Joining Elemental Excelerator and Introducing Our Newest Board Observer

Danielle J. Harris, Director of Mobility Innovation at Elemental Excelerator

Climate change is top-of-mind in the United States as we observe the West Coast’s ongoing battle with wildfires, higher levels of air pollution compounded by the fires, and record-breaking temperatures. At Xos Trucks, our mission is to lower carbon emissions with affordable, reliable, fully electric vehicles and bring cleaner air to our communities. Today, we are excited to share that we’ve received an award that will allow an opportunity to deepen our commitment to cleaner air.

Xos has been selected to join the ninth cohort of Elemental Excelerator, an organization dedicated to finding and funding solutions to combat climate change. Each year, they identify more than a dozen companies that best fit their mission and award each company up to $1 million to improve systems that impact people’s lives: energy, mobility, water, agriculture, and beyond. Part of the mission of Elemental Excelerator that resonates with us at Xos is making sure the benefits of cleaner air from lower-emissions vehicles are experienced by everyone — especially communities that need them most. We are thrilled to be chosen out of nearly a thousand applicants from 54 countries this year for our work in creating fully electric, zero-emission vehicles.

We’ll focus the funds from Elemental Excelerator on building an all-new electric vehicle for vocational use that will ultimately service and lower emissions in our cities, which have increasingly suffered from climate change. Stay tuned for more on this project soon.

Additionally, we’re excited to welcome Danielle J. Harris of Elemental Excelerator to our team as a Board Observer. Danielle brings a decade’s worth of experience to the team working in the transportation and mobility industry. At Elemental, Danielle serves as Director of Innovation, working directly with portfolio companies to foster greater collaboration within the transportation industry. Prior to Elemental, Danielle worked in the Office of Innovation for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) where she helped implement projects to improve roadway safety, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and address environmental inequities.

Providing electric vehicles for all has never been more important. Research shows that communities of color are more likely to breathe in polluted air and live near toxic facilities. This is why we are honored to work with an organization like Elemental Excelerator that is dedicated to providing cleaner resources to everyone.

We look forward to sharing more on this project and Danielle’s expertise soon.