In contrast, the Rivian boss avoids the political spotlight, almost certainly to the benefit of his company. “I think Tesla becoming more political has certainly had the effect of certain people deciding that they don’t want to be part of that,” Scaringe agrees.
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“I think it’s important not to be political because we really want to be able to sell vehicles to everybody. There’s a classic Michael Jordan line, ‘Republicans buy sneakers, too’, and it’s the same with Rivian.
“There’s a perception often that if you buy an EV, you have to be left-leaning, and that’s actually not correct. We’ve done surveys of this and with the R1 it’s about a 50-50 split [between Republicans and Democrats].
“So Rivian is like this unifier that tries to not be political, tries to embrace the essence of what it means to be human, which is the idea of exploring and the idea of curiosity driving exploring.”
But for all his controversies, Scaringe still acknowledges that Musk has done some good and the Tesla Model S laid the groundwork for the modern electric car landscape that Rivian is capitalising on. “Were it not for the Model S, I think the world would look different. It was a super-impactful vehicle,” he adds. In case you’re wondering, Scaringe informed us that he and Musk don’t talk often.
The story of Rivian, so far
For the many unfamiliar with the company, Rivian is a brand based upon functional yet approachable design, innovation and sustainability, and its mission is “enabling adventures, whatever form that is” says its creator who, as we chat, looks very much the picture of a charismatic entrepreneur; rolled-up jeans, box-fresh hiking books, an Apple Watch on one wrist and a Whoop fitness band on the other. It all conveys the ‘Silicon Valley meets Sierra Nevada’ image Rivian is going for.
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