Blog Rivian Raises $350M from Cox Automotive

Rivian, which has developed an electric SUV and pickup, today announced an equity investment of $350 million from global automotive services company Cox Automotive. 

Cox Automotive, a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises, is the home of nearly 30 automotive brands, including Autotrader, Kelley Blue Book, Pivet, RideKleen and Manheim, which transports, services, and auctions vehicles across more than 150 global locations. Rivian and Cox will explore partnership opportunities in service operations, logistics, and digital retailing, according to a release.

Rivian previously raised more than $1 billion from important strategic partners including Ford and Amazon. The company plans to go to production in 2020 and build 20,000 to 40,000 in its first year of manufacturing.

“We are building a Rivian ownership experience that matches the care and consideration that go into our vehicles,” Rivian Founder and CEO RJ Scaringe said in a release. “As part of this, we are excited to work with Cox Automotive in delivering a consistent customer experience across our various touchpoints. Cox Automotive’s global footprint, service and logistics capabilities, and retail technology platform make them a great partner for us.”

Based on a adaptable electric skateboard platform, the R1T truck and R1S SUV will each be available with up to 400 miles of range.

“With the electrification of vehicles set to play a significant role in the new mobility future, this partnership opens another channel of discovery and learning for Cox Automotive,” Joe George, president of Cox Automotive Mobility Group, said in a release. “Advancements in battery technology and the electrification of fleets are two of our primary focus areas, and we believe this relationship will prove to be mutually beneficial.”

Cox Automotive will add a representative to Rivian’s board.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Ok, this is almost getting odd. Normally startups raise money as they need it so that they don’t dilute early shareholders. Rivian’s raised $1.5B a year before their first car comes off the assembly line. Great fundraising prowess, but it would be nice to see more progress on the car building side.

 

[ggr]

Ok, this is almost getting odd. Normally startups raise money as they need it so that they don’t dilute early shareholders. Rivian’s raised $1.5B a year before their first car comes off the assembly line. Great fundraising prowess, but it would be nice to see more progress on the car building side.

I disagree. They have a factory to refurbish, tooling to buy, robots to buy, then they have to build a bunch of them to test with the full expectation that they'll end up recycling them, before they can start meaningful production. If I were them, I'd be happy to take the money up front to know that they would be able to make it to production.

 

[timf]

Ok, this is almost getting odd. Normally startups raise money as they need it so that they don’t dilute early shareholders. Rivian’s raised $1.5B a year before their first car comes off the assembly line. Great fundraising prowess, but it would be nice to see more progress on the car building side.

Rivian is making progress on the car building side. Their factory has completed an initial batch of pre-production models, two of which are currently making their way from Argentina to L.A.

 

[LittlebbJesus]

Ok, this is almost getting odd. Normally startups raise money as they need it so that they don’t dilute early shareholders. Rivian’s raised $1.5B a year before their first car comes off the assembly line. Great fundraising prowess, but it would be nice to see more progress on the car building side.

There never any mention of crash tests either

 

[CyberShy]

I figure Rivian needs another two to four billion dollars to achieve production.

There never any mention of crash tests either

Too early. I don’t think any production representative vehicles exist.

I suspect all of what we see on the internets is mule testing vehicles (prototypes). With more than a year from launch, they don’t likely have much production tooling ready except for the most simple or basic of components.