Telo Secures $20 million Series โA Funding to Advance Compact Electric Truck Development
SAN FRANCISCO,โ CA – โ Telo, a startup focused on building small-footprint electric vehicles, has announcedโค a $20 million Series A funding round. The investment will be used to โfinalize โคdevelopment of the MT1, a compact electric pickup truck designed for urban environments.
The funding will cover critical steps including vehicle homologation to U.S. safety standards and completion of necessary crash testing. According to telo CEO Jason Marks, theโ latter is particularly vital given โฃthe MT1’s unconventional, short wheelbase, โwhich has raised questions about safety.
Telo anticipates deliveringโฃ itsโ first MT1 trucks by theโฃ endโฃ of 2026. The company plans to operate with a lean structure, maintaining a core team of around 25 employees โwhile utilizing consultants and contractors, many with established relationships with Telo board member Marc tarpenning.
The Series Aโค round was filled with angel investors and smaller companies within the EV industry, creating “a pretty unbelievable community that just wants to see new architectures for mobility succeed,” Marks stated.
A key focus for Teloโ is maximizing utility within a small package. Marks emphasized โขthe company’s approach of “performance per square foot,” highlightingโข the MT1’s ability to seat five passengers while offering a five-foot bed – approximately half aโฃ foot longer than beds found on trucks like the Rivian R1T (4.5-foot bed) and Ford โคMaverick.
Telo is targeting โaโ range of approximately 350 milesโ on a full charge, positioning the MT1 competitivelyโ within the โคEV market. โAchieving this range involved balancing the benefits ofโ the vehicle’s small โขsize and reduced weight with the challenge of packaging a 106kWh battery pack into a footprint โฃcomparable to a Mini Cooper.
While details โฃare limited due to pending patents, โขMarks explained that the MT1 prioritizesโข range over rapid acceleration, effectively trading some performance for battery packagingโค efficiency.
The company believes there is a market for vehicles of this โฃsize, pointing to the growing popularity โofโ Japanese Kei trucks in the U.S. as evidence. Despite current challenges facing EV adoption in the โU.S.,Marks expressed confidence in Telo’s ability to succeed by leveraging a Silicon Valley approach focused on maximizing impact with limited resources.
“Do things that bigโข corporations can’t do?” Marks asked, encapsulating Telo’s strategy.
Note: Aโฃ previous version of this article incorrectly identified Marc Tarpenning โas a Telo co-founder.โ He is a memberโ of Telo’s board.This has been corrected.