REE Partners With Magna To Bring Modular Electric Vehicles To Market

Israeli startup REE Automotive, the mobility company that announced a merger with 10X Capital Venture Acquisition Corp. to go public in February, signed a collaboration agreement with Canadian mobility tech firm Magna International to roll out full-fledged Modular Electric Vehicles (MEVs) for tech companies and new electric mobility players under the ‘Powered by REE’ brand, the company said on Tuesday.

Magna makes cars for Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Jaguar, and other automotive brands.

The strategic collaboration will explore the combination of REE’s REEcorner technology, which integrates critical vehicle components into an area between the chassis and the wheel – the “corners,” with Magna’s vehicle systems integration expertise and world-class manufacturing capabilities to develop MEVs that allow clients to customize vehicles based on their specifications and branding.

REE emerged from stealth mode in July 2019 after six years in development to introduce its unprecedented approach to vehicles specifically for the electric vehicle (EV) market. The company developed an entirely flat and modular platform in which the motor, steering, suspension, drivetrain, sensing, brakes, thermal systems, and electronics are all integrated into the vehicle’s wheels.

The flat design offers customers the freedom to place any shape or size of body design on top, the company has said.

REE co-founder and CEO Daniel Barel said in the company statement that he was “thrilled” to reach the agreement with Magna, which could put the company on the “fast track” to support a broad range of electric vehicles (EVs.)

“We see a growing demand for highly modular EVs from leading tech companies and new electric mobility players who have set their sights on entering the EV realm and building a brand in automotive.  REE and Magna working together under the ‘Powered by REE’ approach can help bring their vision to life,” he added.

“The evolving mobility landscape is opening new business model opportunities for Magna with our systems capability and unique ability to design, engineer, and assemble vehicles,” said Eric Wilds, chief sales and marketing officer at Magna.  “We are excited about our collaboration with REE and our ability to offer another capability to support potential new customers and Mobility-as-a-Service.”

The two parties also said they will explore potential collaboration in global mobility through the creation of a Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) venture in the Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) sector that leverages REE’s proprietary tech as well as Magna’s footprint and capabilities.