Canoo Inc. yesterday announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2022 buoyed by its recently announced deal with Walmart, which will purchase Canoo electric delivery vehicles to be used for last-mile deliveries in support of its growing e-commerce business. The company also gave some additional details on its Gamma vehicle development program.

“We have more than $1 billion in our sales pipeline, which includes our recently announced commercial order,” said Tony Aquila, Investor, Chairman, and CEO at Canoo. “We have successfully completed 90% of our structural crash testing in the quarter and are now moving to the final phase of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard certification.”

The deal adds to the recent good news from the company that it will supply NASA with vehicles for the Artemis lunar missions and the U.S. Army with electric vehicles for analysis and demonstration.

The first half of 2022 has brought a lot of uncertainty to the markets with supply shortages, the war in Ukraine, and continued disruptions due to Covid, especially in China. Its adjusted EBITDA of -$149.8 million and -$267.3 million for the three and six months ended June 30, compared to -$76.7 million and -$126.5 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021, respectively.

“We have navigated a tough global economic backdrop in the first half, and will continue to take a disciplined, long-term, strategic and focused approach to deliver on our announced built-in-America vehicles, which are for and by America first with the intent of making EV’s available to everyone,” said Aquila. “We are advancing to start of production in Q4 and, our product resonates with the most discerning customers.”

Regarding its Gamma vehicle development program, the company more than doubled the total number of its “properties” manufactured to 89, completed over 265 tests related to crash and safety for the program, and the Gamma fleet has achieved 153,000 mi (246,000 km) across real and simulated driving.

The news is good news for Canoo’s mission “to bring EVs to Everyone.” Canoo has designed a modular electric platform built to deliver maximum vehicle interior space that is customizable to support various vehicle applications for consumers and businesses.

The Walmart agreement is significant for Canoo as the retailer agreed to purchase 4500 electric delivery vehicles—beginning with the Lifestyle Delivery Vehicle (LDV)—with the option to purchase up to 10,000 units. The vehicles will be used to deliver online orders more sustainably, contributing to Walmart’s goal to achieve zero emissions by 2040. While the LDV is expected to begin hitting the road in 2023, the companies plan to kick off advanced deliveries before that to refine and finalize vehicle configuration in the Dallas Fort Worth metroplex in Texas.

As with all Canoo vehicles, the LDV is built on the proprietary multi-purpose platform (MPP) architecture that integrates electric motors, battery modules, and other critical driving components. The company says that its “true” steer-by-wire technology helps reduce cabin intrusion, resulting in more usable interior space, better driver ergonomics, and the addition of a panoramic window to improve road visibility.

The LDV is optimized for sustainable last-mile delivery use cases, with an optimized cabin and customized cargo space. It is engineered for high-frequency, stop-and-go deliveries and fast vehicle-to-door drop-off of groceries and food/meal delivery. Its customized interior is designed for small package delivery at competitive per-stop economics. The modular design and 120-ft³ (3400-L) cargo volume are adaptable to evolve with customer needs, which will contribute to a decreasing per-unit investment over time.

“Our LDV has the turning radius of a small passenger vehicle on a parking friendly, compact footprint, yet the payload and cargo space of a commercial delivery vehicle,” said Aquila. “This is the winning algorithm to seriously compete in the last-mile-delivery race globally.”

Canoo’s electric vehicles will be driven by Walmart associates and used to deliver online orders, from groceries to general merchandise—as well as the potential to be used for Walmart GoLocal delivery-as-a-service business. They will be used to help diversify the retailer’s last-mile delivery fleet.

“Today, the closest Walmart to customers is right in their pockets; it’s the Walmart app,” said David Guggina, Senior Vice President of Innovation and Automation, Walmart U.S. “By continuing to expand our last mile delivery fleet in a sustainable way, we’re able to provide customers and Walmart+ members with even more access to same-day deliveries while keeping costs low.”

In addition to dedicated fulfillment centers, Walmart uses 3800 of its stores, located within 10 miles of 90% of the U.S. population, to fulfill online orders. To make deliveries, the retailer does this using a combination of Walmart associates, independent contractors driving on the Spark Driver Network, third-party delivery service providers, and in some locations, autonomous vehicles and drones. Through this expansive network, Walmart can reach 80% of the U.S. population with same-day delivery on a growing assortment of items.

The agreement with Walmart builds on Canoo’s commitments in Arkansas and the surrounding region. Last year, the company announced it had selected Bentonville, AR, as its headquarters and Pryor, OK, as the site for its U.S. manufacturing, establishing an EV ecosystem in the heartland to create thousands of technology and manufacturing jobs.

“We’re encouraged, that by being located in close proximity to the Canoo headquarters, we have the advantage to collaborate and innovate in real-time as well as the opportunity to aid in the creation of manufacturing and technology jobs here in our home state of Arkansas,” added Guggina.

Canoo plans to start production of the Lifestyle Delivery Vehicles beginning in Q4 of 2022.

The Walmart deal is the highest-profile and -volume order, but not the first for Canoo vehicles. In April, Canoo announced that NASA had selected the company to provide Crew Transportation Vehicles (CTVs) for the Artemis lunar missions. The CTVs must carry fully suited astronauts, flight support staff, and equipment to the launch site.

Canoo won the contract in a competitive bidding process, with the NASA vehicles among the company’s first binding vehicle orders. This first U.S. Federal contract makes the company eligible for consideration for other government contracts. It will deliver multiple customized all-electric Lifestyle Vehicle-based models to NASA by June 2023.