Ford will build an electric car using EV-startup Rivian's tech

Ford Motor Company has announced an investment of $ 500 million in a startup EV Rivian and is going to build an electric car using its technology. According to Ford CEO Jim Hekkett, as well as investors and journalists, the new car will be self-developed and will not affect the two Ford electric cars: the F-150 and the crossover Mustang.

In particular, Ford will build its car based on the Rivian's “flexible skateboard platform”, which includes a battery, an electrical transmission, and the electric architecture of the R1T and R1S SUV pickup . Ford will also receive a minority stake in Rivian in exchange for investment. Ford has already decided which car he will build on the Rivian platform, although he hasn’t yet clarified this.

Just two months ago, Rivian and Amazon announced an investment round of $ 700 million. Rivian also negotiated with GM, but the startup reportedly refused a potential exclusive deal. Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said that Rivian makes “several models” for other companies and “is very focused on the relationships that we are building now by launching our own products”.
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Previously , Ford announced the allocation of 11 billion dollars for the development of electric vehicles, starting with the crossover Mustang, which is due at the end of this year. “We have a lot of electrification experience,” said Joe Hinrix, Ford president of automotive operations. “But there is also a lot of what we don’t know yet, and there are things that we can learn from Rivian. He will also join the Rivian board of directors.

Hinriks said that Ford is considering a deal with Rivian as a “significant opportunity” to get a new electric car faster and cheaper than if the automaker had developed it from scratch. “One of the big advantages you get from working with a start-up company, such as Rivian, with RJ in particular, is the ability to work faster. So the speed at which a new electric vehicle is released is the most important factor, ”he said.

Hackett said he was “most impressed” with the Rivian skateboard technology, praising the originality of the design, noting that Rivian has the freedom to design their electric vehicles from scratch and a clean slate. “They did not come from the“ analog world ”. They simply ingenious invented, ”he said.

“We have the opportunity to learn from Ford in terms of their manufacturing experience, especially when it comes to lightweight structures and, of course, how they effectively manage production,” said Skaringe.

Hackett also said that the Rivian deal will not affect the automaker’s recent partnership with Volkswagen, which includes pick-ups . Ford has been associated with at least one more EV startup: in 2017, he held talks with Lucid Motors, which eventually failed. Since then, Lucid Motors has received more than $ 1 billion from the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia and continues its project on its own.

Rivian became noticeable only in 2018, although the company has been around for about ten years. Unlike some of the brighter startups EV, Rivian does not announce its first cars until it starts production.