Hidden in 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 costs and revenues in EV startup.
Canoo on Monday reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 earnings in a regulatory filing That shows a company burning through cash as it tries to ramp up production volume of its commercial electric vehicles and avoid the same fate as other EV startups like the recently bankrupt Arrival. The regulatory filing once again contained a warning of “continuing concern” — which continues through 2022 — as well as some progress on the spending and revenue fronts.
The company generated $886,000 in revenue in 2023 compared to $0 in 2022 as the company delivered 22 vehicles to entities such as NASA and the state of Oklahoma. And it did cut its operating losses by nearly half, from $506 million in 2022 to $267 million in 2023. However, the revenue-to-loss gap is still significant: The company reported total net losses of $302.6 million in 2023.
However, one need only look at what Canoo is paying to charter the CEO’s private jet to put these “wins” into perspective. Under an agreement reached in November 2020, Canoo reimburses Aquila Family Ventures, an entity owned by the CEO, for use of an aircraft. In 2023, Canoo spent $1.7 million on this compensation—that’s double the revenue it generated. Canoo paid Aquila Family Ventures $1.3 million in 2022 and $1.8 million in 2021 for the 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 the corporate office in Justin, Texas, according to regulatory filings.
That could turn into small monetary potatoes if Canoo hits its 2024 revenue forecast of $50 million to $100 million.
We’ve reached out to Canoo for comment and will update this post if we hear back.
