Fisker

In 2007, Henrik Fisker and Bernhard Koehler founded Fisker Automotive. The company produced the Fisker Karma, which debuted in 2008 and was first delivered in 2011. Production was suspended in 2012 due to the bankruptcy of its battery supplier A123 Systems, after approximately 2,000 of the vehicles had been sold worldwide. In 2014, Fisker Automotive's assets were purchased by Wanxiang Group, which renamed its new company Karma Automotive. Henrik Fisker retained the Fisker trademarks and brand.On October 3, 2016, chairman and CEO Henrik Fisker announced the formation of Fisker Inc., an American automaker designing and developing innovative electric vehicles with a longer range, autonomous driving capability, and advanced battery technology, with his co-founder wife Geeta Gupta-Fisker as president and CFO. Fisker stated in July 2016 that he was planning on designing a fully connected electric car with autonomous driving features and an aesthetically pleasing look. On October 31, 2016, Fisker Inc. released the design and specifications of the forthcoming electric vehicle, the Fisker EMotion.In November 2017, the company announced the development of the Orbit, a fully autonomous, connected, electric shuttle, intended to service smart cities, public airports and campuses. That month, Fisker Inc. announced it had filed patents on flexible solid-state battery designs, with the batteries expected to be produced on a mass scale around 2020.In September 2018, the company announced the development of a mass-market all-electric luxury SUV.On July 8, 2020, Fisker announced the completion of a $50 million Series C financing round funded by Moore Strategic Ventures, the private investment arm of Louis Bacon.On July 13, 2020, Henrik Fisker announced that Fisker Inc would offer an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange through a merger with special-purpose acquisition company Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. , which is backed by private equity firm Apollo Global Management. The deal values Fisker Inc at US$2.9 billion. On October 29, 2020, Fisker announced it completed the reverse merger with Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp . As of October 30, 2020, Fisker is publicly listed and traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FSR.On July 27, 2020, Fisker announced it was in discussions with Extreme E, an all-electric off-road motor racing series, on a partnership, and potentially entering a works team in Extreme E's inaugural five-race 2021 season. The series is tentatively scheduled to hold races in areas affected by climate issues, including Senegal, Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Greenland, and Brazil.On July 30, 2020, Fisker announced plans for a four-vehicle portfolio by 2025. The Fisker Ocean SUV will be joined by a sports sedan based on their previously announced Fisker Emotion concept, a coupe-like SUV, and a lifestyle pickup truck. All will be electric vehicles.On September 24, 2020, Fisker opened a new technology center in San Francisco, to be a focal point for the development of the company's software and vehicle electronics. On October 14, 2020, Fisker announced its new global headquarters will be located in Manhattan Beach in Los Angeles County, California. Named Inception, it will include design and engineering facilities.On October 15, 2020, Fisker announced it would be outsourcing vehicle production of its Fisker Ocean electric SUV to Magna Steyr, an Austrian-based manufacturer that specializes in contract manufacturing, in order to reduce the complexities and costs related to the building and operating its own factory. Fisker plans on utilizing Magna's electric vehicle platform, and will be giving Magna a stake of up to 6% of Fisker equity. Magna will start building the Fisker Ocean in Europe in 2022.In October 2020, Viggo, a newly-founded Danish ride-hailing service, ordered 300 Fisker Oceans, to be delivered in late 2022. In March 2021, Fisker announced it had agreed with Crédit Agricole Consumer Finance on the potential supply of Fisker Ocean SUVs to the European banking group. In May 2021, Fisker announced an agreement with UK electric car subscription service Onto to supply the company with up to 700 Fisker Ocean SUVs in 2023.On February 24, 2021, it was revealed that Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn is in talks to manufacture Fisker's second production model. As of May 2021, the model is being referred to as Project Personal Electric Automotive Revolution, or Project PEAR. Foxconn plans on producing up to 250,000 units a year for Fisker, and aims to start production by the end of 2023. In October 2021, it was announced that Foxconn would purchase a former GM plant from Lordstown Motors, and that the company would use the facility to produce electric vehicles for Fisker as well as Lordstown.In May 2021, Fisker and Sharp announced an agreement for Sharp to supply screens and other such components to a series of upcoming Fisker vehicles. Following a visit by Henrik and Geeta Fisker with Pope Francis in Rome, it was announced that Fisker will produce a custom-made electric Popemobile SUV for Pope Francis, the first emissions-free, all-electric vehicle made for the Pope. It will be based on the Fisker Ocean SUV.Fisker aims to have four vehicles to market by 2025. In addition, the company has set a goal of creating its first climate-neutral vehicle by 2027.In 2021, Fisker teamed with the Motor Press Guild to create the annual Fisker-MPG Scholarship for Journalism, awarding $1,500 to a college student pursuing a degree in journalism.On June 28, 2021, Fisker stock was added to the Russell 3000 Index.In July 2021, Fisker announced that it would be opening "global brand experience centers" in the US and Europe. The first location will open in Los Angeles, followed by one in Munich, in the first half of 2022. Other centers are planned for New York, Miami, London, and Copenhagen.On July 28, 2021, Fisker announced it would invest $10 million in private investment in public equity funding in the EV charging company Allego's merger with Spartan Acquisition Corp III. The deal will include a free year of charging on the Allego network for drivers in Europe who purchase a Fisker Ocean SUV from 2023 through March 2024.In August 2021, Fisker and Bridgestone announced a partnership in which Bridgestone would be the exclusive tire supplier for the Fisker Ocean SUV. Custom-developed Bridgestone Potenza Sport tires will be used on models in Europe and some in North America, with other models using Bespoke Alenza Sport tires.In October 2021, Fisker Inc. announced the establishment of Fisker Magic Works, its UK division, led by David King, responsible for specialty vehicle engineering and development. The division will focus on low-volume, specialty, and custom products.In November 2021, Fisker and Contemporary Amperex Technology announced a deal for CATL to supply battery packs for the Fisker Ocean SUV. CATL will provide two different battery packs for the vehicle, with an initial battery capacity of over 5 gigawatt-hours annually, from 2023 to 2025. The primary high-capacity pack uses a lithium nickel manganese cobalt cell chemistry, and the second pack uses CATL's newest cells based on lithium-ion phosphate chemistry.In January 2022, Henrik Fisker announced that Fisker Inc. is setting up its first India entity, a global technology center, in Hyderabad. The company has started recruitment for the center, and plans to have a team of 300 software engineers, working mainly on software technologies. The company plans to set up a manufacturing plant in India for the PEAR, in collaboration with Foxconn. Fisker Inc. and Foxconn plan on producing 1 million units of the PEAR initially.