Volkswagen and Rivian have crossed all their Ts and dotted all their Is in their new $5.8 billion joint venture, which officially begins work on November 13, the companies announced today.
Last June, VW said it would invest $5 billion in Rivian as part of a new joint venture that focuses on developing new electrical architecture and vehicle software for future models, including subcompact cars, with the first planned for 2027. .The size of the investment has now increased. rose to $5.8 billion.
“Rivian and VW Group technology, LLC”
The new joint venture, dryly named “Rivian and VW Group technology, LLC,” will be led by Rivian software chief Wassym Bensaid and VW Group chief technology engineer Carsten Helbing. The teams will initially be based in Palo Alto, California, with three other sites in North America and Europe being developed. Developers and engineers from both companies will complete the ranks of the new company.
At the time, the new venture was seen as a big win for Rivian, which has lost more than $1 billion each quarter over the past year and is still struggling to find its financial footing. The company recently said it expected to lose up to $2.88 billion in adjusted profits for the year, down from previous guidance of $2.7 billion in losses. And it has gone through several rounds of layoffs over the past two years.
