Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) said it began external customer deliveries of its R2 vehicle in June, marking a key step in the electric-vehicle maker’s plans to expand volume and improve profitability. The company also raised its 2026 delivery outlook after reporting second-quarter deliveries above its prior expectations.
Chief Executive Officer and Founder RJ Scaringe said R2 is expected to be a major growth driver, citing positive early reviews, reservation conversion and customer interest. Rivian hosted more than 57,000 demo drives during the second quarter, a company record, he said.
Second-Quarter Financial Results
Rivian reported second-quarter consolidated revenue of $1.66 billion, up 27% from a year earlier. Consolidated gross profit was $179 million, representing an 11% gross margin, while adjusted EBITDA loss totaled $379 million.
Automotive revenue rose 23% year over year to $1.14 billion, supported by a 14% increase in vehicle deliveries and a $103 million increase in automotive regulatory-credit revenue. The gains were partly offset by a lower average selling price resulting from a greater mix of commercial van and R2 deliveries.
The company produced 12,613 vehicles at its Normal, Illinois, plant and delivered 12,194 vehicles during the quarter. Deliveries exceeded Rivian’s previous expectation of 9,000 to 11,000 vehicles, driven by growth in electric delivery van and R1 volumes as well as the start of R2 deliveries.
Automotive gross profit loss narrowed to $36 million from a $335 million loss in the year-earlier quarter. Chief Financial Officer Claire McDonough said the improvement reflected higher production and delivery volumes, greater regulatory-credit revenue and an IEEPA tariff refund receivable, partly offset by the costs associated with launching R2.
Rivian recognized about $100 million in incremental cost of revenue tied to R2 ramp-up activities. McDonough said those costs included expedited freight, short-term supplier premiums and costs expensed during the period that would typically be absorbed in inventory at higher production rates.
Software and services revenue increased 37% to $515 million. Of that total, $308 million, or 60%, came from Rivian’s joint venture with Volkswagen Group. The segment generated gross profit of $215 million and a 42% gross margin, primarily due to increased vehicle electrical architecture and software development services provided through the joint venture.
Production Ramp and 2026 Outlook
Rivian is manufacturing R2 on one shift in Normal and expects to add a second shift by the end of the third quarter. Scaringe said managing the supply base remains a principal focus because vehicle output can be constrained by the slowest-moving supplier.
Chief Operations Officer Javier Varela said Rivian does not expect a material volume contribution from the second shift during the third quarter, but expects to see an impact in the fourth quarter. He said the company is concentrating on workforce training, automation, output improvement and support for a limited number of suppliers.
The company raised its 2026 delivery outlook to 65,000 to 70,000 vehicles across R1, R2 and commercial vans, an increase of 3,000 vehicles from its earlier forecast. That outlook implies 42,400 to 47,400 deliveries in the second half, with deliveries weighted toward the fourth quarter as R2 production expands.
- Adjusted EBITDA loss guidance: $2.0 billion to $1.8 billion for 2026.
- Capital expenditure guidance: $1.7 billion to $1.8 billion, reduced by $250 million at the midpoint.
- Expected 2026 delivery volume: 65,000 to 70,000 vehicles.
McDonough said Rivian expects R2 to achieve positive gross profit as part of its 2026 exit rate. However, she said automotive gross profit is expected to be negatively affected in the third quarter by launch complexity and ramp inefficiencies before production scale begins to benefit the business in the fourth quarter.
The updated EBITDA forecast reflects better-than-anticipated regulatory-credit revenue during the first half and higher expected deliveries, partly offset by higher raw-material, memory and logistics costs. Rivian also cited macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions as continuing sources of supply-chain uncertainty.
Liquidity, Commercial Vans and Technology Plans
Rivian ended the quarter with approximately $5.3 billion in cash equivalents and short-term investments. In July, it sold 86.25 million Class A shares in a follow-on offering, raising about $1.3 billion for general corporate purposes, including equity commitments and reserves related to its $4.5 billion Department of Energy loan for the Georgia manufacturing plant.
The company said it also expects to receive $1 billion in non-recourse debt from Volkswagen Group and a $250 million equity investment from Uber later this year, subject to specified conditions. Including current liquidity, the DOE loan and targeted investments, Rivian said total available liquidity and targeted future capital exceeds $14 billion.
Scaringe said Amazon has more than 40,000 Rivian electric delivery vans operating in thousands of North American cities. Rivian is developing additional van variants with a larger battery pack and all-wheel drive, and said the commercial van platform surpassed 1 billion miles driven during the second quarter.
On autonomy, Rivian expects to introduce point-to-point driving capabilities by the end of 2026. Scaringe described the initial feature as hands-off but requiring drivers to keep attention on the road. The company is targeting hands-off, eyes-off capabilities in 2027 and Level 4 capabilities, including consumer and robotaxi applications, in 2028.
Rivian also targets the launch of its third-generation autonomy hardware at the end of 2026, featuring its first in-house silicon design, RAP1, and lidar. Scaringe said the RAP1 chip has entered final testing phases for production silicon.
About Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN)
Rivian Automotive, Inc is an American automotive technology company specializing in the design, development and manufacture of electric vehicles. The company is best known for its all-electric R1 platform, which underpins the R1T pickup truck and R1S sport utility vehicle. In addition to consumer products, Rivian has secured a significant commercial contract to produce electric delivery vans for a leading e-commerce provider, underscoring its capability to serve both retail and fleet customers.
Founded in 2009 by engineer and entrepreneur Robert “RJ” Scaringe, Rivian has grown from a research-focused startup into a publicly traded corporation.
