An EV startup hiding in plain sight in Detroit

A secretive EV startup backed by Amazon's Jeff Bezos and others plans to produce an affordable, low-cost electric pickup as soon as next year in Indiana, TechCrunch scooped.

Why it matters: Creating a car company from scratch is not for the faint of heart, but Slate Auto, based in Troy, Michigan, has already raised at least $111 million.

• And it has hired hundreds of employees from Ford, General Motors, Stellantis and Harley-Davidson, TechCrunch reported.

The intrigue: Slate appears to be trying a different business model from most EV startups.

• Instead of starting with an exclusive, high-end model like Tesla, Lucid and Rivian did, Slate aims to produce a $25,000 entry-level EV, taking inspiration from Ford's Model T and the original Volkswagen Beetle.
• And it plans to supplement the truck's small margins by selling aftermarket vehicle accessories and apparel, per TechCrunch, citing unnamed sources and company job listings.
• In late March, Slate filed for a trademark on the phrase: "WE BUILT IT. YOU MAKE IT." It included a long list of potential add-on products.

Automakers need new business models, as we reported last week.

• "The old playbooks aren't enough anymore," KPMG's lead U.S. auto consultant, Lenny LaRocca, told Axios.
• Selling products that let buyers upgrade or personalize their vehicles is one way to tap new sources of revenue and turn car buyers into lifelong customers.

What to watch: Slate hopes to begin production by late 2026 at a manufacturing facility somewhere near Indianapolis.