American electric vehicles startup Rivian on Monday (December 23, 2019) raised $1.3 billion in a fresh round of funding that includes its existing backers Amazon, Ford and T. Rowe Price. This is the fourth tranche of funding of Rivian in 2019, indicating the growing investor confidence in the company.
It is also an affirmation of the growing push towards an all-electric future by big companies across the world. Rivian's new funding suggests that it is aggressively moving ahead with its ambitious plan of rolling out a fully electric SUV and pickup truck in the near term.
Investor confidence grows in Rivian
Rivian is backed by some of the biggest companies that include e-commerce giant Amazon and the second largest US carmaker Ford. Monday's investment includes these two companies once again. The investment was led by fund manager T. Rowe Price.
Rivian has gained popularity since it first disclosed in 2018 its plans of rolling out an electric pickup truck, the Rivian R1T, and a seven-seater SUV, the Rivian R1S. These two will be the company's first models to use its flexible modular architecture.
The flexible modular architecture is described by the company as a "skateboard" that packages electric motors, batteries, brakes, and other electronics into a single unit. The model can be applied in different vehicles. Although Tesla is one of the most prominent names in the electric vehicles category, investors over the past year have shown more faith in Rivian.
Rivian grows from strength to strength
Rivian company had earlier raised $2.2 billion and Monday's funding of $1.3 billion makes it one of the better-funded players in the already crowded electric vehicles market. However, the company said there would be no new board seats following the fourth round of funding.
The electric car market is fast growing with Tesla unarguably leading the race. Other big players like General Motors, Ford and Fiat too are pumping in millions of dollars in a bid to add more fully electric and hybrid vehicles to their existing lineup. China and many European countries too are pushing for an all-electric future. The fourth round of funding and Rivian's plan to roll out two electric vehicles in 2020 are expected to boost its confidence.
