Hidden within Canoo’s 2023 earnings report is a nugget about the use of CEO Tony Aquila’s private jet, just one of many expenses that illustrates the gap between expenses and income in electric vehicle startups.
Canoo released its fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 earnings on Monday in a regulatory document which shows a company burning cash as it tries to increase production volume of its commercial electric vehicles and avoid the same fate as other electric vehicle startups, such as the one that recently filed for bankruptcy. Arrival. The regulatory filing once again contained a “going concern” warning, which has persisted since 2022 – as well as some progress on the spending and income fronts.
The company generated $886,000 in revenue in 2023 compared to zero dollars in 2022, as the company delivered 22 vehicles to entities such as NASA and the state of Oklahoma. And it cut its operating losses by almost half, from $506 million in 2022 to $267 million in 2023. However, the gap between revenue and losses remains considerable: the company reported total net losses of $302.6 million in 2023.
Still, you only have to look at what Canoo is paying to charter the CEO’s private jet to put those “victories” into perspective. Under an agreement reached in November 2020, Canoo reimburses Aquila Family Ventures, an entity owned by the CEO, for the use of an aircraft. In 2023, Canoo spent $1.7 million on this refund, or double the revenue it generated. Canoo paid Aquila Family Ventures $1.3 million in 2022 and $1.8 million in 2021 for use of the aircraft.
Separately, Canoo also paid Aquila Family Ventures $1.7 million in 2023, $1.1 million in 2022 and $500,000 in 2021 for shared services support at its corporate office facility in Justin, Texas, according to regulatory documents.
This could be attributed to small monetary gains if Canoo hits its 2024 revenue guidance of between $50 million and $100 million.
We have asked Canoo for a comment and will update this post if we receive a response.