Rivian Automotive The company has redesigned its all-electric R1 pickup truck and SUV models to improve range, performance and computing power. NVIDIA The company said Thursday that chip sales are strong.
While the 2025 model year vehicle will look similar to the current model on the outside, Rivian said it has changed more than half of the hardware components in the second-generation product, redesigning its battery and electrical architecture, also known as the vehicle’s brains.
“We continue to evolve our flagship R1 vehicle to deliver uncompromising quality and performance, and the improved R1S and R1T further push the technological boundaries to create our most capable products yet,” Rivian CEO and founder RJ Scaringe said in a statement.
The most notable change in the new vehicles is their computing power, which Rivian says delivers 10 times the performance of the previous system.
The new system uses dual Nvidia DRIVE Orin processors to power an “Autonomy Compute Module” that includes the driver assistance features. Rivian said a “premium version” of the system will also be offered, with a wider range of features, including hands-free driving “for a period of time.” Rivian said drivers will still need to keep their eyes on the road at all times.
The update to the current product comes as the company seeks to boost sales of its flagship model ahead of the launch of a cheaper “R2” model that is expected to start at about $45,000 when it begins shipping in the first half of 2026.
Low-cost vehicles are crucial to Rivian’s expansion as sales of current models have slowed amid a sluggish industry-wide sales pace of electric vehicles. The company has been trying to curb capital spending by cutting jobs, reducing operating costs and making its Illinois factory more efficient. It also paused construction of a new factory in Georgia to save $2.25 billion.
Rivian’s shares have come under pressure as the automaker burns through cash and continues to report big losses. Rivian reported a $1.45 billion loss in the first quarter of this year.
The company’s shares have fallen roughly 50% since the beginning of the year.
Rivian said deliveries of the 2025 R1S and R1T will begin immediately.
The California-based company will continue to offer three motor configurations — dual, tri and quad — as well as standard, large and maximum battery packs with maximum ranges of 270 miles, 330 miles and 420 miles, respectively.
2025 Rivian R1T and R1S
Rivian
Rivian said pricing for the second-generation R1S SUV will start at $75,900, up $1,000 from the current model, with the top-of-the-line tri-motor model starting at about $106,000. Starting price for the R1T will remain at $69,900, but the tri-motor model will top out at $100,000. The company did not release specific pricing for the top-of-the-line quad-motor vehicle.
The updated battery pack still uses the “2170 cylindrical cells,” but the pack enclosure now uses large, high-pressure die castings to simplify manufacturing and reduce mass.
The three- and four-motor vehicles are equipped with new Rivian-built drive units, with the top-of-the-line four-motor delivering up to 1,025 horsepower and 1,198 pound-feet of torque when using Launch Mode, helping it accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds — up from 835 horsepower and 908 pound-feet of torque.
Rivian says the vehicles feature more luxurious, modern interiors and a completely redesigned software interface. It also improves charging times, allowing all vehicles to add up to 140 miles of range in about 20 minutes.
Correction: The Rivian Max battery pack can provide up to 420 miles of range. The Large battery pack can provide up to 330 miles of range. An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the driving range.
