Lucas Bell 
Out of all of the electric vehicle startup companies that have popped up in the wake of Tesla’s success, perhaps none are as intriguing as Rivian. Not only do the Rivian R1T and R1S look to be promising offerings in the EV segment, but the company has some serious financial backing. Major names like Ford, Amazon, T. Rowe Price, and the Fidelity Management and Research Company are all pumping cash into the new automaker with a purpose. According to a new report from Bloomberg, Rivian hopes to offer an IPO as soon as September of this year with a valuation of $50 billion or more.
In speaking with people close to the matter at hand, Bloomberg discovered that Rivian has been in conversation with banks about the possibility of an initial public offering, though the timeline isn’t set in stone. According to the report, the IPO could come after September, even stretching into the 2022 fiscal year. Furthermore, the valuation of the Rivian IPO could change by that time as well, either for better or worse. If the company receives a $50 billion valuation however, it has the potential to be one of the largest IPOs of the year.
According to Bloomberg, the electric vehicle automaker has already raised over $8 billion from investors to date. As readers of MC&T might recall, Rivian was also treated to a $27.6 billion valuation during a funding round in January. While it seems unrealistic for a company to ostensibly double its valuation over the course of nine months, there might be a few reasons this could happen. For starters, the Rivian R1T pickup is slated to make its sales debut in June of this year. That launch will be followed by that of the Rivian R1S SUV in August. Combine those milestone events with the ongoing partnership they enjoy with Amazon, and things start to make a bit more sense. Well, as much sense as Wall Street’s obsessive behavior surrounding EVs can make.
When the EV startup eventually does end up going public, Tesla is going to face its first real homegrown competition. Unlike legacy automakers which many EV fans believe can never catch Elon, Rivian enjoys their same new-age swagger. While there will be many challenges ahead for the team at Rivian, they could have a real shot at this. If Tesla can somehow be worth more than all of the other automakers we know and love, what is stopping Rivian from ranking right up there as well?
