Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded to requires his EV maker to purchase competing startup Rivian, in what can be a monumental merger between two industry-leading corporations.
Musk was in Philadelphia on Friday night time for an occasion forward of the U.S. presidential election as he was making an attempt to assist former U.S. President Donald Trump swing Pennsylvania. The cease is one in all a number of Musk has deliberate within the Keystone State.
The occasion, whereas extra centered on politics, was additionally met with questions on Tesla, Musk’s electrical car firm.
One attendee who was there to ask Musk a query pushed the CEO on why Tesla had not sought to purchase Rivian, a competing automaker that has a strong shopper base, robust merchandise, and an progressive CEO working the corporate however a shaky monetary platform.
Musk mentioned:
“I want them the most effective. I hope they do properly. The automobile {industry} is a really tough {industry}. There’s solely two U.S. automobile corporations that haven’t gone bankrupt, and that’s Ford and Tesla. Rivian’s going to have a tough time. It’s insanely tough to compete within the automobile {industry}. If it weren’t for 2 expertise discontinuities, one being electrification and the opposite being autonomy, I feel Tesla couldn’t succeed with out fixing each.”
Rivian has managed to make it a number of years and is ready to roll out its subsequent era of merchandise with a brand new platform that can carry prices down for it and customers, in addition to streamline the manufacturing course of.
Elon Musk was requested tonight why @Tesla hasn’t purchased Rivian:
“I want them the most effective. I hope they do properly. The automobile {industry} is a really tough {industry}. There’s solely two U.S. automobile corporations that haven’t gone bankrupt and that’s Ford and Tesla. Rivian’s going to have a tough time.… pic.twitter.com/yzgSlKkpTs
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) October 19, 2024
Nevertheless, it’s feeling the pains of beginning an EV firm and not using a comparatively limitless quantity of monetary backing, like Lucid with the Saudi PIF.
It had buyers like Ford and Amazon, however these partnerships ended or grew to become non-exclusive.
Though it stays in a scenario the place it could construct autos and increase merchandise, it has but to make a revenue on the vehicles it builds for purchasers, one thing that took Tesla a number of years to attain.
Competitors is sweet for the market, as properly, and Rivian is at the moment constructing a car platform that caters to a distinct shopper base than Tesla. Rivian’s autos, whereas all-electric like Tesla’s, are extra geared towards the outside and tenting.
Please e mail me with questions and feedback at [email protected]. I’d love to talk! You may also attain me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or you probably have information ideas, you’ll be able to e mail us at [email protected].
