Rivian Automotive and Volkswagen Group have formed a joint venture valued at up to $5.8 billion to develop electrical architecture and software technology for future electric vehicles. The venture, called Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies, launches November 13 and will be led by Wassym Bensaid from Rivian and Carsten Helbing from Volkswagen Group.
The companies will initially establish development teams in Palo Alto, California, with three additional sites planned across North America and Europe. The partnership aims to reduce development costs and accelerate technology deployment across vehicle segments, including subcompact cars.
Volkswagen Group plans to invest up to $5.8 billion in Rivian and the joint venture by 2027. The company has already invested $1 billion through a convertible note and will invest an additional $1.3 billion at closing for background IP licenses and a 50% equity stake. The remaining investment of up to $3.5 billion will be tied to specific milestones.
“The partnership with Rivian is the next logical step in our software strategy,” said Oliver Blume, CEO of Volkswagen Group. “We have a clear plan to offer our customers the best products and digital experiences at attractive prices.”
Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe added, “Today’s finalization of our joint venture with Volkswagen Group marks an important step forward in helping transition the world to electric vehicles.”
The venture will utilize Rivian’s existing electrical architecture and software technology stack to support the launch of Rivian’s R2 in the first half of 2026 and Volkswagen Group’s first models in 2027. The technology will enable advanced automated driving functions and over-the-air updates.
The companies have already demonstrated their collaboration’s potential by developing a drivable demonstrator vehicle in twelve weeks, retrofitting a Volkswagen Group vehicle with Rivian’s zonal hardware design and integrated technology platform.
