Rivian’s CEO, RJ Scaringe, shared insights on import tariffs during an appearance on The Claman Countdown. Meanwhile, Rivian and Uber revealed a significant partnership on Thursday, valued at up to $1.25 billion, aimed at fast-tracking their development of self-driving vehicles. Together, they plan to roll out as many as 50,000 fully autonomous robotaxis in the coming years.
This agreement outlines that Uber will invest up to $1.25 billion in Rivian by 2031, contingent on Rivian hitting specific performance milestones for their autonomous technology. Following the agreement, the companies are set to make a preliminary investment of $300 million, although this remains subject to regulatory approval.
Uber intends to directly purchase 10,000 autonomous vehicles, or acquire them through fleet partners. There’s also an option to buy up to an additional 40,000 Rivian R2 robotaxis by 2030. Notably, these self-driving vehicles will only be available on the Uber platform.
The rollout of these robotaxis is expected to start in 2020 in places like San Francisco, with plans to expand to Miami by 2028 and extend to over 20 cities by the time we reach 2031.
Once Rivian meets all the necessary autonomous performance milestones, they and Uber will launch thousands of unsupervised robotaxis across 25 cities in the U.S., Canada, and Europe by the end of 2031.
Scaringe expressed excitement about the partnership, emphasizing its potential to propel Rivian towards achieving Level 4 autonomy and positioning them to develop one of the safest self-driving platforms globally. He also highlighted Rivian’s innovative data management systems, which he believes will greatly boost their autonomy advancements in the years ahead.
Uber’s CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, reinforced his belief in Rivian’s approach, which integrates vehicle design, computing, and software into a cohesive system while maintaining a grip on the manufacturing and supply chain aspects in the U.S. He feels that this vertical integration, along with data from their growing consumer vehicle base and experience in managing complex commercial vehicles, supports their ambitious yet feasible goals.
On the stock market, Rivian saw a bump of 3.8%, while Uber’s shares dipped by 1.72% on the same day.
