Who is Lucid Motors? Meet the upstart brand vying to take the EV crown

Meet the luxury electric brand still chasing the EV dream

The original electric disrupter being challenged by new upstarts. It's a tale as old as time. Or, well, it's a tale as old as Tesla.

Polestar took on the challenge and won, with the Polestar 2 posing a viable – and very good – alternative to the Tesla Model 3. Meanwhile, Lucid Motors entered the electric ring with the Lucid Air – a genuine rival to the Tesla Model S.

Its sights are set on the top of the luxury tree, with Lucid positioning the Air as an environmentally friendly alternative to the three big German limos: the Audi A8, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and the BMW 7 Series.

And with former Tesla VP and the so-called 'father' of the Tesla Model S, Peter Rawlinson, at the helm, Lucid has big dreams to conquer the electric world.

But in a market now flooded with compelling alternatives – from BYD's global success to MG's affordable excellence – does Lucid's luxury approach still hold water?

The history of Lucid Motors

Though it might feel like the new kid on the EV block, Lucid isn't a new brand.

It's been around in one form or another since 2007 when the company was founded under the name Atieva. For years Atieva's focus was on electric vehicle batteries, and the brand was best known for supplying those batteries to Formula E race cars.

The company rebranded as Lucid Motors in October 2016, and announced its intention to develop an electric, high-performance luxury car.

The entry-level model, the Lucid Air Pure, was unveiled at the same time, while the full line-up includes the Lucid Air Touring, Grand Touring, and Dream Edition models.

December 2019 saw Lucid break ground on its first factory in Casa Grande, Arizona – the first greenfield facility for electric vehicle manufacturing in the US. Production began in 2021, though scaling up has proved more challenging than initially hoped.

And like many of the other innovative brands pushing the automotive world forward, Lucid is making sure that it's ready to tackle the challenges of the EV world – though competition has intensified dramatically since their launch.

Technology remains at the forefront of every manufacturer, but Lucid's conviction that its ability to adapt quickly would draw consumers away from traditional combustion engines has been tested by the rapid emergence of brands like BYD, which went from relative unknown to the world's second-largest EV manufacturer.

The Lucid Air remains the company's flagship, though they've since launched the Lucid Gravity SUV.

Their ambitious plan to produce an EV costing less than $25,000 remains on the horizon – a welcome addition to what can be an expensive landscape, especially as affordable options like the MG4 EV and BYD Dolphin continue to prove popular.

Everything you need to know about the Lucid Air

With its sleek nose, hidden headlights, and panoramic glass roof, the futuristic Lucid Air remains a luxurious place to while away the hours.

Lucid has done a fantastic job of making sure that it emulates, but doesn't mimic, the vehicles it has clearly drawn inspiration from.

The brief for the Lucid Air boiled down to one key thing: power and performance packed into an electric vehicle with S-Class-esque interior space and an exterior smaller than the Tesla Model S.

Okay, that might technically be more than one thing.

But it is a triumph.

The interior, though minimalist, is the height of premium luxury, with a digital instrument cluster behind the wheel, large portrait touchscreen dominating the centre of the dash, and – wait for it – actual buttons to control different aspects of the car, including the climate.

Yes, that's right. Buttons.

Lucid has bucked the trend of sticking every single control into the infotainment screen and binning off buttons.

It's a welcome change and doesn't detract from the luxury experience – something that's become even more appreciated as other manufacturers follow Tesla's button-free approach.

Where Tesla is cutting edge, Lucid is going after the old-school premium buyer, wanting to entice them away from the old guard by offering a sense of premium familiarity in a car that happens to have a battery.

The stats for the Air remain impressive too.

Lucid isn’t just talking the talk – they're walking the walk.

Best known for its Formula E batteries, it's no real surprise that the company has developed its own 'sculpted' battery pack that sits under the floor and allows for more space inside the cabin.

And it's this battery that gives the Air a claimed range of over 500 miles on certain variants – figures that are still ahead of the luxury EV pack today.

But can I buy a Lucid Air in the UK?

Still not yet, unfortunately.

Lucid started shipping the first Air models to customers in the US in late 2021, and has since expanded to selected European countries and the Middle East. Production has ramped up gradually, though not as quickly as initially projected.

A right-hand-drive version for the UK market has been discussed but remains unconfirmed. While we wait for Lucid to arrive, the UK EV market has exploded with choice – from Mercedes-Benz's impressive EQS and EQE range to affordable options like the MG ZS EV and characterful alternatives like the GWM ORA 03.

You can still reserve the Air, though given the uncertain UK timeline, it might be worth exploring what's available today.

Has the King been dethroned?

While Tesla may have lost some of its early dominance, it wasn't Lucid that delivered the knockout blow. Instead, BYD has not only caught up, but overtaken them and left them in the rear view mirror.

But when it comes to electric cars, there's no such thing as too many cooks in the kitchen.

The EV landscape of 2025 is far richer than when Lucid first appeared – BYD has become a global force, Polestar continues to innovate, and even traditional brands like BMW and Mercedes-Benz are delivering compelling electric alternatives.

Even luxury brand Lotus has unveiled an all-electric car, the Eletre, that's giving Luxe with a Capital L vibes - and arguably beating Lucid at their own game by actually being available to UK customers.

Lucid remains an exciting proposition for those seeking the absolute pinnacle of electric luxury, if and when it arrives here in the UK. There's no denying that Lucid has lofty ambitions, matched by genuine engineering excellence.

Whether those ambitions translate into UK market success remains to be seen.

In the meantime, the electric revolution continues – and you don't have to wait to be part of it.