Car Design Dialogues North America: Fireside Chat with Ralph Gilles
2022-02-14T16:58:00
Stellantis chief design officer Ralph Gilles joins Car Design News editor James McLachlan to speak about his career journey, mentors, the importance of diversity in design and the EV strategy for the multiple brands he oversees
Ralph Gilles, chief design officer of Stellantis, sat down with CDN editor James McLachlan in an exclusive fireside chat to talk about his influences, his career to date, and the next step for the many brands that come under his remit. Gilles also gave his estimate for EV adoption, and explained how his design teams are working to snap up a portion of the market.
“Today as we stand, the market is only at about a 3% take rate, but we predict by the late 2020’s it’ll be around 40%,” he said. “Regardless of what it is, we need to be tastemakers. We aren’t rushing to market, but instead are developing very carefully. As we speak, I’m working on more than seven electrified vehicles simultaneously. The reason we are doing it all at once is that we are working on a new platform called STLA Large. It’s very exciting, and I believe if we come with the right cocktail… today, most electric cars are very expensive and out of reach to the average person. We aren’t listening to the noise, and we are focused on creating EVs that people can afford.”