Did government let cat out the Dyson bag?

It seems certain now that Dyson is developing its own electric car.

Reports that the British vacuum cleaner manufacturer is planning to join the electric market emerged last month, when a government report appeared to accidently let the news slip.

The National Infrastructure Delivery Plan said, ‘The government is funding Dyson to develop a new battery electric vehicle at their headquarters in Malmesbury, Wiltshire. This will secure £174m of investment in the area, creating over 500 jobs, mostly in engineering.

Part of the statement was removed 24 hours later, and neither Dyson nor the government has confirmed the plans. Instead, a Dyson spokesman said, ‘We never comment on products that are in development.’

However, it’s not a big leap to imagine a company that specialises in developing lightweight electric motors joining an industry that is moving away from combustion engines towards software and technology.

When asked last year if Dyson was developing an electric car last year, CEO, Max Conze said, ‘We are ruling nothing out. Like our friends in Cupertino [Apple] we are also unhealthily obsessive when it comes to taking apart our products to make them better.’

Meanwhile, Dyson acquired battery company Sakti3 last October after company founder Sir James Dyson said it had ‘developed a breakthrough in battery technology.’