Tesla Beware, Rivian is Coming

By Zachary Abou Elias | October 21, 2021

The sun is finally setting on Tesla’s decade of dominance over the electric car market. Tesla (TSLA) was the catalyst of the electric car revolution currently sweeping the auto industry. They had fully electric sedans and SUVs well before any other large auto manufacturer could come close to developing a competitor. Tesla, historically, could always be counted upon to be the innovator. However, as is the case with every great empire in history, what goes up must always surely come down. New competitors such as Lucid, the Ford Mustang Mach-E, and GM's revival of Hummer as an electric brand are all chomping at the heels of Tesla. However, the first serious all-electric brand to compete with Tesla is the Amazon-backed Rivian. Rivian will have their new R1T full-size pickup delivered to customers and on the road by the end of 2021. For the first time in a decade, someone has beaten Tesla to the metaphorical punch, beating them to market. The R1T is a luxury pickup truck similar to the likes of the Ford F150, GMC Sierra, and Ram 1500; except for one major difference, it’s fully electric. Rivian started in 2009 and since then has been primarily funded by Amazon, which has ordered an entire fleet of electric delivery vans from Rivian. To further solidify the relationship, Amazon's Jeff Bezos drove a Rivian R1T to the launch site of his blue-origin rocket.

This brings us to Rivians' expected IPO, set to occur in 2021, according to Reuters. This IPO is ripe with speculation. Word on the street is that the expected valuation is 70 billion USD. Rivian has already raised 10 billion from many prominent backers, like Amazon. This valuation would make it one of the most valuable automakers in the world, more than the Ford Motor Company, and without having delivered a single car. This valuation is also more than double that of rival novel electric car company Lucid, which went public via a SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) with a value of 34 billion USD. It appears that investors think that Rivian is perhaps one of the most viable and competent electric vehicle contenders in what is soon to be a saturated market.

Rivian is the company that many auto enthusiasts and followers of the multi-billion-dollar auto industry have been waiting for. Finally, a car company that has proprietary electric technology and fresh yet classic design. Tesla beware, Rivian is coming, and they are taking no prisoners.

Edited by Michael D'Ambrosio and Joseph Barbieri