Ford has chosen to grant your wish: https://www.ford.com/trucks/maverick/2022/ - a real compact pickup with hybrid technology available at the base price of $20k.
That was the vehicle I was referencing. I was saying that this vehicle would have been a joint effort if the partnership were still alive. I could see Mazda owning the small EV segment for Ford too.
Its too bad that the Ford partnership fell apart.