Rivian to lay off 600+ workers / 4% workforce (Oct 23, 2025 report)

[ARGi]

I'm not surprised. I live 45 minutes from the plant and know several who work there. I won't repeat what I have heard regarding weekly R1 purchases since subsidy ended, but suffice to say it isn't good. I am a little surprised by that because I thought well over half of sales wouldn't qualify anyway. Also, supply chain issues continue to dog the company. R2 can't come fast enough. Configurator needs to come out soon.

Dang it.

I worry that once R2 comes out, R1's needs will be tossed aside. Bigger worry of course is survival.

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[Great Gatsby]

Dang it.

I worry that once R2 comes out, R1's needs will be tossed aside. Bigger worry of course is survival.

I wouldn't worry about either. Rivian seems to have a good head on their shoulders and is well aware they need to make money. As for the R1, it will likely see a few updates over the coming years. I doubt they'll bury their flagship specially with all the new developments in tech.

 

[mkg3]

Once R2 is out and going along, all focus will be on R3/3X.

R1T/S will effectively the same as Model S and X are to Tesla today then....

 

[Hauser37]

I had a service issue after the announcement and it was top notch across the board. So I am glad they have kept this vital part of the company up and running at the top of their game.

 

[mkhuffman]

Dang it.

I worry that once R2 comes out, R1's needs will be tossed aside. Bigger worry of course is survival.

Not likely.

The R1 needs to be cash flow positive. If it is, they will keep making it. They have managed to make the R1 cash flow positive even with the overhead of an organization preparing for the R2. While I think it is on the edge, it is definitely realistic to assume the R1 will contribute in a positive way to their bottom line, especially after the R2 ramps up.

 

[mkg3]

In another evidence that EV sales are slowing more, GM to lay off 3,300 workers building EVs and batteries.

"GM is dropping one of two daily shifts at the end of the year at Factory Zero, a person with knowledge of the production plans told Automotive News"

 

[SANZC02]

Not likely.

The R1 needs to be cash flow positive. If it is, they will keep making it. They have managed to make the R1 cash flow positive even with the overhead of an organization preparing for the R2. While I think it is on the edge, it is definitely realistic to assume the R1 will contribute in a positive way to their bottom line, especially after the R2 ramps up.

R2 will help make R1 more cash flow positive as it will share in the fixed costs at the Normal facility.

 

[KootenayEV]

In another evidence that EV sales are slowing more, GM to lay off 3,300 workers building EVs and batteries.

"GM is dropping one of two daily shifts at the end of the year at Factory Zero, a person with knowledge of the production plans told Automotive News"

I view this as allowing more space for R2 to get established.

 

[DKM_R1S]

On your next trip I’d suggest trying a different strategy.

There are a lot of chargers out there now, I’ve taken several trips >7k miles in my R1S and my older Tesla that has a max charge rate around 122 kWh. My strategy is to map out the stretches between chargers to be less than 120 miles most of my charge stops are well under 15 minutes as I stay under 65% on the battery keeping it in the faster rates. This still gives me close to 2 hours of driving between stops.

Might not work for everyone but works great for me, just enough time on the stops to go to the restroom and stretch my legs.

this is the best strategy for long road trips as long as the charging stops are right off the highway. Sometimes it seems like a short distance on the maps, but it might be the time of day when there’s a lot of traffic around or difficult to find (like trying to find the one near Milwaukee that’s up in the parking garage.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

In another evidence that EV sales are slowing more, GM to lay off 3,300 workers building EVs and batteries.

"GM is dropping one of two daily shifts at the end of the year at Factory Zero, a person with knowledge of the production plans told Automotive News"

Yes, GM is laying off thousands from their EV lines and pointing to government policies as excuse. However, less reported is it is GM who lobbied hard against EV mandates. https://spotify.link/mNj4ZdxfZXb

And just weeks ago, with sincerity, GM Pres Mark Reuss told InsideEVs podcast that he regrets GM’s decision to kill the EV1 back in the day and that it shouldn’t have done so. And the Oscar goes to…

“The new GM”. /s

Don’t be fooled, folks. As national policy aims to make fossil fuels great again, gassers and hybrids mean easier money for legacy auto. And that’s all they care about (the rest is green washing).

 

[Oldsmobile_Mike]

Yes, GM is laying off thousands from their EV lines and pointing to government policies as excuse. However, less reported is it is GM who lobbied hard against EV mandates. https://spotify.link/mNj4ZdxfZXb

I haven't fact-checked this, but my local news radio station was reporting earlier today that EV sales for the final month of the tax credit were 23,000. And 6,000 for the month after. Just so disappointing, for a lot of reasons.

 

[therealcmj]

I haven't fact-checked this, but my local news radio station was reporting earlier today that EV sales for the final month of the tax credit were 23,000. And 6,000 for the month after. Just so disappointing, for a lot of reasons.

Not terribly surprising. October's number will be low for every vendor because anyone planning to buy one before the end of the year or who was on the fence and who the $7,500 would impact went ahead and pulled the trigger in September instead.

November and December will see the numbers start to return to whatever "normal" looks like without the $7,500.

If you want to look for silver linings: everyone else pulling back on EVs means there's fewer other options for buyers to choose from!

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

I haven't fact-checked this, but my local news radio station was reporting earlier today that EV sales for the final month of the tax credit were 23,000. And 6,000 for the month after. Just so disappointing, for a lot of reasons.

Google: "Newsom GM sold us out". Multiple sources reported on that one quote. Legit enough that WSJ podcast (previously linked) refers to it.

 

[mkg3]

If you want to look for silver linings: everyone else pulling back on EVs means there's fewer other options for buyers to choose from!

You're saying having less choices is a good thing????

Is that like misery loves company???

 

[mkg3]

According to the Automotive News, US sales overall rises. EVs as a subset is down due to demand pull forward with expiration of tax incentive.

"A sharp rise in light trucks led Toyota Motor Corp. to a 12 percent gain in October U.S. sales, while volume fell at Hyundai and Subaru, and edged up at Ford Motor Co., Honda Motor Co. and Kia as electric vehicle demand slumped industrywide following the expiration of federal tax credits."

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