Canoo, an electric vehicle startup founded in 2017, has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and ceased all operations. The company’s downfall came after it failed to secure crucial funding from both the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office and foreign sources.
Company Background and Recent Developments
Canoo had managed to build a handful of electric vans for several major clients, including Walmart and the United States Postal Service (USPS), over the past few years. Despite these achievements, the company’s ambitious plans for a lineup of snub-nosed electric trucks and vans have come to an end.
The EV startup, which relocated its headquarters from California to Texas in 2024, announced its Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing late last week. This legal move will result in the federal appointment of a trustee who will oversee the liquidation of Canoo’s assets and the payment of debts to its creditors. The filing was officially submitted to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Delaware.
Failed Funding Efforts and Operational Halt
Canoo stated that it was unable to obtain the necessary funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office. Additionally, the company’s recent discussions to acquire capital from ‘foreign sources’ also failed to materialize. As a result, Canoo is ceasing all operations effective immediately.
Historical Context and Previous Achievements
Founded in 2017, Canoo initially gained attention in 2019 with the reveal of its Lifestyle Vehicle – a seven-seat passenger van with a unique, bubbly design. The company had planned to offer this vehicle via a subscription service starting in 2021. However, Canoo soon pivoted its focus to commercial vehicles, unveiling the boxy MPDV in 2020, which was promised to arrive by 2022. The company also showcased a cab-forward pickup truck in 2021, featuring an expandable bed and up to 600 horsepower, with production slated to begin in 2023.
Although these vehicles never reached mass production, Canoo made significant progress compared to many other EV startups. The brand eventually concentrated its efforts entirely on the LDV (Lifestyle Delivery Vehicle), a commercial-van version of the Lifestyle Vehicle. Canoo attracted interest from several major companies, including Hyundai Motor Group, which announced a partnership in 2020 to utilize Canoo’s ‘skateboard’ style for future EVs, though these plans never came to fruition.
In 2022, NASA selected Canoo to supply the Lifestyle Vehicle as crew transportation for its Artemis program. Walmart also entered into an agreement to purchase 4,500 LDVs. While Canoo never manufactured that many vehicles, Walmart-branded LDVs were spotted testing on public roads. The company also secured a contract from the U.S. Army in 2022 to outfit one of its pickup trucks as the Light Tactical Vehicle for military testing. Two additional contracts with fleet-rental companies, Zeeba in Los Angeles and Kingbee in Utah, followed before Canoo announced in 2024 that the USPS had ordered six right-hand-drive LDVs.
Unfortunately, the handful of Canoo vehicles produced over the past few years were likely closer to pre-production prototypes than final production vehicles. These test vehicles will remain the only Canoos to ever be seen on American roads.
