VDE:聽Your career has included stints at Audi and Maserati, among others 鈥� automotive companies that are more at home in the conventional combustion world. What did you find particularly exciting about Polestar?

Alexander Lutz:聽It was chiefly my own personal motivation to make a difference. I first came into contact with Polestar in 2018 at the Geneva International Motor Show. Even then, I already thought that the Polestar 1 was one of the most beautiful cars in the world. I had never heard of the brand as a manufacturer, though. That鈥檚 when I met the first people from Polestar and learned more about the company鈥檚 grand visions: sustainability combined with performance and direct-to-consumer business via online sales. This strategy, combined with a CEO like Thomas Ingenlath, was the main reason for me to join Polestar.

VDE:聽Can you tell us more about Polestar? It鈥檚 a joint venture between Geely and Volvo, for one thing, but it鈥檚 also an internal vehicle tuner. What are the specific differences between Polestar and Volvo鈥檚 electric vehicles?

Alexander Lutz:聽Polestar sets itself apart from Volvo with a clear mission. I don鈥檛 know of any company in the automotive sector that focuses so clearly on sustainability 鈥� without neglecting driving pleasure. We鈥檝e set ourselves goals that are unique in the industry. To name a few key points: our sales are 100 percent online. That鈥檚 our starting point. Other manufacturers have plenty to do to achieve that. We sell 100 percent electric vehicles. We aim for 100 percent sustainability. Nothing about this vision is going to change. Our Polestar 0 project 鈥� which aims to launch a completely emission-free car without offsetting [of CO2 emissions through climate projects] by 2030 鈥� is a moonshot goal. This sets Polestar apart from its competitors. And another point that鈥檚 very important to our company is transparency. Being honest with ourselves, but also with the public. This principle pays off on the sustainability front.

VDE:聽The last time I was at a Volvo dealership, the salespeople told me that the Volvo XC 90, an all-electric car, is sold through direct sales. What does this mean for the Polestar brand? Surely there must be some cannibalization within the corporate group?

Alexander Lutz:聽That may be the case in a small area, yes. Based on the data we鈥檝e collected so far, though, there鈥檚 been only a very small cannibalization effect within the Group. We will continue to set ourselves apart from Volvo. Our design language was still similar to that of Volvo at first, and it鈥檚 visually apparent that the brands are related. In the future, however, it will be increasingly easy to see the delineation between the brands and how they differ. Volvo has a more familiar, inclusive design language, and they鈥檙e oriented toward high sales volumes. Whereas we at Polestar are much more progressive, more focused on performance and much more exclusive in terms of the number of units.

VDE:聽How do you take advantage of synergies with the Volvo Group, such as in vehicle development? Or is Polestar completely independent?聽

Alexander Lutz:聽We鈥檙e definitely harnessing the synergies. That鈥檚 one of the great advantages of a corporate group. And it鈥檚 not just Volvo, but also Geely. Geely鈥檚 plants, the existing vehicle platforms and the high quality that鈥檚 already been proven in millions of vehicles 鈥� we also benefit from all that. The Polestar 2 CMA (Compact Modular Architecture) platform has been acquired by Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi because it works so well during assembly. We wouldn鈥檛 have these synergies without Geely and Volvo.

VDE:聽I see several challenges at Polestar such as the different mentalities of a Swedish company and a Chinese company. Germany鈥檚 sales market is also not an easy one to conquer. How are you dealing with all these challenges while ensuring that a great product comes out in the end?

Alexander Lutz:聽We have the great advantage that the cars we鈥檙e currently building and those we built in the past don鈥檛 target different customer structures in marketing and sales, which has been the case for the traditional automotive industry so far. In other words, the company鈥檚 goals were the main focus of vehicle production. Of course, we also draw on customer feedback to continuously improve ourselves. Most of all, though, we want the Polestar brand to stand for something that hasn鈥檛 been done before. The company鈥檚 sustainability goals are part of our development.
Of course, as you mentioned, there are also differences in mentality between the Swedish and Chinese cultures. We find that it helps to explore the extremes, such as the issue of working time. We are ultimately helping both cultures in the Group to find the right balance. Volvo鈥檚 experience and quality are naturally more pronounced due to its history. But in the end, Geely and Volvo鈥檚 values are united in the Polestar 2 and, later, in the Polestar 3. And without these different perspectives, we couldn鈥檛 have built such good products.
The German market has a certain pioneering role. German customers appreciate attention to detail, for instance. We鈥檙e a nation of motorists who want the highest quality. We relay information like this back to Sweden. This input is then channeled into improvements in development at headquarters in Gothenburg. And we can implement the improvements quickly, since the processes in a startup are simply more dynamic.

VDE:聽How many employees does Polestar have globally?

Alexander Lutz:聽We鈥檙e still expanding rapidly. Here at the Cologne location, we鈥檙e set to have almost 100 people by the end of the year. Polestar has more than 1,800 employees worldwide.

VDE:聽Let鈥檚 circle back to sustainability, recycling and climate protection. You mentioned the Polestar 0 project 鈥� what does it entail? What鈥檚 special about it?

Alexander Lutz:聽The distinguishing feature and unique selling point of the Polestar 0 project is that we want to build a climate-neutral car by 2030, while other manufacturers aim to achieve 50-percent electrification of their fleet in the same time. Those are two completely different objectives. It鈥檚 like if you wanted to run the 100-meter dash in nine seconds, but everyone else is currently running it in around 18 seconds.

VDE:聽Can you give us more insight into Polestar鈥檚 sustainability strategy?

Alexander Lutz:聽As the Managing Director for Germany, I can only speak for the areas that I鈥檓 in charge of and control. In principle, we try to keep our vehicles within our system or loop. The key term here is 鈥渃ircular economy鈥�. The used car trade is conducted on our platforms, as far as possible. The value chain should also remain in our control. The most important factor there is the battery, which is a focus of our recycling efforts. We have the advantage of being an agile and fast startup, and we need to make the most of that. We can also monitor the cars that we鈥檙e now putting on the market. In contrast, manufacturers with hundreds of thousands of cars on the road have a much harder time getting their vehicles back in the shop. And we鈥檙e working with a special network of partners including ZF and SSAB who, like us, are also focusing on the topic of sustainability.

VDE:聽On the issue of batteries, there are also critics who denounce problems such as child labor or environmental pollution. Polestar wants to be completely sustainable. How can these two concerns be reconciled?

Alexander Lutz:聽We have yet to fully answer many questions in this area. But that鈥檚 precisely why I find the path Polestar is taking so courageous. With our LCA (Life Cycle Assessment), we show the methodology and how many CO2 emissions are produced in the production of a Polestar 2 鈥� up to the end of the life cycle after about 200,000 kilometers. This is our way of creating transparency. Another facet is our partnership with Circulor, where we track materials via blockchain. We鈥檙e open about the fact that we鈥檙e not yet where we want to be. We currently emit approximately 27 tons of CO2 with each new Polestar 2 (standard range single-motor version), assuming we have a completely renewable energy mix. That鈥檚 part of being honest.

VDE:聽As everyone knows, electric vehicles also depend on the charging infrastructure. The filling process with a combustion engine is a little more self-sufficient, since the process isn鈥檛 so complex. Customers in Germany are hesitant to buy electric vehicles because of the charging infrastructure. What challenges and possible solutions do you see here?

Alexander Lutz:聽Yes, the charging infrastructure needs to catch up. We can observe new vehicle registrations and the expansion of the charging infrastructure diverging from each other a bit. All in all 鈥� and by that I mean both public charging stations and ones at home and at workplaces 鈥� the overall picture is somewhat more positive. There are certainly also negative examples like the rapid chargers on the A5 highway, which are never free.聽
But generally, 85% of the time, vehicles will usually be charged at home or at work. How often do you have to find a public charging station as a driver of an F-category vehicle 鈥� maybe ten to twelve times a year? Germany is already reasonably well-positioned in terms of charging infrastructure, at least that鈥檚 what we hear from our customers. This will fundamentally require a change of thinking as long as the charging infrastructure network for electric cars is not so dense in Germany. For longer distances, you have to plan in advance using Google. You charge when you can rather than when you need to.

VDE:聽What is your position as a manufacturer on charging technology? What is Polestar betting on?

Alexander Lutz:聽Of the various charging technologies, inductive charging is certainly interesting and will be relevant in the future. The big advantage over hydrogen, gasoline and diesel is that transferring the energy via electricity does not require a physical connection to the car. But there鈥檚 obviously a difference between charging a telephone or a car inductively. Nevertheless, the US and Sweden are already performing the first tests with inductive charging stations to see how well it works in practice. Initial results show a good level of efficiency and safety. Of course, we can鈥檛 charge inductively across the board right now, but I don鈥檛 want to rule that out for the future.
We generally rely on an operating voltage of 400 volts, as with the Polestar 2. In the vehicle classes we鈥檙e working with, we can achieve good results with 400 volts. However, I don鈥檛 want to rule out that we might be able to make an even higher operating voltage possible in the future. With a capacity of 155 kW for the Polestar 2, we already have a better charging speed than most of the competition.
But I also believe that automated charging will come at some point. Within the next three years, it鈥檚 conceivable that you鈥檒l leave your electric cars in a parking garage, and then the car will drive to the charging station and be charged independently 鈥� whether inductively or via a charging robot. So things will certainly get simpler for the customer. That鈥檚 progress.

VDE:聽What role do software and connectivity play at Polestar, or is the focus more on performance? We noticed that around a hundred technical experts are currently being sought in Gothenburg. Can you tell us more about which job profiles you鈥檙e currently looking for?

Alexander Lutz:聽Fun behind the wheel, the feeling of being involved and a nice driving experience 鈥� these emotions are very important to us. That will continue to be the case in the future. Although the car will eventually be able to drive itself, the pleasure of driving cannot be neglected. We have just the expertise for this thanks to our background in tuning. It鈥檚 also clear, however, that the automotive industry is developing towards a future in which emotions are less important. So we鈥檙e in an exclusive club with our vehicles, which do ensure a fun driving experience. One German manufacturer who does this quite well is a real perfectionist and begins with the letter P.
Regardless of the competition, we鈥檒l continue to deliver our range of products to our customers and to focus on the hardware. The software is playing an increasingly important role, though. When it comes to vehicle electronics, the most important factor is the haptics 鈥� that is, the feel of operating the vehicle via the software. We鈥檙e already on a good footing in terms of hardware, but there are software possibilities we haven鈥檛 taken advantage of yet. That鈥檚 why we鈥檙e looking to hire more people here in Gothenburg. We鈥檙e also working with first-class partners, such as Google, to provide infotainment in our vehicles. We鈥檙e concentrating on building a car that children will want to have as a toy one day.

VDE:聽Is Polestar also affected by the shortage of skilled workers 鈥� especially relating to connectivity 鈥� or have you not had any issues there?

Alexander Lutz:聽We need fewer professionals in this field thanks to our close partnership with Google. That means we can also be more selective in our hiring. Additionally, Gothenburg and Stockholm are locations that attract smart, young developers. And at the end of the day, we鈥檙e Polestar. We have a very good reputation as a startup. We鈥檙e a place where developers can change things and personally help shape the direction of the company, regardless of whether you start as a C++ basic developer or as a software manager. Polestar offers an environment where you can see and touch what you鈥檝e created. Employees take on a lot of responsibility and create progress. And to be perfectly honest, I don鈥檛 see that in the competition.

VDE:聽Speaking of competition, who are Polestar鈥檚 main competitors?

Alexander Lutz:聽Globally, it鈥檚 Tesla and Porsche. In the German market, we鈥檝e observed that many customers of the premium German manufacturers (BMW, Audi and Mercedes) are also interested in and buy Polestar vehicles. We overlap with Tesla as far as the focus on electric vehicles and direct sales. And Porsche, like us, is an emotionally driven performance brand.

VDE:聽Before the pandemic, a number of e-mobility startups were founded at lightning speed and disappeared from the scene just as quickly. What are you doing differently to ensure that Polestar doesn鈥檛 suffer a similar fate?

Alexander Lutz:聽We鈥檙e seeing an incredibly dynamic market environment at the moment. Our unique selling point is that we draw strengths from our larger corporate group. A good example of this is our 200 service dealers in Germany. We have dealers who鈥檝e been working with Volvo for over 40 years. How many startups can already boast such a premium service network? And Geely gives us the freedom to try things out and test things. For example, we鈥檙e not bound to Volvo鈥檚 180-km/h speed limit. All these things, backed up with the necessary funding, make us very different than many other e-mobility startups. I don鈥檛 know anyone who hasn鈥檛 underestimated the cost of getting a vehicle on the road. It鈥檚 a difficult, capital-intensive process. We have extreme advantages thanks to Volvo and Geely, and we benefit from their experience. Even if you have a direct-to-customer business model, it is and remains extremely difficult. It鈥檚 not just a click on a website. A car is an emotional product and probably the second largest investment in people鈥檚 lives. It takes a lot of resources, time and money. Some startups simply underestimate the enormous effort involved.

VDE:聽Do hydrogen and fuel cells play a role for you, or are you solely concerned with batteries?

Alexander Lutz:聽E-mobility is the path we鈥檝e chosen, and we鈥檙e sticking to it. The manufacturers who are still focusing on hydrogen haven鈥檛 even sold a combined total of 100,000 cars worldwide. By comparison, as a startup e-mobility manufacturer, we sold 29,000 cars last year. We鈥檙e convinced that e-mobility is the future. In time, e-mobility will prove to be the right way to go.

VDE:聽What will be the state of e-mobility in Germany in 2030?

Alexander Lutz:聽We assume there will be 48 million cars on the road in Germany, and I estimate that we can potentially ensure that 10 million of them are pure battery electric vehicles (BEV). Car stats such as horsepower or acceleration rate will not be as important anymore. It鈥檚 going to be all about design and connectivity and how well my vehicle fits into my life. In 2030, most people will choose to drive electric cars because it will be the easiest way to get from A to B. The combustion engine will certainly still exist in Germany, but only in very exclusive contexts 鈥� such as motor sports.
2030 will bring us a quiet, beautiful electromobility world in which charging and battery capacity simply aren鈥檛 topics of discussion anymore.