Startup Lightship, America’s self-proclaimed first all-electric recreational vehicle (RV) manufacturer, revealed today that the production AE.1 Cosmos Edition is officially available for purchase. Originally debuted at 2023 SXSW show in Austin, and then called the L1, the AE.1 Cosmos Edition is the first “aero-electric” travel trailer in the world, designed, and manufactured in the U.S., out of the company’s Broomfield, CO, facility.

“With the limited-edition Lightship AE.1 Cosmos, we’re delivering a dream travel experience for sustainable travelers, tech lovers and EV enthusiasts,” said Ben Parker, Lightship Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer. “Our mission is to bring RVs into the electric age with the AE.1. The Cosmos Edition is the first premium realization, and we have other trims to fit travelers’ needs coming quickly down the road.”

Limited to 50 units and priced at $250,000 (or $239,900 after available tax credits), the AE.1 Cosmos Edition features class-leading aerodynamics and the TrekDrive power system to deliver near-zero range loss for EV drivers and less miles-per-gallon drain for ICE vehicles.

The premium interior of the AE.1 Cosmos Edition is said to achieve new standards in sustainability, function, and spaciousness. The battery and integrated, full-solar roof design deliver an all-electric camping experience without the noise of a generator or the hazard of onboard propane tanks, with power capacity built for off-grid living.

The AE.1 sleeps four and has the comfort and refinement of an automotive-grade HVAC system; a spacious, fully outfitted bathroom; and a galley kitchen equipped with a dishwasher, refrigerator, microwave, convection oven and induction cooktop.

Limited two colorways, the Cosmos Edition will be available in the summer of 2025 and will first be offered to early reservation holders, and then it opens up to all.

Three additional trim levels—Atmos, Panos, and Terros—will follow, each serving travelers’ needs with distinct feature sets and price points. Lightship will continue to take refundable reservations for the three future trim levels.

 

Inside AE.1 developments

Just before today’s reveal, Parker and fellow Lightship co-founder and CEO Toby Kraus briefed Futurride on the latest developments and preparations for the AE.1’s launch. The exclusive discussion also served as a CES 2025 preview, as Parker revealed that Lightship will be at the biggest consumer electronics show near the Scout Motors and Aptera outside booths. The Scout connection also showed up in the company’s media images with a potential Scout Terra as a tow vehicle.

According to Parker, what the company showed at the 2023 SXSW was a product concept or alpha vehicle that was more than a show vehicle “but not a durable or cost-effective product that you want to own.” The last 18 months have been spent building out the company’s engineering and design teams and working on the production-intent AE.1 design.

“Not one thing under the skin is the same as the alpha vehicle that we showed,” he said. “We’ve been doing production vehicle design to build something cost-effective, durable, and all the mechanisms work properly—a manufacturable product.”

“All of the key technologies like the TrekDrive system and proving out all the aero concept is now fully developed and in its test phase,” added Kraus.

According to Parker, preserving the aero performance envisioned in the concept is one of the program’s biggest success stories. He says that it has taken a lot of work to package everything into the underbody of the vehicle and keep the intended smooth underbelly. Areas like the battery packs and water tanks are exposed but a number of open cavities in the frame got farings to maintain drag performance and allow for the targeted range figures without increasing the size of the battery pack.

Aerodynamics simulation by CFD (computational fluid dynamics) played a big role.

“High-fidelity CFD simulation is within 5% and I think usually it’s within a couple of percent these days” of actual performance, according to Parker. “We relied on it heavily up to the point of building a full vehicle, and then are doing on-road tests either at a test track or abandoned stretch of highway.”

One of the key features of the Lightship concept is its ability to help a tow vehicle, whether electric or internal combustion, to maintain range. Parker reports that the production system works and is “pretty awesome to feel.”

The team has a few prototypes of the TrekDrive system running under closed-loop control, taking force data from the hitch, interpreting it in a custom drive controller, and then commanding a motor-torque response to the force sensed between the tow and towed vehicle.

“We’re still certainly optimizing the amount of force reduction that we can do, but where you notice it the most is, for instance, when you’re coming up to speed,” explained Parker. “The system right now kicks in at around 15 mph, when the truck is laboring, and then you feel the weight disappear behind you.”

When the truck and trailer reach about 50 or 60 [mph], the trailer force tapers off.

Over a long stretch, the Lightship’s 77-kW·h battery is intended to maintain tow-vehicle range as if unladen.

 

Nest steps on the road to production

Between today’s production design launch and the start-of-production, Kraus says the Lightship team is working on testing to ensure the product is dialed in before shipping units to customers and setting up the production system for volume.

The company is building vehicles in Broomfield, CO, which will also provide service functions, and it recently moved its California operations to South San Francisco near the San Francisco International Airport to serve as its first service depot.

“So we have a nice service footprint both on the West Coast and middle Rocky Mountain region,” said Kraus. “As we expand, we will have regional service operations and a mixture of mobile service offerings.”

The South San Francisco depot is across the street from Rivian’s biggest service center in the region.

“I’m sure customers dropping [off] there for service may wander over towards the gleaming Lightship next door,” joked Parker.

Kraus added that the Lightship business operation is maturing quickly.

“We’ve done a lot of work preparing the business to start delivery, building out our commercial and customer service team, and we’ll be launching with financing options,” he said.

The two locations in California and Colorado are some of the biggest markets for Lightship.

“California is the largest market,” said Kraus. “But we have a considerable number of reservations, and they are spread out throughout the U.S.”

Customer concentrations are in the RV hubs of California, the Mountain West, Texas, the Pacific Northwest, and Florida.

Plans call for the initial Cosmos edition limited series of 50 units to be built and delivered next year.

“We haven’t set a hard limit on what the final volume is of the overall AE.1, but you can expect it to ramp up significantly from the first 50 of the Cosmos edition,” said Kraus.

The pilot facility is capable of doing 350 to 400 units per year.

“That doesn’t represent the demand of the program, but rather the capacity of the first facility,” added Parker.

For more information and to claim an AE.1 Cosmos Edition, visit https://lightshiprv.com/.