Rivian, a startup specializing in electric vehicles , has confirmed that it has the wind in its sails by announcing, on Monday, a successful fundraising of nearly 1.2 billion euros. The American company founded in 2009 presents itself as an increasingly serious competitor to Tesla in the sector of non-thermal cars. Among the companies that participated in this roundtable are Amazon and Ford.
This is the fourth call for investors launched by the company this year. The Michigan startup had previously raised around 2 billion euros. Such financial support has enabled Rivian to see its estimated value increase. It reached between 4.5 and 6.3 billion euros, before the last fundraising.
A launch in 2020?
Investor enthusiasm also reassured Rivian executives. “This investment is a sign of confidence in our teams, our products, our technology and our strategy,” said the CEO of the startup, RJ Scaringe. It is one of the most generously funded companies in the electric automobile sector, where Tesla remains the leader.
Among Rivian’s next projects is the launch, at the end of 2020, of two fully electric models: the R1T pickup and the R1S SUV. These cars are built on the same chassis model, nicknamed “skateboard”. It is equipped with an electric motor, batteries and control equipment. Ultimately, it could also be used by other manufacturers, including Ford.
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