Electric vehicle startup Rivian Automotive LLC’s growing presence in Irvine could be getting an additional boost.
The Michigan-based firm—which has raised more than $3 billion in funding since its 2009 founding, with financial backers including Ford, Amazon, T. Rowe Price and Cox Automotive— plans to move its headquarters to a new facility in Irvine, according to a report last week from trade publication Autoline.
The report cites sources close to the company that say Rivian Chief Executive RJ Scaringe wants to consolidate much of the company’s tech team in Irvine.
Scaringe lives in the Irvine area.
Rivian has yet to confirm the headquarters move, but noted that some operational changes are in the works.
Officials last week said in a statement that of the company’s “2,300 employees, approximately 1,000 are based in California and 750 in Michigan, and we are consolidating some engineering teams to our locations in California to improve workflows and reduce environmental impact from travel.”
New 190K-SF Office
Headquarters move or not, the company has been making big real estate moves in the area, in preparation for a local expansion.
The Business Journal in May was first to report on the EV automaker inking a pair of new leases totaling more than 250,000 square feet in the area.
Rivian’s website teases a “new 190,000-square-foot office” on the way in Orange County, which it says is currently under construction and set to open this year.
The building appears to be Irvine’s 14600 Myford Road, a roughly 186,000-square-foot building about a mile from the Market Place shopping center.
The Business Journal reported that Rivian leased the facility from Irvine Co.; the Autoline report states that the company bought a large new facility in Irvine. There’s been no confirmation that the building traded hands.
Consolidation Plans
Sites in Irvine, Carson, and Los Angeles currently house Rivian’s integration engineers, battery team, power inverter team, customer experience, concept design, facilities, logistics and other departments, according to the company.
“The technology that moves our vehicles, and the experiences that move our customers, are developed here,” the company said.
In a May email to the Business Journal, Rivian said it “is excited to consolidate some locations and adjust for growth with our new leases.”
Rivian currently lists close to 100 positions in Irvine on its website for IT, engineering and other positions.
The company’s inaugural EV products, the R1T truck and R1S SUVs, are being touted as offering up to 400 miles of range and providing “an unmatched combination of performance, off-road capability and utility,” it says.
Rivian was slated to begin rolling out the first of its electronic truck and sport utility vehicles to customers late this year, but implications of the coronavirus pandemic caused the company to temporarily shutter all of its facilities, and delay its launch schedule.
—Mark Mueller
