. Ok
10k ? Not happening
Investors need to look at it that way.
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You are absolutely right. Life itself is a risk. It’s all about managing your risks.
With a vehicle that is at 95% complete and companies like CPC totally committed to the build, the risk starts to lessen. APTERA is still plugging along, they are extremely lean right now and are positioning themselves to get primed for production.
10k is nothing to sneeze at. If you can’t risk…please don’t. My first investment with APTERA was following a dream with a lot of risk. As APTERA continued to progress and refine along with completing design, for myself it has switched towards an investment. Still with risk , but less so as there is now a light at the end of the tunnel.
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I love the pessimistic comments. I just listened to a new podcast with Steve. They’re working 4-5 huge deals that would generate 150-200M. I’m considering investing more.
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Which podcast is that? How about a link, please?
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Starting about the 18 min mark: Meet Aptera, the Solar Electric Vehicle on a Mission to Revolutionize Transportation – Causeartist
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California Grant Is Now Official
California Energy Commission Awards Aptera Motors $21 Million Grant for Solar Mobility Manufacturing
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Nice, this announcement will bring more investments and accelerate the production start date.
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Grant news is exciting. I have a love/hate relationship watching my initials on the Accelerate dashboard slide lower and lower every day. Really it’s 99% love.
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Without venture funding secured by now the success or bankruptcy of Aptera, before they can start selling cars, depends on the majority of reservation holders actually placing an order. But will they? Reservations can’t be counted on reliably even though we have heard as nauseam for two years how many people are placing reservations.
We can safely assume all investors will purchase a car or two. That’s a good thing. But that’s only 800 cars in late March and hopefully 2,000 orders locked in by Summer 2023 (and with a $2,500 discount per car profitability craters, but whatever, call it marketing awareness investment).
Aptera must hurry up and disclose at least one funding deal secured, a lifeline to commence manufacturing.
Without this assurance retail investors will shy away now, fearing the company will fail to start due to lack of cash. But concrete news of funding under contract, or better yet, disclosure of money in the bank, will give retail investors confidence to continue helping Aptera to succeed🤞.
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With the current banking crisis in our midst (the “canary-in-the coal mine”..now going global), I just hope the overall funding for Aptera coming from all fronts, would not dry up..
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I know this has been asked, but I have never seen a knowledgeable answer to the question. How does the $21 million grant reimbursement work? Do they need to spend the whole thing to get the money back or can they get the reimbursement piecemeal as they go?
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As I understand it they will receive fractional grant payments as money is spent on the projects listed in the grant. Of course, I could be wrong… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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The Accelerate money is not enough to start production, perhaps just enough to keep the doors open. Chris Anthony was supposed to be arranging investment funding in Europe earlier this spring, while Steven Fambro was doing the same in Dubai and possibly, India. They were hoping to get more than one $50M investment. One such investment would probably allow some production, but more is required for full production. My understanding is that this is a requirement on top of the $21M grant. The silence on what happened during these trips to Europe and Asia is deafening. I understand large deals will take time to finalize, but some news, any news would put many minds at ease.
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This reply was modified 5 months, 2 weeks ago by Klaas Stoker.
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This reply was modified 5 months, 2 weeks ago by
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Perhaps Aptera should make 10 Launch Editions for delivery to the first 10 Accelerators who have invested over $3 million!
They then take the vehicles across the nation as a driving promotion, investors will empty their bank accounts and people will flock to buy the vehicles!
Just saying…
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The sooner they make even one delivery the better, if they can make a couple hand built cars and deliver them the publicity will draw more investors and would be worth it for the company overall. The only potential drawback could be delays to crash testing or huge number of recalls for the early delivery recipients.
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Crash testing is still technically unofficial and not required so that shouldn’t be a blocker. Only reason to do any more hand built is just to get them into the world for the PR and hopefully see a spike in investment. Tough to know if the effort for this would be worthwhile.
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Anyone investigated a financial hook-up with Tata India? [They are the largest car maker in India; they are used to 3 wheel transports; India has a big pollution problem; the vehicle is more affordable than other EVs.] Might be the partner Aptera needs.
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They don’t want to give up control, they did that the first time around and it was catastrophe. A company like Tata would want to own the whole company. If I had to hazard a guess as to why they haven’t been able to close a funding deal I’d bet it has to do with how much control they are willing to give up.
One more thing about Tata, they bought JLR and I’m sure they regret it. Jaguar barely exists anymore, they are asking their dealers to give up their dealerships. Land Rover doing a little better but it’s been shrinking also.
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The other big mover in Indian transport is Mahindra. They have a presence in North America with their tractors. Some years ago they tried to enter the U.S. market with a mid-sized (small by U.S. standards) diesel powered pickup. They were unable to get it emissions certified (unwilling to cheat, I guess) and pissed off a bunch of people who had invested in dealerships when they pulled out. They build a nearly original Jeep under license, which they sell here as an off-roader.
Synergies with Aptera? I can’t think of anything, but they might have some money lying around.
About India’s lack of a charging infrastructure and Aptera’s suitability: I think it is precisely the lack of a charging infrastructure that could make Aptera ideal, due to its efficiency. A regional version equipped with a 30kW AC charger could charge faster than 400 km per hour off of any household plug along your route. Tight moving traffic would still be a challenge, though.
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As time goes by without a major investor, the Government Loan program looks to be the only viable path to production. These other tricks for funding are the equivalent of treading water. As I read it, the Government will pay for up to 80% of production startup cost if they believe there is a good chance of getting paid back. The big question is, will they fund a 3 wheel autocycle with many parts made overseas?
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Something else to keep in mind is that the Accelerator program (and presumably all other investing) is currently “paused” for non-accredited investors, which is why fundraising appears to be stalled out. Once those investments resume, I suspect there will be a surge in the numbers as people who were about to invest (or still considering it) prior to the pause all jump on board at once. The company will probably still need a large influx of capital to get the ball rolling, either in the form of the ATVM Loan getting approved or a Very Large Investor stepping up to the plate. That said, my doubts about Aptera reaching production have greatly diminished over last couple of months. Just a little more patience…
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Is there any information about the grant application to the feds?
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Assume nothing will happen before the end of the year – it takes several months for the initial process.
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Not sure this makes much diff in the grand scheme of things but:
“We are thrilled to announce that Aptera Motors has been granted a significant competitive advantage in its mission to revolutionize the mobility industry. The California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority (CAEATFA) has awarded Aptera an exemption on taxes for $81 million in equipment purchases to outfit our state-of-the-art factory. This prestigious achievement provides Aptera with a unique opportunity to accelerate our efforts, drive innovation, and further solidify our position as a pioneering force in the electric vehicle market.
The Impact of the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority
As a result of this accolade, Aptera will be able to reinvest the funds previously allocated for taxes into further developing our manufacturing capabilities. The $81 million tax exemption will enable us to acquire cutting-edge equipment, advanced technologies, and resources needed to optimize our factory operations and enhance the production of our groundbreaking EVs. “
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I think it’s great in terms of going much further in the future for the company. Perhaps not gonna affect much in the near term, aside from providing more for potential investors and buyers to consider.
In that regard, it’s huge for the prospects of building a second factory.
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Wow, that’s huge! Great to see this kind of support for Aptera!
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Just curious. Was it capped at $81 mil. because that is how much Aptera plans to spend on equipment made (or sold) in California?
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We should expect to see big news at the end of Q3 when Aptera is supposed to finalize that $20 mil investment which was originally to take place beginning of the year.
