LUCID
X: LUCID MOTORS

Lucid Group has cut nearly a fifth of its US workforce and scrapped the chief operating officer role altogether, the clearest sign yet that the California‑based electric vehicle maker is racing to stay afloat in a slowing market.

The company disclosed the cuts in a regulatory filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, 22 June 2026. It is Lucid's second mass lay‑off in four months and comes barely three weeks after Silvio Napoli formally took the helm as chief executive. Outgoing chief operating officer Marc Winterhoff, who briefly ran the company as interim CEO earlier this year, left with immediate effect once his post was abolished.

A Brutal Restructuring Plan At Lucid

According to Lucid's Form 8‑K filed with the SEC, the company is reducing its current US workforce by approximately 18 per cent, covering full‑time employees, contractors and hourly production workers in manufacturing. The filing states the plan is designed to advance the company's path toward profitability and positive cash‑flow generation by streamlining its organisational structure, optimising operating expenses and aligning production plans with anticipated demand.

As part of the overhaul, Lucid has eliminated the second shift of production at its AMP‑1 factory in Casa Grande, Arizona. The filing projects the plan will deliver annualised cost savings of approximately $158 million (roughly £119 million), while the company expects to absorb cash charges of approximately $32 million related to severance, employee benefits and employee transition, around £24 million. Lucid says it expects to substantially complete the plan by the end of the third quarter of 2026, subject to local law and consultation requirements.

This is not Lucid's first cull this year. The company had already cut around 12 per cent of its US workforce in February, meaning two waves of job losses have hit the carmaker inside a single fiscal year. Based on Lucid's most recently disclosed headcount, the latest reduction is understood to affect roughly 1,500 employees, arriving just four months after the earlier cut.

Winterhoff's Exit Caps A Turbulent Year At The Top

Marc Winterhoff's departure closes out one of the more dramatic executive sagas in the EV sector this year. He had stepped in as interim chief executive following the exit of long‑serving CEO Peter Rawlinson, who left in February 2025 after twelve years building the company from the ground up. Lucid's own SEC filing from that period quoted Rawlinson saying he was 'incredibly proud of the accomplishments the Lucid team have achieved together' during his tenure.

Winterhoff held the interim chief executive title until Silvio Napoli, formerly chairman and chief executive of Swiss lift manufacturer Schindler Group, assumed the permanent CEO role on 1 June 2026. At that point Winterhoff reverted to chief operating officer and began reporting to Napoli, according to Lucid's own press release announcing the transition. Now, three weeks later, the COO function he once again occupied has ceased to exist.

According to the terms disclosed in Lucid's SEC filing, Winterhoff's exit was effective immediately and, as part of his departure, he will receive severance, certain security support and will be able to keep his company vehicle. The decision to eliminate the post rather than replace him suggests Napoli intends to flatten Lucid's leadership structure rather than simply rotate personnel.

Cash Burn, Inventory Glut And A Make‑Or‑Break Bet

The cuts reflect a company under sustained financial strain. Lucid disclosed it lost $2.7 billion on revenue of $1.35 billion in 2025, even as deliveries grew. The company has also suspended its forward guidance after Napoli began evaluating its business operations, stating it needs to lower its 'elevated inventory' of vehicles, which typically forces manufacturers to slow or pause production.

Lucid is betting heavily on two forthcoming mass-market models, the Cosmos and the Earth, to reverse its fortunes. The company has said the Cosmos crossover is expected to start around $50,000, about £37,700, positioning it directly against the Tesla Model Y and Rivian R2, with production slated to begin before the end of this year. The Earth model is due to follow by the end of 2027.

The company remains majority‑owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, which has repeatedly stepped in to fund Lucid's losses and helped engineer April's roughly £790 million ($1.05 billion) stock raise alongside continued backing from ride‑hailing partner Uber. Napoli has framed his early priorities around discipline rather than expansion, telling Lucid's board he intends to focus on 'cost competitiveness and streamlining our organisation and processes.'

For roughly 1,500 former Lucid workers, the company's pursuit of profitability has come at the cost of their jobs, and for Marc Winterhoff, it has come at the cost of the role he held twice over.

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