SF Motors to acquire EV battery module startup InEVit, headed by Martin Eberhard
20 October 2017
SF Motors, a Silicon Valley electric vehicle (EV) company and subsidiary of Shanghai-based Sokon Industry Group, has acquired InEVit Inc., an electric vehicle (EV) battery modularization startup headed by former Tesla CEO Martin Eberhard.
InEVit has developed and patented a novel EV chassis architecture, battery module design innovations, and manufacturing techniques that it says will allow the EV industry to scale up the manufacturing of cost-and-feature-competitive vehicles rapidly. The pre-revenue company will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of SF Motors, and will continue to market and license its innovations to competitive vehicle OEMs.
InEVit has been working on a chemistry- and form-factor-agnostic battery module design. With this merger, SF Motors aims to further increase its investment in the development of e-powertrain systems and broaden its licensing and supply relationships with global OEM customers.
Eberhard had previously worked with SF Motors as a key strategic advisor, and will now serve as Chief Innovation Officer and Vice Chairman of SF Motors’ Board when he joins the company. In this new role, Eberhard will primarily focus on technology innovation, product development, product positioning and branding—all with the goal of helping SF Motors meet global EV demands.
InEVit’s expertise, patented technologies and manufacturing techniques will be leveraged to help SF Motors rapidly and profitably scale e-powertrain production for its own future products, and will look to license this technology to other automakers to help speed zero emission vehicle proliferation across the industry.
Other key members of the InEVit leadership team will join SF Motors in senior roles. Heiner Fees will now serve on the SF Motors Innovation Committee and continue as Managing Director of InEVit GmbH, while company CEO Mike Miskovsky will become SF Motors’ Chief Development Officer while also retaining his prior title at InEVit.
In June 2017, SF Motors and AM General announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which SF Motors will acquire AM General’s commercial assembly plant (CAP). The transaction, which includes the acquisition of the land, plant and certain auto manufacturing equipment exclusively associated with the CAP, does not impact AM General’s separate military assembly plant (MAP) or military-related business, which is AM General’s core business.
The two plants have always operated independently, and following the close of the transaction, they will be totally separate and independent companies. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Sokon Industry Group, a publicly-traded company listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange that is principally engaged in the research and development, manufacturing and sales of automobiles, engines and accessories, recently established a US-based headquarters in Silicon Valley as the first step in launching a dedicated electric vehicle (EV) clean mobility brand on the West Coast, known as SF Motors.
The company has also established a research and development (R&D) facility outside Ann Arbor, Michigan. Sokon’s primary business comprises automobile manufacturing, engine manufacturing and auto parts manufacturing. SF Motors will use the CAP facility to produce intelligent electric vehicles and expects to source subassemblies, parts and materials for its new operations at the facility predominantly from US sources, which would support US supply chain jobs.
Comments