Stellantis is making a massive bet to overhaul its struggling electric vehicle and software strategy, turning to Qualcomm's artificial intelligence hardware to build a challenger to Tesla's Full-Self Driving system and reverse a string of market share losses. The transatlantic automaker's shares saw a muted response, closing up 0.4% after a volatile session, while the news sent Qualcomm's stock soaring 12%.
"The plan is grounded in reality," Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa told investors at the company's capital markets day Thursday. "It is designed to create a condition for profitable and sustainable growth."
The $70 billion (€60 billion) "FaSTLAne 2030" plan, spanning through 2030, will produce 60 new models, including 29 battery-electric vehicles and 15 plug-in hybrids. It relies heavily on an expanded partnership with Qualcomm, integrating the chipmaker's Snapdragon Digital Chassis for cockpit and infotainment functions and its Ride Pilot ADAS platform to enable hands-free, door-to-door autonomous driving.
For Stellantis, the parent of 14 brands including Jeep, Ram, and Dodge, this is a ground-up reboot to salvage its position after botched EV launches and cratering profits. For Qualcomm, it represents a major expansion into the automotive sector, validating its AI and vehicle system strategy.
Stellantis has struggled to keep pace in the EV and software race. Recent U.S. launches like the Jeep Wagoneer S and Dodge Charger Daytona EV were marred by unfinished software, frustrating owners. The company's new strategy is a tacit admission that its previous approach failed.
At the heart of the new plan is the STLA One, a scalable architecture that will consolidate five existing platforms. It will support an 800-volt system for faster charging and use lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, a lower-cost chemistry popular in China. The design integrates battery cells directly into the vehicle's structure, a "cell-to-body" approach that saves weight and improves energy density.
This move aligns Stellantis with other legacy automakers like Ford, Volkswagen, and Mercedes-Benz, which have also had to restart their EV plans from the ground up to compete with Tesla and a growing field of Chinese manufacturers.
Under CEO Antonio Filosa, Stellantis is shifting from a go-it-alone approach to one that leans heavily on external partners to share costs and accelerate development. Beyond Qualcomm, the company announced a partnership with autonomous vehicle startup Wayve to advance its supervised driving system.
The automaker is also expanding tie-ups with Chinese firms Leapmotor and Dongfeng to use idle factory capacity and develop more affordable vehicles. In the U.S., it will work with Jaguar Land Rover on products and technology.
The plan will focus 70% of its investment on its four most profitable global brands: Jeep, Ram, Peugeot, and Fiat. Other brands like Chrysler and Alfa Romeo will be repositioned with a more regional focus. While ambitious, the strategy has been met with some skepticism, with analysts noting that bold roadmaps from legacy automakers have often resulted in delays and broken promises.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
