Electric vehicle (EV) startup Canoo is preparing to begin delivery of its first Oklahoma-built units, with the initial batch going to the state.
Canoo is set to begin delivering its first units of the Lifestyle Delivery Vehicle (LDV), produced at its Oklahoma City plant, to the state’s Office of Management and Enterprise Services (OMES), according to a press release shared on Monday. OMES plans to purchase its first three LDV units by the end of this year, and the parties have an agreement with Oklahoma for as many as 1,000 of the LDVs while Canoo continues ramping manufacturing.
“We are proud to be part of this historic moment as Canoo builds momentum on its road to full-scale production,” Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt said in the release. “This marks Oklahoma’s return to vehicle manufacturing and proves ‘The Sooner State’ is the right place to grow cutting-edge businesses and create new jobs.”
The milestone marks the beginning of Canoo’s plans for phased-ramp manufacturing in Oklahoma, with the company planning to continue ramping production in the coming years. The release also says that unit deliveries will be made to Canoo’s key customers and partners in the remainder of this year, and the company plans to increase delivered units in 2024.
Additionally, the electric vehicle (EV) maker is hiring at both its Oklahoma City and Pryor facilities, expected to create as many as 1,300 jobs. The automaker also announced its American Bulldog pickup just last week, entering the increasingly-competitive electric truck sector.
Sculpted with grit, powered by innovation. The American Bulldog is paving new trails for the next generation of EV technology.#EV #Canoo #AmericanBulldog pic.twitter.com/dfl0Ptz2Ol
— Canoo (@canoo) November 10, 2023
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“It’s an honor to partner with the state of Oklahoma and its workforce to create a legacy for electric vehicles in America’s Heartland,” Canoo Chairman and CEO Tony Aquila said.
“What is inspiring to me is that it takes just a small group of innovators and hardworking believers who find a way to win. I want to thank Governor Stitt and his team for believing in us. We want our vehicles to provide service to Oklahomans who have been our partners through this journey.”
The LDVs are built on Canoo’s configurable, multi-purpose platform and are intended for commercial and government fleet customers. Last December, Canoo delivered its very first units, Light Tactical Vehicles (LTVs), to the U.S. Army. In July, the startup also delivered three Crew Transportation Vehicles (CTVs) to NASA.
Canoo says the vehicles are also made to help fleet operators cut operating costs, a point that was reiterated in the announcement by OMES Executive Director John Suter.
“We are excited to add Canoo vehicles to the state’s pooled fleet as part of a broader initiative to improve efficiency, cut waste and improve stewardship of taxpayer dollars,” Suter said. “We look forward to evaluating these new assets and the role they can play in modernizing Oklahoma’s vehicle use.”
The startup has also elicited large fleet orders from commercial customers, including Walmart, Zeeba and Kingbee.
Updated 11/15/23: Corrected the second paragraph to note that OMES is purchasing the initial units by the end of this year, after originally reporting that the first few units had already begun delivery.
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Canoo continues rapid production expansion with yet another new facility
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Tesla Energy has introduced the Powerwall Lease in conjunction with Tesla Electric, making the service available in Texas. This new option delivers whole-home backup power using two Powerwall units for a net monthly cost of $35 after credits, accompanied by a low fixed electricity rate.
Under the lease terms, customers pay a one-time order fee of $100. The base lease payment for the two Powerwalls is approximately $122 per month during the first year, subject to a 3 percent annual escalator thereafter. Enrollment in a qualifying Tesla Electric Backup plan or Virtual Power Plant plan provides an $87 monthly credit.
Powerwall Lease is now available with Tesla Electric in Texas
Whole-home backup for $35/month, with a low fixed electricity rate
– Two Powerwalls, $0 installation
– Storm Watch outage protection
– One app to manage it all pic.twitter.com/oTzqc6K3aF— Tesla Energy (@teslaenergy) August 13, 2026
This credit lowers the effective cost to roughly $35 per month plus applicable tax.
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Installation of the standard system carries no additional charge. The package features Storm Watch for outage protection and allows complete management through a single Tesla application. The system supplies continuous whole-home backup capability.
The Powerwall system enables households to maintain electricity during severe storms that disrupt the utility grid. When outages occur, the batteries automatically provide seamless backup power to the home.
Tesla announces 100k Powerwalls are participating in Virtual Power Plants
Tesla Storm Watch monitors weather forecasts and ensures the units are fully charged ahead of anticipated severe weather events so that power remains available throughout the disruption, keeping lights, refrigeration, and other essential systems operating without interruption.
Availability is restricted to select Texas locations where retail electric choice exists. Participants must lease exactly two Powerwall units and maintain continuous enrollment with Tesla Electric. Solar panels cannot be included under this particular lease arrangement.
The monthly credit activates automatically once the system is installed, receives permission to operate, and enrollment is confirmed. To retain the credit, customers are required to stay enrolled in Tesla Electric and fulfill all program conditions.
Nonstandard installations that involve electrical upgrades or special permitting may lead to extra expenses and might impact eligibility for the credit, so be sure to check with either your installer or Tesla to ensure you will still qualify.
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Elon Musk continues to tease the unveiling event for the Tesla Roadster, a continuing trend that has grown into a bigger game of “When” for fans who have been waiting years for the car to finally enter production.
A video shared on X of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast that Musk appeared on last year, teasing the Roadster unveiling, was shared once again on the social media platform. The poster said the Roadster event will be “unforgettable.”
Musk agreed:
Yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2026
The timing is interesting because just yesterday, Musk said that we will be getting flying cars, and for years, Tesla has hinted that it could develop a SpaceX cold gas thruster package that would help the car float or fly for a short period of time.
It would be reasonable to assume Tesla’s major delays with this unveiling event are likely caused by the company’s need to break the rules and push the envelope on nearly everything. Last July, Lars Moravy, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, said:
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“Roadster is definitely in development. We did talk about it last Sunday night. We are gearing up for a super cool demo. It’s going to be mind blowing. We showed Elon some cool demos last week of the tech we’ve been working on and he got a little excited.”
The latest updates that Tesla has given us are that the Roadster is in design development, and it did have several potential dates for an unveiling event this year, including April. It was then pushed to August.
However, there are no clues as to when Tesla will be ready, and fans are certainly getting frustrated with the delays.
For what it is worth, Franz von Holzhausen told Jay Leno this week that the event would be “very soon.”
We sure hope.
Lifestyle
Tesla’s driverless Cybercab just passed a big test with State Governor
Florida’s governor rode Tesla’s Cybercab at a closed test track and called the experience impressive.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis rode in a Tesla Cybercab on a closed test track this week and came away impressed, posting on X that the vehicle “successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.” He called the ride “impressive.”
The stop was part of a broader event Monday at SunTrax, a 775 acre state owned proving ground in Auburndale that Florida built specifically to test autonomous and connected vehicles before they reach public roads. Standing next to a gold Cybercab, DeSantis described the car in plain terms: “You go in there and you just sit. You have a screen. There’s no steering wheel, no pedals. Clearly these things could be very beneficial.”
We took a ride on a robotaxi on the Suntrax course and it successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.
Impressive! https://t.co/FVAkzFLz3r
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) August 11, 2026
DeSantis paired the praise with a caveat that has followed autonomous vehicles since the category existed. “You don’t want to be in an autonomous vehicle and it drives you into a ditch. That would not be good,” he said, framing safety validation as the gate before wider deployment.
SunTrax, the 2.25 mile oval which the state calls the only high speed autonomous vehicle test track in the Southeast, can simulate rain, pedestrian crossings, hills and crowded urban conditions at highway speeds, letting companies push a car past what an early public rollout would risk. Tesla, Waymo and Beep all use the facility, and Florida’s regulatory approach, among the most permissive for autonomous vehicles in the country, doesn’t require a human operator inside a fully autonomous car.
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Tesla has reason to want the blessing of Florida and states beyond, as the Cybercab entered volume production at Gigafactory Texas this spring and has since self certified as SAE Level 4 under Texas law. Public road testing so far has kept a safety monitor in the passenger seat, and Florida is where Tesla has been expanding its existing Model Y based Robotaxi service instead, adding Miami in July and then Orlando and Tampa two weeks later. A closed track endorsement from a sitting governor doesn’t change any of that, but it does put Tesla’s newest hardware in front of a state that has already shown it will move fast on rules.
Tesla launches Powerwall Lease for affordable home backup
Elon Musk teases Tesla Roadster unveiling once again
