- The Rivian's layoff is cutting less than 2% of its workforce.
- It has impacted several hundred jobs, mainly in its service and customer-facing teams, including sales and marketing functions.
- Rivian had 15,232 employees across North America and Europe at the end of last
EV startup Rivian has laid off hundreds of employees shortly after launching its R2 electric SUV, as the company doubles down on cost-cutting. This marks the second round of layoffs in recent months.
The layoff, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, is cutting less than 2% of its workforce. It has impacted several hundred jobs, mainly in its service and customer-facing teams, including sales and marketing functions.
"We recently restructured a handful of teams within Rivian as we work to profitably scale our business," the company said in a statement.
The move comes days after the company began deliveries of its much-anticipated R2 SUV. It is a key model positioned to compete directly with Tesla's Model Y.
Rivian had 15,232 employees across North America and Europe at the end of last year. Around 300 employees will be affected by the layoff.
The R2 is an important product for Rivian as it is designed to help the company move beyond its image as a niche luxury EV maker and compete in the mainstream electric vehicle market, where companies like Tesla dominate.
Rivian has said it hopes the R2 will eventually help it achieve profitability. So far, however, the company has never recorded an annual profit.
Rivian reported a loss of about $3.6 billion last year, while delivering only 42,247 vehicles during the same period. In the first quarter of this year, its automotive business was still losing roughly $6,000 on every vehicle it delivered, according to company filings.
The company, along with other EV manufacturers, is facing increased pressure due to policy changes under the Trump administration, including the removal of a $7,500 federal tax credit that previously helped make electric vehicles more affordable for buyers.
Earlier, in October, the company laid off more than 600 employees, which was around 4.5% of its total workforce at the time.
