Lotus unveiled Theory 1 in September 2024 with the driver in the middle and a passenger on either side. That gives the driver the same view of both front corners, at least in principle. It also gives the designers an awkward question to solve: how do you get into the middle seat in a narrow garage?
Lotus also used the concept to explore haptic cues and a cabin with fewer conventional controls. A cue you can feel through the seat might be useful if it saves a glance at a screen. The test is whether you still know what it means in the rain, on a rough road, with a passenger talking to you.
Theory 1 was a development exercise. The question is how much of it you’d want in a car you use every day.