From the moment former Lamborghini CEO was appointed to lead Bugatti, we knew the French brand would never be the same. Stephan Winkelmann has a very successful track record of making the most out of a premium brand name by launching extreme versions of already extreme supercars and hypercars. Only six months after his appointment, the Bugatti Chiron Sport was revealed. The most recent example is the $18 million one-off La Voiture Noire. But it turns out Winkelmann has another type of future model in mind.

According to Bloomberg, Winkelmann sees the brand doing a "battery electric vehicle" in the near future. "There, the balance between performance and comfort is much more important, and it's about daily usability. This is what I see," he said.

Top speed performance, a focus point for Bugattis like the Veyron, Chiron, and Divo "will be far less important" this time around. Don't expect a 261 mph top speed but Winkelmann also wants this potential battery-electric model to be more affordable. In Bugatti's world, the term "affordable" still translates to around half a million bucks. Instead of Chiron-like output of 1,500 hp, Bugatti is looking at 800 hp, give or take.

Winkelmann declined to go into further specifics, but he certainly sounded like he's on board with an EV better suited for daily driving and maximum comfort. "Let's see what we can do," he added. "I'm hoping for the best." It's not surprising Winkelmann wants to expand the Bugatti brand beyond hypercars.

There are lots of wealthy individuals who have little to no interest in driving around a Chiron but could be attracted to something a bit tamer and just as luxurious, if not more. Given the fast-paced rise of electric mobility and the fact that Bugatti has parent company Volkswagen Group at its disposal, it makes sense Winkelmann is eyeing electrification. No timetable was given for possible production, but we wouldn't be surprised to see Bugatti debut something of this nature at the 2020 Geneva Motor Show.