Rivian Automotive Inc.'s RIVN software chief Wassym Bensaid praised the Tesla Inc. TSLA rival's partnership with German Automaker Volkswagen AG VWAGY as the company prepares to launch its budget EV.
What Happened: Bensaid said that the partnership has injected "start-up DNA" into Volkswagen, in an interview with Business Insider on Sunday.
"They were willing to adopt a much more agile, iterative, innovative approach to the entire development lifecycle, and keep the startup DNA that Rivian brings," Bensaid shared.
The report suggests Volkswagen had struggled to develop software to match the ones offered by new-generation automakers like Tesla, prior to its partnership with Rivian. The German automaker's lack of advanced software had resulted in a sales decline of over 10% last year in China, the report suggests.
Why It Matters: The two companies had announced a partnership in November last year, in a deal worth over $5.8 billion. VW also announced plans to create a budget EV dubbed the iD. EVERY 1, which will heavily leverage Rivian's software capabilities. The EV is said to be priced at almost $22,000.
VW says it plans on launching over nine all-new EVs by the year 2027, as part of the collaboration with Rivian.
Elsewhere, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe reiterated the company's plans for the Rivian R2, which could retail for $45,000 and launch sometime in the first half of 2026. The company also recently unveiled plans to expand its Normal, Illinois production facility.
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