SOSV announced this morning that construction on a $50 million HAX facility in Newark, New Jersey, will begin soon. The facility will focus on fostering industrial, healthcare, and climate companies. The New Jersey Economic Development Authority provided $25 million for the five-year development plan.
The facility is expected to debut in June 2022, with a focus on early-stage American entrepreneurs preparing for their seed round. While HAX’s initial concentration was on wearables, SOSV reports that in recent years, the accelerator’s focus has changed to industrial and healthcare, which now account for 70% and 20% of its portfolio, respectively.
Lucid originally intended to sell only one version of the Lucid Air Dream Edition, which would be the sedan’s first and most expensive variant. The Lucid Air Dream Edition Range, which has 520 miles of range and 933 horsepower when equipped with 19-inch tires, and the Lucid Air Dream Edition Performance, which has 1,111 horsepower and can go 471 miles on a single charge when equipped with 19-inch tires, are now available. When the vehicles are equipped with 21-inch tires, the range of the Dream Edition Range drops to 481 miles and the Dream Edition Performance drops to 451 miles.
Newark was chosen for a variety of reasons, including its closeness to New York City and the presence of colleges such as Princeton and Rutgers. It also has more room than, say, Manhattan, which is an obvious requirement for industrial companies. That’s why firms like AeroFarms and Bowery have chosen the area as the location for their large vertical farming facilities.
The fact that the state was willing to cover almost half of the project’s cost probably didn’t hurt, either. New Jersey, without a doubt, has a vested interest in welcoming hardware startups.
It will be interesting to see what kind of incentives local governments can provide to help them stay in their current location and avoid the allure of nearby NYC. In a statement, NJEDA CEO Tim Sullivan said, “Growing New Jersey’s innovation economy both creates high-quality jobs today and generates opportunities for exponential returns in the future.” “As New Jersey startups grow and scale, they construct buildings, hire more employees, and serve as anchors for vibrant communities and small-business supply chains.”
The Newark location, according to SOSV, will function as a U.S. counterpart to its operations in Shenzhen, China, which provides convenient access to the worldwide supply chain. San Francisco, Tokyo, and New York are all home to HAX satellites.
