Will Hyliion’s approach to electric trucks make it past the checkered flag?

BY ALAN ADLER

CEDAR PARK, Texas — Two black-painted rail containers with one side removed to create small meeting rooms are more than design elements in Hyliion Holdings’ 120,000-square-foot headquarters.

They are unspoken reminders of the hybrid electric truck startup’s goal of eventually leading in electric powertrain development for the zero-emissions freight movement.

Delays in hitting milestones because of the supply chain crisis are not deterring 29-year-old founder and CEO Thomas Healy, who has stepped up the company’s presence on Twitter to engage its fans, which also has energized its detractors. He gets encouragement. But the abuse has helped him develop a thick skin.

“I understand people’s frustration,” Healy said in an interview with FreightWaves last week  following a ride and drive of the near-zero-emission Hypertruck ERX. “We’ve tried to start to engage people more on Twitter. We’ve heard the feedback of people wanting to be a part of this journey with us.”

That includes snarky and occasionally profane comments from Twitter posters who voice the same plea: Show us truck orders and a path to revenue. Certainly, some are disappointed Hyliion (NYSE: HYLN) stockholders who have seen shares tumble below $4 after touching $58 in the days before Hyliion went public via SPAC in October 2020.

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