Rivian R2 & R3 Unveil, Initial Thoughts!!

Rivian has officially unveiled it's R2, a $45,000 electric vehicle set to debut in 2026. It was an epic unveiling event, and very highly anticipated by the whole EV community. Rivian didn't just unveil it's R2, but CEO/Founder RJ Scaringe also unveiled a totally new, even smaller R3 platform. This was super unexpected, and paves way for the ultra-performance R3X. There's a lot to digest here forsure, but one thing is clear, Rivian is onto something big. I went to a live-screening of the even and the hype was palpable. If Rivian can work through its financial troubles and deliver an amazing R2 for $45,000 this will be a huge success. Shoutout to Rivian!
Rivian website: rivian.com/
My X/Twitter: / gfilche
HyperChange Patreon :) / hyperchange
Disclaimer: I own a tiny bit of Rivian (RIVN) stock, this is not financial advice.

[@erifra5606]

Love the new products. Hope they will survive! The work starts now. "Prototypes are easy, production is hard"

[@bac3phi]

It's a stripped down version of their existing poplar vehicles on the road today and people love their products. I own a large amount of TSLA shares and two Tesla Model Y's, but I am unbiased. The R2 is beautiful.

[@whynotstartusingyourbrain8726]

Showing a low margin car while not being able to make profits with their original cars makes no sense.

[@cosmocalisse]

Yet that's exactly what Tesla did with model 3

[@whynotstartusingyourbrain8726]

@@cosmocalisse no, that's exactly not what Tesla did. Tesla used the profits from the S and X to develop model 3. Rivian has no profits at all from either of their vehicles. That's why they will fail.

[@cosmocalisse]

@@whynotstartusingyourbrain8726 That's what the original plan from Elon was, but the company was never cashflow positive until after Model 3 in 2018.

[@misterg4059]

Good point but they are going to pause Georgia factory construction and focus on R2 in Normal Illinois😊 I’m rooting for RIVIAN because Tesla can’t do it all😮

[@Jambaman84]

@@whynotstartusingyourbrain8726 If Rivian can get the R2 into mass production, they will not fail. They just have to tread water until then.

[@mlevesque33]

The R2 is definitely the car I'll buy if Rivian is still around when the time comes to change vehicle. I really hope Rivian will survive. We need more choices in EVs.

[@whynotstartusingyourbrain8726]

They will not. Showing this car two years before it's available is a huge mistake.

[@mlevesque33]

@@whynotstartusingyourbrain8726 You haven't been paying attention to what Tesla did? They revealed and made the car two years later and even later for some.

[@whynotstartusingyourbrain8726]

@@mlevesque33 That's not the point. They had the funding for the development we the 3 from profis they made on the S and X. Rivian hasn't made any profits at all. They lose 40000 Dollars on every car they make.

[@davidbeppler3032]

@@mlevesque33 This is how Rivian dies.

[@NextGenEvs]

Osborn effect just from the NACS on R2 is going to devastate RS1 sales…

[@WeVisitTravelGuide]

good point, everyone will wait. This company will report dismal results for the next 2 years

[@markjonz]

The dual motor should be called the R2D2...

[@AwesomeSauceShow]

Sorry, but Rivian is by far not with Tesla in a class of its own. Also, the R3 looks like an old VW Golf 3 (modernized), ha even the numbers match up ;)

[@djstraylight]

btw, $45,000 R2 is the rear wheel drive with the smaller battery pack. Only 230 mile range? I think MKBHD should also have a vid out by now.

[@steelers4lifewz]

270 mile range rwd

[@smallbusinessdreams]

Every car has 300 miles

[@mcfly10146]

@@smallbusinessdreamsno 270 on 45k r2

[@alexanderkenway]

I think R3 will be really popular. Question is can Rivian survive until then lol

[@HyperChangeTV]

This is the question lol

[@GET2222]

I’m not convinced… I think their product is still too complicated to build.

[@blakeaaron5698]

They have $7billion in cash, and now saving $2.4bn by pausing Georgia factory, so they have a 3-yr runway which will take them into mass market scaling of these R2 and R3 - no worries. Reserve and load up on stock.

[@NextGenEvs]

Preordered! Hope they don’t go bankrupt first….

[@misterg4059]

RJ NEEDS TO SLEEP IN FACTORY 🤨

[@OnionKnight541]

i didn't know Steve-O was the CEO of Rivian 🤔

[@taylorraeburn]

Lol thought the same thing

[@ren1018]

Big moment for Rivian, question is can they scale so people don't wait too long to get theirs.

[@witness1013]

No

[@jbbuzzable]

That is not the question. The question is if they can build it for a profit.

[@NextGenEvs]

4695 battery cells ha. I need to dive deeper into this

[@johnakitto]

Gross margin is an existential problem. Failure (likely via acquisition) is still likely.

[@colekeller]

I believe this is likely correct. At ~10b this is a pretty easy acquisition for quite a few companies

[@geoffgeoff3333]

​@colekeller Doesn't Rivian already have $ 18 billion in debt?

[@colekeller]

That would certainly change things@@geoffgeoff3333

[@themuthfamily7644]

Gali, you’re great but what a 180. How will Rivian scale when they don’t make their own batteries and they use 70% more cells than Tesla to acquire the same range?

[@Jeff-wx3tx]

Smells like Gali smoking, the hopium

[@Jeff-wx3tx]

Does Tesla ship FSD Robo taxi before the R3 release?

[@dogefromthefuture]

This episodes word count: 9,000,683,800,422,654,865 Summary: Rivian is trying to survive

[@andrasbiro3007]

I'm not enthusiastic. It's a long long road with lots of landmines. If I had to bet, I would bet on bankruptcy. 1. They are burning cash like crazy. And it's not like Tesla which had a huge gross margin on the S&X. Rivian is losing huge amount of money on each car they sell. They don't have a business model. 2. Tesla had profitable quarters very early. Elon insisted on proving the business model before taking the next step. And when they burned cash, it was very clear where the money goes. They built factories and essentially created the whole EV supply chain from scratch. I'm not sure whether Rivian is investing or just wasting the money. I'm not paying much attention, so it could just be my ignorance. 3. Achieving profitability with a $45K car is insanely hard. Tesla almost died trying, and they were in a far better shape financially. OK, batteries are much cheaper today, but it just makes it technically not impossible. Without learning cost control first, mass producing cars will just accelerate the cash burn. 4. Going from low-volume to high-volume is insanely hard in itself. Remember the Model 3 production hell? Maybe it's easier for Rivian if they don't want to do everything differently. But also doing everything differently is what allowed Tesla to sell a premium EV for $35K and still making a healthy profit. With standard automotive manufacturing the R2 will never be profitable. Just ask any legacy car company. 5. Unveiling too many products for their size, and they don't feel earned. I'm getting Nikola Badger vibes. Tesla earned their product unveils. The Roadster earned them the right to make the Model S, and that earned them the right to make the Model 3, and then they needed a couple of iterations of the Model Y and the Cybertruck to earn the right to the next gen. platform. All of those technologies they developed and more are necessary for a $25K Tesla to be viable. I don't think Rivian earned the right even for the R2, let alone the R3. The latter especially feels like vaporware. They can't possibly know how to build it yet. They should not start to invest in these before making the R1 profitable. 6. Just because the prototypes look nice and they promise good specs that doesn't mean the finished product will be good. Here they at least have some good track record, the existing Rivians are good. But they are good only because they actually cost far more to build then they are selling for. And mass production is very different, for example quality control is far harder. And serious quality issues can kill the product. 7. And just looking over to the recommended videos and seeing that Top Gear calls the R2 "Model Y slayer". Huge red flag right there. At least they didn't call it "Tesla killer", but the meaning is essentially the same. Remember all the "Tesla killers"? Where are they now? Not one was even modestly successful. They had a brief hype period then faded into obscurity. 8. Tesla always had the huge advantage: lack of competition. Tesla could set the price and could get away with poor build quality, because customers had nowhere to go. Rivian, and everyone else are now competing with Tesla, which is like picking a fight with a Terminator. Your only chance is being elsewhere, targeting markets that Tesla ignores. 9. And finally, I'm not sure that this adventure theme will translate well to a mass market vehicle. The R1T and R1S are mostly toys for the rich, who have time for "adventure". For a mass market car the key features are practicality, safety, price. Performance and other cool stuff are why you want the car, but you have to be able to justify it with rational arguments.

[@4literv6]

This excellent post needs a nomination button! 👍🏻😎

[@hdevrede]

Great cookies. There's that 😅

[@brendan7258]

The car looks epic.

[@pauleklink]

Thanks, Gali!

[@TOMKATPEDALS]

Tbh was expecting the r2 to be the r3. Super stoked on the r3 but damn, now I have to hope they can make all this work in a sustainable way until what-2027/8 to see an r3? Def not gonna be interested in buying any of their vehicles until then. Maybe some stock. Really hoping it works out!!!

[@Smellindamix]

Awesome job bro and thank you 😎🙏🤛💯

[@zvonimirbuconjic9184]

3:31 well Arcimoto was as well...

[@jonp3674]

Personally I wasn't impressed. Way too much fluff and dreams and "visions" while there was a dramatic lack of focus on getting to profitability and not having to fold up as a company. Are they really going to haemorrhage a bill per quarter until '26 when they start ramping the R2 in the hopes they can make big money on a low margin car? We're talking at least 9 quarters they need to limp on. I don't see it, not at $45k, the cumulative loss chart for Rivian vs Tesla just shows how they're flying like a lead balloon.

[@PelleGIT]

Lots of people talking about the Osborn effect. Do you think R1 and R2 have the same customer segments? I love the design of R1 but would never buy one (way too big) but would definitely buy an R2.

[@beaconterraoneonline]

Disagree that lack of autonomy is a weak point. R2 looks pretty nice, but disappointed in a 2.5 year wait.

[@johnp.weiksnar6861]

Rizzvian.

[@peterfinfrock2377]

As a TSLA shareholder, I bought some RIVN today as chump insurance. RIVN market cap is 2% that of TSLA. I think its very possible that valuation could go to 5% of tesla if they deliver the R2/R3 to customers. I think the R2 and R3 are an attractive product.

[@SimonClaringbold]

Great summary - I hope they designed the R3 for easy manufacturing, & they have enough headroom to survive. I imagine they are going to have to do a capital raise to get this line up, running, and scaling.

[@jiro3726]

By 2026, Tesla Model line up will be very different. Refresh Mode Y, the 25K compact Tesla model. Model Y may be selling under $40K (MSRP) by 2026. It will be tough for Rivian to compete with Tesla. Also how much money will they lose per R2 they sell in 2026. I think this is tough road ahead for Rivian. They need lot of cash injection. Ppl may hold off the current purchase plan of the R1 and R1T and wait for R2 and R3. Just my 2 cents

[@ed8018]

Im switching from model 3 to an R2 as soon as that thing hits the market.

[@cjonesplay1]

I preordered.

[@elromolus5310]

Not the biggest fan of the design of the rivian vehicles, but IF they can get these new models in production, IF they are able to scale to hundreds of thousands od units, IF they can sell it for around 50k and IF they do not go bankrupt while doing all of this, there is a lot of potential for Rivian. But yeah, just a lot of IF's, so far we only have seen the prototypes, the easiest part. But still, i hope they can pull this all off :)

[@lupus7297]

Hmm, a bit worrying. Why would they announce two products years away, one of which is likely launching 2030. Seems to me like a desperate attempt to get investors.

[@amosk5535]

Didn't Tesla announced Cybertruck in 2019 and then started delivering in 2023...4 years later?

[@chrisbroemel5508]

How soon does someone wrap it in an R2D2 theme.

[@HyperChangeTV]

THISS!!! Lol

[@USNEM]

R1 is getting a refresh bro...... Chill.

[@harryherber2971]

They will die now due to Osborn effect.

[@gyurmesher]

Rivian hits the sweat spot. Only concern is if they can deliver on time. Price is right. Market is huge. People are looking for nice EV SUV. Not sure why Tesla is not making one. I hope price will drop sooner.

[@ahmadfauzi5757]

There's Tesla Model Y

[@tonydeveyra4611]

After seeing the R2, is anyone else hoping that someone creates aftermarket front seats for the model Y that will fold down? I want that feature now!

[@stanley4297]

Hope they’ll survive But they won’t

[@zblus]

How good are they at building the machine that builds the machine

[@ec4146]

I don’t think these will ever get made. How did they design these for mass production. They never figured out how to make money off the higher trim vehicles? I see bankruptcy unless another company buys them out and continues the losses.

[@juanllo6580]

Fisker vibes

[@USNEM]

Stay salty.

[@4literv6]

Hey now per Forbes they've only burned up over $16,000,000,000 since 2019. Rj himself said that they'd need another 15bill for GA. Give him a chance to burn the remaining less than 8 bill left, go bankrupt and come back with some more taxpayer funds first. 👍🏻😁

[@maxlopez2387]

Product is a +10, worried about scaling all their products at profit. They haven’t been able to do it so far, this year guided for flat deliveries, so how are they going to improve margins without selling more. Hope they make it, but I think it is appealing for a big dog to buy them, maybe Amazon? Stellantis?

[@Random.Adventures.]

R3X looks too sexy for EV's. An off road rugged SUV EV wow

[@vegask2]

45k in 2026 with our rate of inflation? Wasn't the Cybertruck supposed to be 39k?

[@thenotoriousmilkman6037]

I’ll buy some shares under $6

[@jbbuzzable]

And I have some great offers on lakefront properties in the Sahara.

[@ren1018]

I think the $45k price tag is an illusion. That's probably after government rebates and a trim which won't last long like the original model 3 had.

[@jbbuzzable]

Maybe, but doubt it.

[@4literv6]

Base model rwd trim and per marquees with rj an alleged 270 mile range. Leaked screen shows 3.3 miles per kwh for the r2 awd trim. Which means you need a 85-90kwh gross pack to even get to 270. And the larger pack's will be 95+kwhs gross capacity easily. Cheapest current ev with a pack that big I believe is the 57k base pro lightning trucks. And Ford has made over 50k lightnings already. That said people already attempted to answer the capacity and from the released images came up with 85-95kwhs. But 920+v architecture is possible and potentially up to 936hp in that crazy little tri motor r3X. 👍🏻😀

[@stoor79]

Won’t make money for a long time at 45k price point.

[@dzerres]

I don't hate on Rivian like I do Lucid but I just don't see how Rivian can make money on their current weak demand and weak finances. Tesla has plenty of money to flop around a bit and Lucid has a deep-pocket investor but Rivian is out there on its own (where is Amazon and Ford?) so I'm not encouraged. I still think they should have stuck making commercial vans of various sizes - there still is no real competition in that space.

[@cosmocalisse]

This was a great presentation, and it's a great moment for the company. Just like Tesla when they announced Model 3, Rivian is not yet profitable and the focus is on attracting investors and shareholders. Their focus on manufacturability would make it seem like they'll have an advantage compared to Elon who put himself through production hell by not designing a manufacturing-friendly vehicle. Once Rivian is producing these in the order of 300,000/year will they start seeing real profits, so it's just a matter of getting enough investments until then.

[@4literv6]

New sec filing shows they will max out Illinois at 215,000 total unit's across r1s&t, r2&edvs. Where is this mythical 300,000+unit's of capacity in order to hit profitibility, now that GA plant is on hold gonna come from again? Btw I live in Georgia and they took the rivian road signs down around the plants planned location already. 👍🏻

[@aeromtb2468]

the R3 is interesting too bad they arent brining that first.

[@GET2222]

It was okay… it wasn’t convincing though. RJ isn’t great. The space was terrible. It felt claustrophobic. I do hope they survive. The videos were terrible. Their marketing department has got to stop whoring their logo everywhere. Gali gets a little too excited about every EV company. Shout out to arcimoto. Lame

[@happyhealthylife4ever]

Not convinced at all

[@USNEM]

Go back to Elmo.

[@Alusky]

Right. You can show off a nice prototype and put a price sticker on it. But reality is that to ramp this up they need a fuckload of money and haven’t been able to proof profitability on their current line up. Market cap might be 12B but cash on hand is 9B. Debt 3B. So the company is realistically valued at 6B? And their burn rate is over a billion per quarter before ramp up of this new car? So they burn their market cap in a little over a year, good luck raising enough capital for a higher volume vehicle.. Rivian isn’t a bad company and they have a good product but bankruptcy can be quick and unexpected in the coming 1-3 years.

[@mrwombat24]

@@AluskyRivian is going to eat Elmo’s lunch real soon and people are loving it.

[@joka5345]

​@@Aluskyamazon bail out

[@brendanboon9062]

Hi Gali, Can you do a video comparing TESLA - vs - VW - vs - BYD? Financials and overall evolution.

[@brendanboon9062]

Using main street data charts

[@jbbuzzable]

Apples to Oranges to Apricots. I do my own research.

[@duffgaryduff]

They just need to move the charge port side to the proper side.....

[@damiantwins702]

What I think can be summed up in one word. Refreshing. Future will be Tesla the GM Rivian the Ford.

[@wernerengel4919]

Unfortunately RJ is no Elon. I do wish them well.

[@MichaelSmith-px1ev]

To me it looked like an over hyped marketing event just for the US Market. I can see them being able to mass produce this car to all markets globally. The only EV companies that are competing globally are BYD and Tesla.

[@markumbers5362]

Tesla should buy Rivian.

[@4literv6]

Make it their land rover esque division, boot rj though! Put Tom Zhu or drew in charge of it instead. 😀

[@gsharmaATutube]

What an event! Loved all their cars. So thoughtful to target the market segment that TSLA is not operating in. And the designs are so much better than Tesla. Going to reserve an R2.

[@juanllo6580]

Lots of models to show, none in production

[@geoffgeoff3333]

Ugggg-leeee!

[@Matzes]

Their presentation is definitely better than teslas. Not sure if thats a good sign😂

[@michaelkim3432]

Dude, they got a loooonnng way to go before you can go pick one of these up. In the meantime, $RIVN is losing over $40K per every car they make today, plus they guided for flat production numbers in 2024...not very promising. The product looks great, but they need to do a massively dilutive capital raise and figure out how to reduce costs and get to scale before running out of money. Then you can get excited.

[@guerro327]

A two year Osbourne effect? lol No.

[@gurjitsingh1914]

Your stance changed over night. Strange.

[@jameschilton3556]

If it costs them ~$110-120k to make their present cars, it will be a hard task to make a profitable car at $45k. I wish them luck as they've been on my radar since day one but I'm not investing.

[@willmchenry7170]

Gali should Tesla buy Rivian and be like the Toyota Lexus relationship ship?

[@witness1013]

It's a 50k+ disney car.. no thanks

[@LazerEyez]

Gali giving it a good pump !

[@jbbuzzable]

The pump proceeded Gali.

[@InnovativeSustainableSolutions]

Its wierd they didnt hold the event in a sweltering, poorly-lit basement, with the CEO just standing in the back of the truck with a microphone.

[@misterg4059]

🙄

[@misterg4059]

@@VincentKarabouladMusique that’s correct 👍

[@4literv6]

Sweltering poorly lit basement of the world's largest newest most automated ev only plant owned by tesla and located in tx you mean! Making the quickest ground up most advanced ev truck yet sold. 👍🏻😀

[@witness1013]

Should've called it the Rivian SUX

[@nelsonmacy1010]

Sorry, Gali has lost all credibility with me. I feel like he is always angling for a job, insight stock etc. After his Arcimoto disaster and grabbing SpaceX shares, I am no longer a big fan. His excitement on Rivian needs to be tempered by the p&l reality

[@andreschapero3615]

Still way too big. Why ?

[@ien2023]

It seems like Rvian fans are younger than the spoiled older rich Tesla fanboys. It was better done than Elon messy Cybertruck delivery.

[@tipoomaster]

G to 600

[@AstrobotJones]

I saw a RIVIAN in person at a Disney resort parking lot and then bumped into the owner in the giftshop (he was wearinga a logo cap). He explained his experience and the vehicle options, and i was so impressed I immediately bought shares. This vehicle brand is fantastic.

[@davidbeppler3032]

Where will Rivian get the billions to start another project? They still don't profit from the most expensive Rivian they build. This is how a company goes bankrupt.

[@airbreath]

something doesnt feel right to me. they leap-frogged over tesla with their product roadmap. I like tesla's new strategy where they only unveil when they are ready to sell. I don't see an advantage to opening up pre-orders 2 years in advance. Nobody knows what will happen 2 years from now. I'm still not convinced enough to invest. Cool products though! Rivians are nice vehicles.

[@michelbruns]

2 years out, will probably increase cashburn and they dont even have enough money for 2 more years yet lol

[@mullholand]

LEADING THE WAY WITH TESLA? Come on man... come on.... You were on point for so many years but you just jumped the shark with this line. If they can't make money on high priced EVs - how can they make money on lower costs. Rivian is for older people and Elon haters - Rivan misses the mark in so many areas. Come on - they don't even have native video streaming to watch while you are charging or camping. So many YTs are kind of leaning towards Rivan from Tesla - bad move long-term.

[@Blade70]

The 2 year wait is insane. Cybertruck got a lot of crap for it. I imagine this was just a way for them to fundraise.

[@jbbuzzable]

These products are not competition with cybertruck, but more compact models. They may even beat Tesla to market in this segment.

[@Blade70]

@@jbbuzzable I don't see how considering Giga Austin is pretty much ready for the next gen vehicle. While Rivian is just bare starting. Rivian also has never produced as much Tesla in units.

[@trajandeathimus2165]

tesla was the 0->1 moment , this is just another electric car. i don’t get it at all, it’s nice that consumers have choice, but i don’t see anything special about this car at all

[@Gargamel-n-Rudmilla]

All you talk about Galli is the Rivian brand. Is that going to make their production faster, easier, cost less than the R1. Nope, so they fail, unless the move to China and produce there but they have no IP or advantage over Chinese BEVs, the Chinese BEV OEMs would just laugh at Rivian and copy them and do it cheaper.

[@steverobson6538]

Those headlights are terrible

[@tundeuk]

The ninetendo

[@cyumadbrosummit3534]

How's the Tesla investing $1-$1M going? LOL

[@johnmacri7440]

What’s going to move Tesla?

[@JordanSolomon]

Presentation was killer. R2 will be bigger than the Model Y if they can make enough!

[@maxlopez2387]

Not likely, great product. They have issues ramping

[@4literv6]

The same model Y already in production now for over 44 months AND has just sold over 1,205,000 units globally in 2023 alone? Or in other words over 20x rivians entire 2023 ev sales from just 1 tesla model. And is mildly refreshed over in china with a large refresh and new variants coming out here soon. That model Y. 😀

[@jodrhh]

Sold my entire Tesla position and put it all in RIVIAN stock!

[@mikafiltenborg7572]

🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

[@mikafiltenborg7572]

Wake me up when RIVIAN make profit selling EV's.....

[@VR-power]

He was wearing pink sneakers, that’s totally a dog whistle for the woke crowd. Trying desperately to get Tesla haters investment. 😂

[@jiro3726]

I didn't even notice the pink sneakers until you mention it LOL.

[@4literv6]

@@jiro3726 I did immediately and openly laughed at rj. But I've lived in Cali and ATL so males wearing pink&thinking it's cool isn't new for me. 😀

[@td4940]

How much is autonomy a factor in the buying decision for people? Zero for me.

[@richardwilkinson8542]

Tesla fan for YEARS . . . but the R1 and R2 are the way to go, IMO. I have had a cybertruck on order from day one but I'm going with the R2. If you want people to stare at you...fine....Cybertruck. If you want something that you can drive every day, on or off road, fit in your garage - R2 is it.

[@robertgarcia6569]

Charge port on the wrong side 👎

[@sviveros1980]

Rivian is in a class alone.......with tesla

[@Gargamel-n-Rudmilla]

No info on new production process, no unbox no Giga casting no R2. Looks like another stock pump and prep for another round of capital raising. A pile of shit, sorry but Amazon will buy up Rivian.

[@toby-xo6rb]

Watching those Rivian adverts, apparently if you're a white person it isn't for you :(

[@Angelchildxx]

R3 is so ugly. Seems a car from the 80s.

[@mikafiltenborg7572]

R3 = cool design😎👍

[@Angelchildxx]

@@mikafiltenborg7572r2 yes. R3 back is from the 80s.