Ferrari has officially named its highly anticipated first battery electric car as "Luce," an Italian word meaning "light" or "illumination." This significant revelation took place at an event held in the TransAmerica Pyramid in San Francisco, where chairman John Elkann emphasized that the name embodies a sense of the future, lightness, speed, and novelty, reflecting the comprehensive nature of this groundbreaking project for the esteemed Italian automaker. The name also resonated with the design sensibilities of the car's key design partner.

For this pivotal endeavor, Ferrari collaborated with LoveFrom, a boutique design atelier co-founded in 2019 by Sir Jony Ive, renowned for his 30-year tenure as Apple’s Chief Design Officer, and acclaimed industrial designer Marc Newson, known for his work on the 1999 Ford 021C concept. Both designers, celebrated for their "less-is-more" approach and penchant for design distillation, brought their philosophy of emphasizing craft, culture, and legacy to the project. Ferrari engaged LoveFrom not as an outsourcing firm but as a "creative conscience" to help navigate the emotional and philosophical questions surrounding driving pleasure and identity in a fully electric vehicle, particularly for a brand celebrated for creating cultural artifacts rather than mere transportation.

The interior of the Ferrari Luce embodies LoveFrom's "phygital" design aesthetic, which seamlessly integrates physical and digital elements. This approach prioritizes intuitive controls operable by touch alone, often utilizing knobs that serve as indicators, and ensures digital displays appear distinctly analog. An extraordinary example is the main instrument cluster, featuring two layered OLED displays. The top screen, with three large cutouts, primarily remains dark, displaying warning lights and occasional navigation. These cutouts are filled with anodized aluminum rings and parabolic glass lenses, providing a sophisticated 3D parallax view of the three digital dials on the lower screen, further enhanced by a physical speedometer needle positioned between the layers. The typeface, dubbed "LoveFrom Maranello," draws inspiration from vintage Veglia and Jaeger instruments of the 1950s and '60s, while gauge trace colors dynamically shift to indicate different drive modes: green for Dry, amber for Sport, blue for Wet, light blue for Ice, and red for ESC Off.

The steering wheel is a modern reinterpretation of the classic Nardi three-spoke design, famously owned by Jony Ive in his 250 Europa. Milled from billet aluminum, leather-wrapped, and featuring a super slim airbag, it houses two small manettino switch pods with unmistakably shaped anodized aluminum knobs, allowing drivers to operate them without looking. Aluminum turn signal buttons are inset in the spokes, and two large "shift paddles" are dedicated to increasing regenerative braking and providing a torque boost. This design achieves a less busy appearance while retaining essential functionality.

The infotainment screen, designed for both driver and passenger access, is mounted on a swivel for ease of use. It incorporates five aluminum toggle switches for climate and seat heating/cooling, along with a shared fan switch. A handlebar facilitates swiveling and doubles as a palm rest for touchscreen interaction. The top section displays performance readouts and a multi-function clock, further enhanced by an anodized aluminum ring and a cutout that permits physical needles. Two glass buttons allow this traditional-looking clock to function as a chronograph, compass, and launch control meter, with intricate gears and clockworks that are remarkably sophisticated.

Throughout the Luce's interior, a commitment to exquisite craftsmanship is evident, with no capacitive switches to be found. All aluminum frames, surrounds, and armatures are milled from billet and offered in a choice of silver, matte gray, or "warm gray" anodized finishes. The car's starting sequence itself is theatrical: placing a hefty rectangular glass and aluminum Cavallino Rampante logo key into its receiver and pressing it flush causes the key's yellow coloring to visibly drain into the glass shifter knob, thanks to e-ink in the key and LED backlighting through 13,000 laser-drilled holes. For an immediate burst of power, a dramatic round aluminum Launch Control handle is located overhead, guiding the driver through screen graphics for activation. The overhead console also includes telematics, head and fog lights, and defroster switches. Practical elements like cupholders, separate stowage cubbies, and rear-seat AC vents are also present, with the cylindrical AC outlets designed for intuitive aiming, closing with a quarter-twist of an aluminum puck.

While the interior design and technology have been unveiled, the exterior of the Ferrari Luce is slated for its full reveal in May. The final exterior design has been 100 percent executed by the Ferrari Styling Centre, led by Ferrari’s design chief Flavio Manzoni. The influence of LoveFrom is expected to manifest in finishes with more matte and less gloss, fewer decorative textures, and reduced overall visual contrast, aiming for a timeless aesthetic. This meticulous five-year development process underscores Ferrari's dedication to achieving a calm, focused, and spacious environment that embodies both the brand's legacy and its electric future.