RJ Scaringe
FOUNDER, CEO
RIVIAN AUTOMOTIVE
THE MONEY: Startup electric vehicle builder, with over $25B in funding since 2009, most of it in past five years. Eagerly awaited IPO in late 2021 was the largest in years for a U.S. company. For a while, company’s $100B-plus valuation made it far and away OC’s most valuable public company. Valuation since has fallen to near $17B as of mid-July, holding the No. 4 spot among local public companies. Shares fell 19% for the year ended June; however they are up 21% this month following news of
a $5B investment from Volkswagen Group.
UPCOMING LINEUP: EV manufacturer in March unveiled its mid-size lineup of three new models, the R2, R3 and R3X, at Laguna Beach’s Rivian South Coast Theater, the company’s flagship retail location.
POTENTIAL PAYOUT: Stock options he’s due if the company meets certain performance goals could push his wealth close to $14B, but those options can’t be exercised until 2030, according to a 2021 Bloomberg report.
QUOTABLE: “As an industry, we’re replacing roughly 1B internal combustion passenger cars across the planet over the next couple of decades. Rivian’s mission is to accelerate this transition.”
