Electric car maker Rivian announced Wednesday that it was laying off 10 percent of its salaried workforce to cut costs after facing a quarterly loss. The company backed by Amazon reported that it lost $1.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023 and said it plans to build 57,000 electric vehicles in 2024, the same number as last year.
“Our company faces a challenging macroeconomic environment – including historically high interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty – and we must make targeted changes now to secure our bright future,” Rivian founder and CEO wrote to employees in an email: CNN reported. “We need to strategically prioritize our growth areas of the business, including the launch of Peregrine and R2, as well as invest in our go-to-market capabilities.”
As part of its cost-cutting plans, Rivian will close a factory in Illinois in the middle of this year and upgrade its manufacturing line to increase production rates by 30 percent. should reveal the R2, a compact SUV in the $40,000 to $60,000 range, on March 7, although deliveries of the vehicle won't begin until 2026.