Rivian to cut around 600 jobs

The figure of around 4.5 per cent comes from a memo that Rivian sent internally to its employees, which was seen by various US media outlets. However, no specific number was given as to how many employees would be laid off. The Wall Street Journal, which was the first to report on the plans, stated that the layoffs would affect more than 600 employees. At the end of 2024, Rivian employed just under 15,000 people, 4.5 per cent of whom would be 675 jobs.

In the employee memo, RJ Scaringe states that the cuts will mainly be achieved through restructuring in the marketing, vehicle operations, sales/delivery and mobile operations teams. However, it is not yet known how the job cuts will be distributed here. Development and production are not expected to be affected.

“These are not changes that were made lightly. With the changing operating backdrop, we had to rethink how we are scaling our go-to-market functions,” said Rivian’s CEO in a letter published in full by Electrek, among others. “This news is challenging to hear, and the hard work and contributions of the team members who are leaving are greatly appreciated.”

According to Scaringe, Rivian wants these changes to ensure that the company “can deliver on our potential by scaling efficiently towards building a healthy and profitable business.” The new and slightly smaller R2 model, which is expected to go into production in 2026, should contribute to this. However, until the R2 contributes to rising sales (and potentially profits), the start of production will initially cost more money. And in the second quarter, there was still a deficit of $1.1 billion on the balance sheet.

In the third quarter, Rivian recorded rising sales of 13,201 vehicles (+32%), but this is likely to be due, among other things, to the one-off effect surrounding the end of the US tax credit. In Q3 2025, many car manufacturers therefore set new electric vehicle records. It is precisely this expiry of the subsidy and the resulting uncertainty (and presumably slower growth) in the US market for electric cars that are likely to be the ‘changing conditions’ that Scaringe cited as the reason for the layoffs. Despite the good Q3, Rivian now expects sales of only 41,500 to 43,500 vehicles in 2025, down from its previous forecast of 46,000 Rivian vehicles.

cnbc.com, electrek.co (mail), wsj.com (Paywall)

This article was first published by Sebastian Schaal for electrive’s German edition.