The once promising electric vehicle manufacturer Canoo has seen better days, now facing the aftermath of substantial layoffs and plant shutdowns in Oklahoma. According to KFOR, Canoo, which had previously received over $100 million in state-funded incentives, announced it had furloughed its remaining workers in the state and would be "idling" its two plants on Wednesday.
In light of the recent developments, a former Canoo employee raised concerns, indicating that warning signs of the company's shaky foundation were apparent even before the relocation to Oklahoma took place. Despite the company's claim of having built its first few vehicles in Oklahoma City, the ex-employee revealed in an exclusive interview with KFOR that they were in fact constructed by a different company in Texas. "I just kept seeing their stocks going lower and lower," the former employee said, expressing doubt about Canoo's ability to recover financially.
Compounding the company's woes, another former high-level employee, speaking to NWA Homepage, criticized Canoo's management, stating, "Everybody was a boss, and everybody wanted to be everybody’s boss… everybody had a director title, so nobody’s doing anything." This former employee had voluntarily left the company after foreseeing the imminent downfall.
With Canoo's stocks plummeting to 13 cents per share, the company's future hangs in the balance. The Oklahoma Department of Commerce stated it has only awarded Canoo $1 million to date, despite the larger promised incentives, according to a report by Tahlequah Daily Press. Additionally, the department is exploring options to recoup the funds, if necessary — "After finding out about Canoo's decisions to furlough employees and idle its Oklahoma City factory, we are taking steps to protect taxpayers, and if necessary, will explore avenues to claw back public money," a spokesperson for the department said.
Canoo's narrative of a burgeoning EV manufacturer has clearly taken a negative turn, with ex-employees doubting the sincerity of the company's commitments and the state re-evaluating its financial support. As Oklahoma grapples with the fallout of Canoo's operational and financial troubles, the story serves as a reminder of the need for rigorous due diligence before large-scale investments in emerging technologies are made.
