Lucid’s Rising Stock: A Mirage in the Desert of Promises

by

Lucid Group, a company that exists in a peculiar state between hope and despair, found itself amid an improbable surge in stock value this past July, witnessing a rally of 16.6%. It was an event as perplexing as any Kafkaesque tale-an aberration, perhaps, or the beginning of an illusion too seductive to disregard. At one point, the stock price had escalated by 48% in a single, inexplicable burst of trading. One might ask: Was this rally a fleeting aberration, a mere dead cat bounce, or does it signal something deeper? A misunderstood opportunity-or perhaps a mirage-waiting to dissipate?

Alas, as we stand here, looking at the current state of affairs in August, the stock appears to be under the weight of some inexplicable force, shedding 7% of its value. Investors, caught in the clutches of uncertainty, must now wrestle with the question of whether the rally was a momentary fever dream or the beginning of a more sustained rise-a dilemma that mirrors the existential despair of those who toil in bureaucratic machinery, seeking meaning where none exists.

Lucid’s Struggling Dance with Investors

Lucid, a manufacturer of Air sedans and Gravity SUVs, has found a way to pique investor curiosity. On the 31st of July, in an act of seemingly futile attempt at gaining relevance, the company announced that all of its Air sedans-regardless of model or year-would be equipped with adapters capable of working on Tesla’s supercharger network. Gravity SUVs, for reasons unknown, had already been granted such access. This move, though logical in some distant corner of the corporate world, is rendered absurd by its sheer inconsequence in the broader scheme of things.

Meanwhile, the company’s efforts to boost the EPA range estimate for its 2026 Air Touring model by a modest 6%, pushing it to a somewhat inconsequential 431 miles, are seen as a victory in some quarters. Yet, as Kafka might suggest, one might question: What does it truly matter? In a world where every advancement seems destined to be swallowed by the relentless march of time, such technical improvements appear almost irrelevant.

In an attempt to inject some semblance of glamour into the enterprise, Lucid also hired actor Timothée Chalamet as its global brand ambassador in July. This might be seen as an attempt to inject life into a dying creature, giving it a new face, but can the face mask the internal rot?

Loading widget...

But the true absurdity came in the form of a partnership with Uber Technologies. Lucid, in what might only be described as a calculated, self-fulfilling move toward insolvency, agreed to provide Uber with over 20,000 Gravity SUVs. These vehicles, equipped with Nuro’s Level 4 autonomy software, are slated to be deployed over six years. Uber’s millions in investment seemed to some like a promise of hope. Yet the reality of this partnership seems far more fraught, as if it were a fleeting gesture designed to appease shareholders-an effort doomed to be undermined by an absurd bureaucracy that no one can understand. The absurdity, then, is not in the transaction itself, but in the implied belief that this will fundamentally change Lucid’s trajectory.

The 10x Stock Split: A Kafkaesque Farce

One might find a momentary relief in the idea that Lucid’s proposal for a 1-for-10 reverse stock split will magically solve its problems. A reverse stock split, of course, serves no purpose beyond manipulating the perceived value of the stock while leaving the underlying issues untouched. Shareholders will see no increase in their actual investments, and the company’s market capitalization will remain as inconsequential as it was before. It is a move calculated to prevent the company’s delisting from Nasdaq, and to make its stock seem more appealing to institutional investors who prefer to avoid the vulgarity of penny stocks. But the question arises: Does any of this matter in the long run? The bureaucracy of stock markets churns on, oblivious to the real value-or lack thereof-within the company itself.

Despite these superficial changes, Lucid remains embroiled in a labyrinth of production issues. In a stunning admission of failure, the company revised its full-year production forecast downward, from 20,000 vehicles to a far more meager 18,000 to 20,000. A mere 2,000 vehicles less? Or a harbinger of something more ominous? As with many corporate maneuvers, it is difficult to discern whether the company is genuinely struggling or merely playing its part in an endless cycle of corporate theatre.

The company’s losses, meanwhile, continue to mount. The second quarter saw a rise in net losses, which increased by 8% to a staggering $855 million. Yet the machine continues to churn. Investors, caught in the surreal machinery of modern capitalism, must reckon with the fact that Lucid’s stock-once a beacon of hope-has largely evaporated in the years since its IPO.

So, what are we left with? A series of meaningless gestures-technical improvements, celebrity endorsements, partnerships with behemoths-all circling one another in a pointless dance, resembling more the empty rituals of bureaucracy than any genuine attempt at progress. But as with any Kafkaesque tale, the questions left unanswered are the ones that linger longest.

Perhaps the only real question worth asking now is: Does any of it truly matter? 🤔

Read More

2025-08-14 19:11