It’s a business mogul linkup! Will Smith, Kevin Durant and Diddy have joined forces to invest in Arc, an electric boat startup.
Arc launched ten months ago and now with the trio of big names tied to it, the early-stage company is hoping to breakthrough the market.
The startup is backed by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Arc also announced that it has garnered funding from Smith’s Dreamers VC, Durant and Rich Kleiman’s Thirty Five Ventures and Diddy’s Combs Enterprises.
“Along with being world class in their respective fields, these individuals bring a wealth of experience in building brands, marketing products, and cultivating strong communities. Together, they’ll help Arc execute faster and amplify our impact,” the company wrote in a blog post.
The company also said that it envisions a future where all boats are electric (the majority of watercraft run on fossil fuel). With the support of an all-star team, the company seeks to make its mission come to fruition.
“All of these people, in addition to just being world class at what they do, have a ton of experience building brands and marketing products, and generally cultivating a community,” co-founder and CEO Mitch Lee told TechCrunch.
Lee and fellow co-founder Ryan Cook aim to use the strategic round of funding “to scale its production and develop boats than can be price competitive with gas-powered ones — a strategy employed by Tesla,” according to TechCrunch.
Arc plans to produce less than 25 Arc One boats and will reportedly sell for around $150,000 to $200,000. The debut for its first one is set for the end of 2022 with hopes of increasing the demand for the startup.
“We are not planning to make very many of these, but it sets the tone for what an electric boat can be in this market and it creates a new anchor for us — pun intended,” Lee said.
