The head of Jeff Bezos' family office, Melinda Lewison, has stepped down from the board of directors at Slate Auto, an electric vehicle startup supported by the Amazon founder. This change comes as Slate prepares to launch its low-cost electric truck later this year.
Recent state filings indicate that Lewison's resignation occurred in the past few months, leaving Bezos without direct representation on the board. Slate Auto has not provided comments regarding this development, nor have Lewison or Bezos responded to requests for clarification.
Lewison's exit raises concerns about Bezos' ongoing support for Slate, especially as he shifts focus to robotics through his new venture, Project Prometheus. This startup has reportedly raised over $6 billion and is seeking an additional $100 billion to invest in automating industrial companies with artificial intelligence.
The extent of Bezos' involvement in Slate Auto has always been somewhat unclear. The company has not disclosed the amount Bezos contributed during its initial funding round, which totaled around $120 million. Furthermore, it remains unconfirmed whether he participated in the Series B funding round that increased total investments to approximately $700 million.
Recently, Slate Auto announced a $650 million Series C funding round, naming only TWG Global as a lead investor, with confirmation of participation from Slauson & Co, an existing investor.
Chris Barman, the former CEO of Slate, described Bezos as “pretty hands-off” during a recent event, indicating that while he engaged with the team at one point, he largely allowed them to focus on bringing the vehicle to market.
Despite this, Slate Auto is heavily influenced by Amazon alumni, co-founded by former Amazon Consumer CEO Jeff Wilke. The current CEO, Peter Faricy, is also a former VP at Amazon Marketplace, and many divisions are led by ex-Amazon employees.
