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Exclusive: A talk with Derek Jenkins, VP of Design at Lucid Motors
The following post comes courtesy of NextMobility.co
I recently had a chance to talk with Lucid Motors VP of Design, Derek Jenkins, about the design philosophy behind the company’s ultra-luxurious Lucid Air. The Silicon Valley-based electric car startup founded in 2007 as Atieva has raised over $130M to date and on the precipice of achieving something no other electric car company within this space, outside of Tesla, has been able to do at scale – float a beautifully executed vision of the not-so-distant future that the greater electric vehicle community actually believes will come to fruition. And, they absolutely can’t wait for it.
Development of Lucid’s electric car platform has been well underway since the beginning of the company, but it wasn’t until 2015 that the first vehicle: the Air, began to take shape. Jenkins, an industry veteran who joined the startup in 2015, is leading the design team at Lucid Motors.
Lucid is aiming directly at the German automakers that historically have dominated the luxury car market. “From the beginning, we were very much focused on a luxury product; we felt like there is still a big opportunity at that end of the market,” says Jenkins. Lucid believes that there will still be a significant amount of time before German luxury auto manufacturers introduce electric vehicles in a meaningful way. “There was a lot of open opportunity to do something that is more forward-facing and less based on tradition, that is kind of the foundation,” said Jenkins.
Lucid says they are taking full advantage of the electric powertrain and the “miniaturization” of the electric motors in their design process, customizing the platform to meet the needs of their design. Lucid’s electric motors, transmission, and differential are all “very compact” compared to the vehicle’s relative power output.
Jenkins tells me that their team rearranged the lithium ion cells in the battery pack to utilize two separate modules, as a way to put more emphasis on opening up interior space. Some areas of Lucid Air’s 130 kWh battery pack is double-stacked, which allowed their designers to maximize interior space by removing certain sections of the vehicle’s floor. The design of the battery pack is a far departure from the single “skateboard” style pack used by Tesla.
Jenkins tells me that they wanted the interior experience of the car to feel very open, airy, and light. They made the dashboard less bulky, decreased the weight of the doors and focused on letting more air into the car, hence arriving at the name ‘Air’.
Designing for an Autonomous Future
“It’s hard to say whether we will reach full level 5 autonomy in the life cycle of this vehicle.” Jenkins and the Lucid design team made the driver’s area focused on ergonomics. All touch screens are easily within reach and the vehicle is clearly designed with an incredible focus on passenger comfort.
“We’re designing the interior for a dual purpose. I look at that center screen to be used way more in autonomous mode so I can dive into my email or watch TV. You need to create something that someone can be more relaxed in autonomous mode.” – Derek Jenkins, VP of Design at Lucid Motors
Lucid decided not to integrate a fold-away steering wheel, something that other electric car makers are looking to integrate. “We still want the Air to be an amazing driving vehicle, something thoroughly enjoyable to drive and feel physically connected to the car,” says Jenkins.
One design feature that Jenkins highlighted was the Air’s use of brushed aluminum trim that is said to come with a big wow-factor. Designing a vehicle for the future while making it appealing to current customers was a constant balancing act for the Lucid design team.
Still, Lucid reemphasizes Air’s target market will be the typical German luxury sedan buyer. Jenkins says that the Air is designed to have an overall vehicle size of a mid-size luxury sedan (E-Class), but with the luxurious interior of a large luxury sedan (S-Class), and the driving performance and design of a coupe class (CLS-Class). “This is the redefinition of luxury in a real modern sense”.
Making the leap to Lucid Motors
Derek Jenkins, VP of Design at Lucid Motors
Jenkins joined Lucid Motors in July of 2015 and was previously Director of Design at Mazda North America. Jenkins has nearly 25 years of design experience from Audi, VW, and Mazda, and lead the design of many vehicles, including the new 2016 Mazda Miata, VW Scirocco Concept, and Mazda 6. Jenkins, an industry design leader, took a huge risk jumping from a leadership position at Mazda to a Silicon Valley startup, but has no regrets.
“I had been in the industry designing cars for over 20 years… I was sensing a lot of change in the horizon towards electrification; I witnessed the success at Tesla… It was just too attractive to pass up,” said Jenkins.
Lucid expects to attract customers that expect to have an ultra-luxurious interior in the form of a “private jet on wheels“, and new focus on technology and an advanced powertrain. While many are quick to jump to the conclusion that Lucid will have an uphill battle in a market dominated by Tesla, Jenkins says that they didn’t design the Air to be a “Tesla killer”. Rather, the company aims to produce a vehicle that is fundamentally different than Tesla’s offerings.
Jenkins notes that Lucid has been able to keep their headcount low during the development of the vehicle, so they can easily collaborate with other areas within the company and form quick divisions. “It’s a huge advantage, it’s really much more of a form and function exercise, for me as a designer. At the big companies, you are really styling over a given architecture. Here we are actually working together to create a great piece of design and engineering. That’s a big difference.”
First production of Lucid Air is expected in 2019. The company has been raising capital to fund development on a planned $700 million electric vehicle factory in Casa Grande, Arizona.
News
Tesla Model Y and Model 3 named safest vehicles tested by ANCAP in 2025
According to ANCAP in a press release, the Tesla Model Y achieved the highest overall weighted score of any vehicle assessed in 2025.
The Tesla Model Y recorded the highest overall safety score of any vehicle tested by ANCAP in 2025. The Tesla Model 3 also delivered strong results, reinforcing the automaker’s safety leadership in Australia and New Zealand.
According to ANCAP in a press release, the Tesla Model Y achieved the highest overall weighted score of any vehicle assessed in 2025. ANCAP’s 2025 tests evaluated vehicles across four key pillars: Adult Occupant Protection, Child Occupant Protection, Vulnerable Road User Protection, and Safety Assist technologies.
The Model Y posted consistently strong results in all four categories, distinguishing itself through a system-based safety approach that combines structural crash protection with advanced driver-assistance features such as autonomous emergency braking, lane support, and driver monitoring.
This marked the second time the Model Y has topped ANCAP’s annual safety rankings. The Model Y’s previous version was also ANCAP’s top performer in 2022.
The Tesla Model 3 also delivered a strong performance in ANCAP’s 2025 tests, contributing to Tesla’s broader safety presence across segments. Similar to the Model Y, the Model 3 also earned impressive scores across the ANCAP’s four pillars. This made the vehicle the top performer in the Medium Car category.
ANCAP Chief Executive Officer Carla Hoorweg stated that the results highlight a growing industry shift toward integrated safety design, with improvements in technologies such as autonomous emergency braking and lane support translating into meaningful real-world protection.
“ANCAP’s testing continues to reinforce a clear message: the safest vehicles are those designed with safety as a system, not a checklist. The top performers this year delivered consistent results across physical crash protection, crash avoidance and vulnerable road user safety, rather than relying on strength in a single area.
“We are also seeing increasing alignment between ANCAP’s test requirements and the safety technologies that genuinely matter on Australian and New Zealand roads. Improvements in autonomous emergency braking, lane support, and driver monitoring systems are translating into more robust protection,” Hoorweg said.
News
Tesla Sweden uses Megapack battery to bypass unions’ Supercharger blockade
Just before Christmas, Tesla went live with a new charging station in Arlandastad, outside Stockholm, by powering it with a Tesla Megapack battery.
Tesla Sweden has successfully launched a new Supercharger station despite an ongoing blockade by Swedish unions, using on-site Megapack batteries instead of traditional grid connections. The workaround has allowed the Supercharger to operate without direct access to Sweden’s electricity network, which has been effectively frozen by labor action.
Tesla has experienced notable challenges connecting its new charging stations to Sweden’s power grid due to industrial action led by Seko, a major Swedish trade union, which has blocked all new electrical connections for new Superchargers. On paper, this made the opening of new Supercharger sites almost impossible.
Despite the blockade, Tesla has continued to bring stations online. In Malmö and Södertälje, new Supercharger locations opened after grid operators E.ON and Telge Nät activated the sites. The operators later stated that the connections had been made in error.
More recently, however, Tesla adopted a different strategy altogether. Just before Christmas, Tesla went live with a new charging station in Arlandastad, outside Stockholm, by powering it with a Tesla Megapack battery, as noted in a Dagens Arbete (DA) report.
Because the Supercharger station does not rely on a permanent grid connection, Tesla was able to bypass the blocked application process, as noted by Swedish car journalist and YouTuber Peter Esse. He noted that the Arlandastad Supercharger is likely dependent on nearby companies to recharge the batteries, likely through private arrangements.
Eight new charging stalls have been launched in the Arlandastad site so far, which is a fraction of the originally planned 40 chargers for the location. Still, the fact that Tesla Sweden was able to work around the unions’ efforts once more is impressive, especially since Superchargers are used even by non-Tesla EVs.
Esse noted that Tesla’s Megapack workaround is not as easily replicated in other locations. Arlandastad is unique because neighboring operators already have access to grid power, making it possible for Tesla to source electricity indirectly. Still, Esse noted that the unions’ blockades have not affected sales as much.
“Many want Tesla to lose sales due to the union blockades. But you have to remember that sales are falling from 2024, when Tesla sold a record number of cars in Sweden. That year, the unions also had blockades against Tesla. So for Tesla as a charging operator, it is devastating. But for Tesla as a car company, it does not matter in terms of sales volumes. People charge their cars where there is an opportunity, usually at home,” Esse noted.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s X goes down as users report major outage Friday morning
Error messages and stalled loading screens quickly spread across the service, while outage trackers recorded a sharp spike in user reports.
Elon Musk’s X experienced an outage Friday morning, leaving large numbers of users unable to access the social media platform.
Error messages and stalled loading screens quickly spread across the service, while outage trackers recorded a sharp spike in user reports.
Downdetector reports
Users attempting to open X were met with messages such as “Something went wrong. Try reloading,” often followed by an endless spinning icon that prevented access, according to a report from Variety. Downdetector data showed that reports of problems surged rapidly throughout the morning.
As of 10:52 a.m. ET, more than 100,000 users had reported issues with X. The data indicated that 56% of complaints were tied to the mobile app, while 33% were related to the website and roughly 10% cited server connection problems. The disruption appeared to begin around 10:10 a.m. ET, briefly eased around 10:35 a.m., and then returned minutes later.
Previous disruptions
Friday’s outage was not an isolated incident. X has experienced multiple high-profile service interruptions over the past two years. In November, tens of thousands of users reported widespread errors, including “Internal server error / Error code 500” messages. Cloudflare-related error messages were also reported.
In March 2025, the platform endured several brief outages spanning roughly 45 minutes, with more than 21,000 reports in the U.S. and 10,800 in the U.K., according to Downdetector. Earlier disruptions included an outage in August 2024 and impairments to key platform features in July 2023.
Tesla Model Y and Model 3 named safest vehicles tested by ANCAP in 2025
Tesla Sweden uses Megapack battery to bypass unions’ Supercharger blockade
