Rivian's first R1T electric pickup has just rolled off the production line

Amazon-backed EV truck-maker set to make first customer deliveries this month

Staff, Reuters

Sep 15, 2021 • September 17, 2021 • 1 minute read • Join the conversation

The first production Rivian R1T electric pickup rolling off the assembly line Photo by RJ Scaringe on Twitter

Amazon.com-backed Rivian’s first electric pickup has rolled off the production line, the company’s chief executive said on Tuesday.

This makes Rivian the first automaker to bring a modern electric pickup to the market, ahead of Tesla, General Motors and other players.

“This morning our first customer vehicle drove off our production line in Normal,” founder and Chief Executive Officer RJ Scaringe said in a tweet, which included images of Rivian’s R1T electric pickup truck at its plant in Normal, Illinois.

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After months of building pre-production vehicles, this morning our first customer vehicle drove off our production line in Normal! Our team's collective efforts have made this moment possible. Can't wait to get these into the hands of our customers! pic.twitter.com/8ZidwTaXRI
— RJ Scaringe (@RJScaringe) September 14, 2021

Tesla boss Elon Musk in July offered no timeframe for when the automaker would start mass production of its much-anticipated Cybertruck.

Rivian declined to comment beyond Scaringe’s tweet.

In August, Rivian said it has confidentially filed paperwork with regulators for an initial public offering. Two sources had told Reuters that the company will seek a valuation of around US$70 to $80 billion at the time of its IPO.