LONDON (dpa-AFX) - British billionaire and inventor James Dyson said his company is working on developing a 'premium' electric car that will be launched by 2020. Dyson will spend $2.7 billion on the car and battery technology.
Dyson's namesake company, Dyson Ltd., is a maker of household appliances such as bagless vacuum cleaners, hand dryers, bladeless fans, heaters and hair dryers. The company's researchers have been working on battery technology since 2010.
Dyson said that 400 engineers have already spent two and a half years working on the electric car project in Malmesbury, Wiltshire.
However, the car has not yet been designed and the company has still not decided where it will be made. Dyson has already received funding from the British government to develop an electric car.
Last year, Dyson acquired battery start-up Sakti3, a University of Michigan spinoff, for $90 million.
Dyson is backing Sakti3's solid-state batteries rather than the lithium-ion technology being used in existing electric vehicles as it was deemed to be safer, reliable and longer-lasting than the most advanced lithium-ion batteries currently available.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX