Legitimacy challenges in emerging electric commercial vehicle (ECV) ecosystem

The electrification of transport is widely recognized as a promising solution with significant potential to decrease carbon dioxide emissions. However, despite ongoing technological advancements, businesses have been reluctant to fully adopt electric commercial vehicles (ECVs). Such reluctance stems from the legitimacy challenges businesses encounter in the emerging ECV ecosystem. This research applies the business model (BM) perspective to identify the ECV ecosystem's legitimacy challenges. Findings highlight that these challenges can be classified under four main themes: novelty, lock-in, complementarities, and efficiency. Notably, data analysis reveals that the nature of these challenges varies across ecosystem actors, with some challenges more prevalent for specific ecosystem actors. This study contributes to the ongoing discussion of the ecosystem literature by proposing that legitimacy of an ECV ecosystem emerges from the legitimacy of the business models employed by ecosystem participants. It also provides practical implications for managers managing the complexities of the ECV transition and offers policy recommendations to support ecosystem development. • The emerging electric commercial vehicle ecosystem faces several “legitimacy” challenges. • Ecosystem legitimacy refers to collective acceptance and perceived legitimacy of its actors. • Ecosystem can be defined as a “bundle of interlinked business models”. • Ecosystem legitimacy emerges from legitimacy of actors' business models in ecosystem. • Legitimacy challenges vary across ecosystem actors, influencing their ability to gain acceptance.