Electric car company Faraday Future plans Tesla rival for CES 2016 ~ station of gear

The ultra-secretive American firm Faraday Future is said to be unveiling its first new car at the Consumer Electronics Show in January

2015-11-30 15:00

Faraday Future is likely to be an unfamiliar name to most people. It's an American car company that seems to be following Apple's mantra of extreme secrecy, with only vague hints about what it's producing. However the company has confirmed it's working on a Tesla-rivalling electric car, to be shown at CES next year ahead of a 2017 release.

Details are thin on the ground, but it's understood that the new car will have around 15% more battery capacity than the Tesla Model S, which should translate into a similar or even greater range than the Tesla's 310 miles. Faraday Future has poached employees from Tesla, Audi and BMW's i division, but in the interests of making a true vehicle for the connected future, its recruits also come from Apple, SpaceX, and Hulu.

The company won't confirm anything, but hinted at something akin to a subscription service, where customers are able to acquire a vehicle that suits their needs – a tiny vehicle for nipping around the city, or a larger car for trips to the shops. The company say this removes compromise, and allows customers the use of the perfect car model when they need it. The cars may even be autonomous – which is a sector that's rapidly being conquered both by automotive and technology companies like Google.

Whatever it produces, connectivity will be at the forefront. Faraday Future's senior Vice President told The Verge: "If I plan my journey, the car should know my journey and some of the places I want to visit along the way, because it knows my preferences. The car should begin to learn my desires."

The company has big plans, including a $1 billion factory to produce its vehicles in, but it hasn't specified where the money will come from. It's understood that some funding is coming from Chinese billionaire Jia Yueting, but speculation is that the start-up is linked to Apple.

We'll find out what it is the company has been so secretive about at the CES show, in January 2016.

Do you think Faraday Future has what it takes to go up against the mighty Tesla? Let us know in the comments...

Tom Wiltshire

Thank you for reading the article about Electric car company Faraday Future plans Tesla rival for CES 2016 in blog station of gear If this article was helpful please bookmark this page in your web browser by pressing Ctrl + D on your keyboard keys.