Rivian says it’s on track for $250 million Uber funding by year-end, R2 demand strong

By Akash Sriram and Abhirup Roy Oct 29 (Reuters) Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said on Thursday the EV maker is very confident it will hit an autonomy milestone this year that unlocks a $250 ​million tranche of Uber s investment, and that demand for its ‌new R2 compact SUV was strong. The Uber funding and strong R2 sales are crucial to Rivian s push to narrow heavy losses and cash burn while it funds a bet on self-driving technology and leans on its joint venture with Volkswagen, which ‌has ​become a major source of revenue. Uber is investing ⁠up to $1.25 billion in Rivian ⁠through 2031, which includes an initial $300 million and is contingent on autonomy milestones. Scaringe declined to detail the criteria assigned to each tranche but said the timing was right on time against the company s internal ​plan. The partnership targets a 2028 launch of driverless R2 robotaxis on Uber s network, starting in a couple of cities and expanding to roughly ⁠25 over about 18 months, he said. R2 ⁠outs