Electric vehicle company Faraday Future Inc. made its debut as a public company July 22, closing its first day of trading on the Nasdaq at $13.98 a share.

The Gardena-based company went public in a deal with New York-based blank check company Property Solutions Acquisitions Corp. that gives the beleaguered auto maker $1 billion toward the production of its flagship FF 91 crossover vehicle, which it plans to release within the next 12 months.

Under the deal, the newly combined company will be renamed Faraday Future Intelligent Electric Inc. It's trading under the ticker symbol FFIE.

“Today is a new chapter in FF’s history, and we are thrilled to be a public company with industry-leading technology, unrivaled new products and a world-class experienced team to drive the success of FF for years to come,” Carsten Breitfeld, Faraday Future’s chief executive, said in a July 22 statement.

When Faraday Future launched in 2014, it was one of the most buzzed-about startups in the EV industry. It was even once said that it would be the “next Tesla.” 

The FF91 was supposed to be on the road by now, but over the past seven years, Faraday Future has faced a slew of leadership and financial challenges. It used up $2 billion in funding and abandoned plans for a $1 billion factory in Nevada, while several top executives resigned.

Its founder and first chief executive, Yueting Jia, finalized a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing last year.

Breitfeld, who served in management roles at BMW, took over as Faraday’s chief executive in 2019 and is guiding the company through its next act.

Property Solutions is expected to provide up to about $230 million in the merger. The remaining $775 million will come from a private placement in public equity, or PIPE.

“We want to thank the stockholders of PSAC and PIPE investors for their support. Reaching this milestone is a testament to the trust and confidence that such stockholders and investors have placed in our leadership, technology and business model,” Breitfeld said.

The FF 91 has a 2022 launch date and 14,000 reservations. It will retail from $180,000.

The vehicles will be manufactured at a factory in Hanford, Calif., where Faraday Future is investing $90 million in a remodel. The company claims it will be able to produce 10,000 cars daily.

Faraday Future also has its an eye on the Chinese market and recently hired Xuefeng Chen as the chief executive of its China division. Chen has more than 20 years of experience in the automotive industry.