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Rivian Automotive (RIVN) EV IPO targets $60 billion valuation

The electric vehicle startup will attempt to go public before it sells a thousand of its pickup trucks to the general public.

Chris Jarrard

November 1, 2021 6:35 PM

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You can always be sure that Wall Street is crazy for tech startups. One such firm is Rivian Automotive, (RIVN) and the company is making plans for an initial public offering through the NASDAQ stock exchange. Rivian only began shipping trucks to its first batch of customers in recent weeks, but a projected $60 billion valuation shows that the men in control of the money remain bullish on the future of electric vehicles.

Rivian filed its IPO prospectus with the SEC earlier last month. The firm managed to beat Tesla, GM, Ford, and others to market with its new electric pickup truck, though it claimed a $994 million net loss on zero revenue in the first half of 2021. The infusion of funding from an IPO is likely crucial for the company as it expended tons of capital to get its R1T truck in front of paying customers.

Just last week, Amazon revealed that it held a 20 percent stake in Rivian and the IPO paperwork indicated that the online retail giant could potentially acquire a larger share of the electric automaker through the sale of stock. It has previously been reported that Ford Motor Company has a twelve percent stake in Rivian.

Early success in the electric pickup truck market would be huge for Rivian. Combustion engine-powered pickup trucks have long been the most lucrative North American product sector for the biggest players in the auto industry. Ford has kept itself afloat despite decades of blunders thanks to the relentless strength of sales its F-150 family of pickups continues to bring annually. With an all-electric F-150 nearing its wider public release, any chance to grab market share in the absence of competition is critical. 

Time will tell if Rivian and its R1T can reach the level of success needed for the startup to become a premier player in the automotive manufacturing industry. The public will get its chance to invest in the company as shares are expected to go on sale sometime next week on the NASDAQ exchange.

Chris Jarrard

Contributing Tech Editor

Chris Jarrard likes playing games, crankin' tunes, and looking for fights on obscure online message boards. He understands that breakfast food is the only true food. Don't @ him.