Ceer EXOBOT: Saudi Arabia Unveils Its First Electric Car and Aims to Build an Automotive Powerhouse

On September 21, 2026, Saudi Arabia unveiled the first vehicles from Ceer, its national automotive brand: an electric sedan and SUV named EXOBOT. The milestone matters because the kingdom had never managed to establish its own automaker, despite previous talks with companies such as Jaguar Land Rover and Toyota.

Ceer was created in November 2022 as a joint venture between the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Hon Hai Precision Industry, the Taiwanese company known globally as Foxconn. BMW licenses component technology, while Foxconn participates in developing the electrical and electronic architecture. It is not, therefore, an isolated car designed for an exhibition: it is a network of imported knowledge that Saudi Arabia is attempting to convert into local engineering, manufacturing, and employment.

The name Ceer comes from Arabic and conveys the idea of moving forward. EXOBOT is the first chapter in a planned portfolio of seven models by 2030, featuring compact and midsize vehicles with various powertrain options. The first sales in Saudi Arabia are slated for early 2027; pricing has not yet been disclosed.

The launch edition features three electric motors, all-wheel drive, 850 horsepower, and 1,000 Nm of torque. Ceer claims a 0 to 100 km/h acceleration of 2.6 seconds for the sedan and 2.9 seconds for the SUV. Under the brand's stated NEDC cycle, the 112 kWh battery delivers up to 670 kilometers in the sedan and 560 kilometers in the SUV.

The 800-volt electrical architecture supports a 10% to 80% charge in under 30 minutes. The steer-by-wire system eliminates the conventional mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the wheels, reduces the steering travel from 400 to 160 degrees, and is combined with rear-wheel steering and adaptive air suspension.

Inside, a 48-inch curved panel with 8K resolution spans across the dashboard, accompanied by a 10.4-inch central screen and another display for rear passengers. The voice assistant understands Arabic and English. These are striking figures, although range, charging, and thermal performance will need to be confirmed in independent testing and under the real heat of the Gulf.

EXOBOT wants to be recognizable before explaining its passport. Its doors open upward, the laminated windshield extends over the roof, and the front incorporates 32 light bars, a reference to 1932, the year of the unification of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The wheels reproduce a triangular motif inspired by openings in traditional Al-Lahuj architecture.

Beneath that local identity lies a deliberately international value chain. Hyundai Transys agreed to supply integrated electric propulsion systems that bring together the motor, inverter, and reducer. Rimac Technology participates in high-performance systems, while Siemens, ABB, Schuler, and Dürr provide automation and industrial machinery.

The strategy does not hide this combination: Saudi Arabia does not intend to invent every car component in four years, but rather to attract proven technology, integrate it into Saudi territory, and learn to master the complete process. The difference between assembling foreign components and building a homegrown industry will depend on how much knowledge, engineering, and supply base truly remain in the country.

The vehicles will be produced at the Ceer Manufacturing Complex, within King Abdullah Economic City, north of Jeddah and near King Abdullah Port. The complex occupies more than one million square meters of land, with around 530,000 square meters of covered space and dedicated areas for stamping, body shop, paint, assembly, logistics, water treatment, and testing.

The initial construction contract was valued at 5 billion Saudi riyals, around US$1.3 billion. Ceer also purchased the land for 359 million riyals. The location makes it possible to receive components via the port and cluster suppliers around the plant, an essential condition for the project to become something more than just a final assembly line.

The economic roadmap presented when Ceer was founded projects up to 30,000 direct and indirect jobs, more than US$150 million in foreign direct investment, and an US$8 billion contribution to the Saudi GDP by 2034. These are targets, not accomplished outcomes, and will need to be measured against production, sales, exports, and effective local content.

Ceer arrives at the most competitive moment in the history of the electric vehicle. Chinese manufacturers are reducing costs and shortening development cycles; traditional brands are defending scale, distribution, and reputation; and the premium segment demands stable software, manufacturing quality, and impeccable after-sales service. Having 850 horsepower turns heads, but it guarantees neither volume nor margins.

There is also a timeline that calls for caution. In 2022, there was talk of vehicles being available by 2025; subsequent announcements shifted production toward 2026, and the current launch places the first deliveries in 2027. It is an understandable rescheduling for a factory built from scratch, but it demonstrates the distance between unveiling a prototype and stabilizing an industrial operation.

The EXOBOT has already accomplished its first mission: making it clear that Saudi Arabia wants to manufacture and not just import. Now come the tough questions: price, homologation, real-world range, production speed, quality, local content, and demand outside the Saudi market. If it answers them well, Ceer will not merely be the kingdom's first electric car; it will be the nucleus of a new regional automotive economy.