Rivian, a California-based automotive startup, has filed an initial public offering. While there’s already a buzz around IPOs in the U.S. market, Rivian is getting special attention as the tech giant Amazon has been one of the investors. The company looks forward to an initial valuation of $80 billion.
Rivian is an automotive startup that mainly deals with electric trucks and utility vehicles. It filed the paperwork on Friday with the Exchange Commission and U.S. Securities. At present, the electric automaker has raised around $10.5 billion, from which $2.65 billion was raised in January by the existing investors. As per the reports, the latter investment rounds took the startup’s valuation to more than $27 billion.
If Rivian manages to capitalize on the target valuation, it will be the biggest public entity entry in 2021. Since huge market players such as Amazon and Ford are among the company backers, Rivian is said to have potential to compete with Tesla.
It was back in 2009 when RJ Scaringe founded the company. The name was later changed with ‘Rivian,’ meaning ‘Indian River’ in Florida. Speaking of strength, the company presently works with around seven thousand employees. With the company going public, it aims to expand the team and start the manufacturing process of electric pick-up and SUVs.
As we look at the company’s pace, the market may welcome the launches in the coming year. Experts suggest the new launches and expansion plans will pose a challenge for industry giants.
Along with Rivian, there are many other big names with huge company backers making news for filing IPOs. GlobalFoundries and TPG, to name a few. The year has been a busy one for public company entrants.