Dyson is famous for its line of bagless vacuums, and has more than proven its technology in the industry.
Now, the renowned brand is looking to prove itself in another industry as well — the automobile industry and electric vehicles within it, to be exact. According to the Guardian, Dyson is seeking help via public fundraising to develop its own electric car at its headquarters of Wiltshire in South England.
The news agency reports that it learned that the company was developing an electric vehicle due to an accidental disclosure from the United Kingdom's government.
"The government is funding Dyson to develop a new battery electric vehicle at their headquarters in Malmesbury, Wiltshire," the National Infrastructure Delivery Plan published Wednesday, as reported by the Guardian. "This will secure £174m of investment in the area, creating over 500 jobs, mostly in engineering."
When the news outlet asked Dyson to confirm the report, a company spokesperson said: "We never comment on products that are in development."
Even before this report surfaced, there was wide speculation of Dyson working on an EV after the company's CEO, Max Conze, refused to scratch the possibility.
"We are ruling nothing out," he said at the time, as reported by the Guardian. "Like our friends in Cupertino (referring to Apple), we are also unhealthily obsessive when it comes to taking apart our products to make them better."
Building a motor for a high-powered vacuum is one thing, but doing the same for electric vehicles presents an entirely different challenge — one for which the company is reportedly up.
Although Dyson is synonymous with vacuums, the company's history of inventions touches on everything from cargo boats to bladeless fans and the Airblade hand dryers found in many public restrooms at restaurants, bars and other businesses.
In addition, the company announced a five-year investment in battery technology, perhaps paving the perfect storm toward developing an electric car soon.
Dyson uses light but largely-effective motors in its devices, making it intriguing to see if it can come up with something foreign and innovative to the auto industry in the EV space.
