‘Fork in the road’: CEO of Amazon-backed Rivian on why carmakers need to invest in EVs

The Rivian R2 vehicle. The carmaker’s CEO says many manufacturers have chosen short-term profits over the heavy investments that will be needed to survive. Photograph: Rivian View image in fullscreen The Rivian R2 vehicle. The carmaker’s CEO says many manufacturers have chosen short-term profits over the heavy investments that will be needed to survive. Photograph: Rivian ‘Fork in the road’: CEO of Amazon-backed Rivian on why carmakers need to invest in EVs RJ Scaringe says firms focused on selling fossil fuel engines risk being ‘woefully behind’ on technology by end of decade C armakers that focus on selling fossil fuel engines are at risk of being “woefully behind” on technology by the end of the decade, according to the boss of Rivian, an Amazon-backed US electric carmaker. RJ Scaringe, Rivian’s founder and chief executive, said the car industry has reached a “fork in the road” in the choice between short-term profits and the heavy investments, particularly in software, that will be required to survive. In an interview this month in London, he said many have chosen profits, ramping up the production of petrol or hybrid pickup trucks and SUVs in the US and Europe . Much of the automotive industry in the US and Europe has lobbied to slow the transition to electric vehicles, favouring instead polluting but profitable cars with internal combustion engines. The retreat has been particularly striking in the US , where Donald Trump’s administration has gutted incentives to produce and buy EVs. Ford, General Motors, Honda, Stellantis and Volkswagen, all of which have large US operations, have collectively written off more than $70bn (£53bn) from their previous EV investments, according to Reuters. View image in fullscreen Workers on the production line at Rivian’s headquarters in California. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images Scaringe said the decisions to focus on profitable petrol cars could come back to haunt manufacturers. He said: “That looks really good financially for 2026, 2027, maybe even 2028. But as you get to the end of the 2020s and into the 2030s, I think we’re going to find a lot of companies are unfortunately woefully behind in terms of their technology.” The turn against EVs has led to uncertainty over demand for Rivian, which has just started deliveries of its R2 SUV in the US. The car is “make or break” for the company as it tries to turn a profit for the first time, Scaringe said. View image in fullscreen RJ Scaringe says focusing on the profitable petrol cars could come back to haunt manufacturers. Photograph: Kimberly White/Getty Images for Rivian Rivian was founded in 2009, and delivered its first electric vehicle in 2021, the same year as it floated on the stock market. Rivian lost $3.6bn in 2025 amid heavy investment in the R2 and in autonomous driving abilities. After its market value soared above $100bn at its initial public offering , the carmaker has dropped back to $21bn – although Scaringe could be in line for share awar