The Rivian CFO has made several announcements at the recent Bank of America Securities Summit, enticing investors and fans alike.
Rivian is finally catching its stride following a successful first quarter of the year, and coming off this excellent production ramp; the automaker is headed toward a whole new set of challenges, relating to everything from its second-generation R2 vehicle to its profitability to its ongoing R1 truck ramp. Luckily, the company’s CFO, Claire Rauh McDonough, released new information covering these points at last week’s Bank of America Securities Summit.
@RivianUpdates initially reported the tsunami of Rivian announcements on Twitter in a lengthy thread covering the numerous statements. Still, they can essentially be boiled down to three main points, R1 production updates, the Van production ramp, and R2 updates, along with a couple of minor updates.
Rivian’s CFO revealed a TON of important information via BofA Securities Summit: $RIVN ?#Rivian @Rivian @RJScaringe
• Rivian anticipates achieving a POSITIVE gross profit by H2 of 2024
• Rivian is aiming to build 85K R1s in 2024.
• R2 production capacity will be 200K units… pic.twitter.com/YZiyz02aUN
— Rivian Updates (@rivianupdates) April 7, 2023
R1 Production Updates:
Perhaps the most notable announcement from the BofA summit is the news regarding the company’s premier truck offering, the R1 lineup. Foremost, Rivian remains on track to achieve profitability by the second half of 2024, motivated essentially entirely by R1 and van deliveries. Further, while McDonough did not disclose the total number of backlog orders, the company anticipates completing all of its pre-March price increase orders by mid-2023. It has a backlog extending “well into 2024” with orders from after the price increase.
On top of this sales success, Rivian is learning some surprising things about its newest customers, primarily their price point. Rivian’s CFO notes that the automaker has seen the average purchase price of its trucks steadily increase, indicating that more premium buyers are coming to the automaker, who are typically more willing to purchase the optional add-ons. However, following these comments, the company executive noted that Rivian does not currently plan to increase the base price of its R1 vehicles.
Looking to the future of the R1 vehicles, the CFO notes that Rivian plans to produce 85,000 vehicles annually by 2026, a production number that the automaker has previously stayed tight-lipped about.
R2 Design and Production Updates:
As the Rivian R1 vehicles have continued to age, the anticipation for the company’s next generation “R2” trucks has built. And while Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe has noted the business plans to make the upcoming truck a more affordable model, other details have yet to be revealed.
Most surprising to investors was the CFO’s bold estimation of R2 production, which is anticipated to begin in the 2025-2026 timeframe. Rivian aims to produce 200,000 R2 trucks during 2026 and will then seek to double that number as its next production goal, though a timeframe for that upgrade was not shared.
Regarding the upcoming truck’s market position, sadly, Rivian remains secretive. However, the CFO noted that the new vehicle would aim to compete with other luxury volume sellers like the Tesla Model Y. With this information, many now anticipate the truck to start at around $40,000.
Finally, Rivian’s CFO pointed out that R2 aims to be both a volume seller and a global vehicle, meaning it will be available in numerous markets. Currently, Rivian has been supply constrained and hence, a strictly North American brand, but that may change in the near future, with Europe likely being the company’s next target.
Electric Delivery Van Announcements:
Despite Amazon’s recent announcement that it would be decreasing the number of vans it would be buying this year, Rivian remains entirely focused on the production ramp of its offering. One of Rivian’s top priorities has been the production of its Electric Delivery Van (EDV), which has been taking the streets of the United States by storm. Highlighting this focus, the company CFO noted that the van takes “enduro-motor” priority over the dual-motor R1 vehicles. Moreover, the van received two notable production upgrades in Q1 of this year, integrating the new motor and Rivian’s new LFP battery pack.
Other Announcements:
Besides these amazing announcements on its most exciting products, Rivian also revealed updates coming to its Adventure Network charging infrastructure. To aid its rapid development, Rivian will now be looking to join the “Federal Charging Fund” in the United States, making it eligible to receive incentives from the federal government to place its charging network. However, as a result, Rivian will be forced to open its network to other EVs. Nonetheless, with the feds willing to put up as much as 80% of the cash required for installation, many would consider Rivian foolhardy to decline the offer.
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Investor's Corner
Tesla (TSLA) Q4 and FY 2025 earnings results
Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 earnings come on the heels of a quarter where the company produced over 434,000 vehicles, delivered over 418,000 vehicles, and deployed 14.2 GWh of energy storage products.
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has released its Q4 and FY 2025 earnings results in an update letter. The document was posted on the electric vehicle maker’s official Investor Relations website after markets closed today, January 28, 2025.
Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 earnings come on the heels of a quarter where the company produced over 434,000 vehicles, delivered over 418,000 vehicles, and deployed 14.2 GWh of energy storage products.
For the Full Year 2025, Tesla produced 1,654,667 and delivered 1,636,129 vehicles. The company also deployed a total of 46.7 GWh worth of energy storage products.
Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 results
As could be seen in Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 Update Letter, the company posted GAAP EPS of $0.24 and non-GAAP EPS of $0.50 per share in the fourth quarter. Tesla also posted total revenues of $24.901 billion. GAAP net income is also listed at $840 million in Q4.
Analyst consensus for Q4 has Tesla earnings per share falling 38% to $0.45 with revenue declining 4% to $24.74 billion, as per estimates from FactSet. In comparison, the consensus compiled by Tesla last week forecasted $0.44 per share on sales totaling $24.49 billion.
For FY 2025, Tesla posted GAAP EPS of $1.08 and non-GAAP EPS of $1.66 per share. Tesla also posted total revenues of $94.827 billion, which include $69.526 billion from automotive and $12.771 billion from the battery storage business. GAAP net income is also listed at $3.794 billion in FY 2025.
Below is Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 update letter.
TSLA-Q4-2025-Update by Simon Alvarez
Tesla has rolled out a new Supercharging safety feature in the United States, one that will answer concerns that some owners may have if they need to leave in a pinch.
It is also a suitable alternative for non-Tesla chargers, like third-party options that feature J1772 or CCS to NACS adapters.
The feature has been available in Europe for some time, but it is now rolling out to Model 3 and Model Y owners in the U.S.
With Software Update 2026.2.3, Tesla is launching the Unlatching Charge Cable function, which will now utilize the left rear door handle to release the charging cable from the port. The release notes state:
“Charging can now be stopped and the charge cable released by pulling and holding the rear left door handle for three seconds, provided the vehicle is unlocked, and a recognized key is nearby. This is especially useful when the charge cable doesn’t have an unlatch button. You can still release the cable using the vehicle touchscreen or the Tesla app.”
The feature was first spotted by Not a Tesla App.
This is an especially nice feature for those who commonly charge at third-party locations that utilize plugs that are not NACS, which is the Tesla standard.
For example, after plugging into a J1772 charger, you will still be required to unlock the port through the touchscreen, which is a minor inconvenience, but an inconvenience nonetheless.
Additionally, it could be viewed as a safety feature, especially if you’re in need of unlocking the charger from your car in a pinch. Simply holding open the handle on the rear driver’s door will now unhatch the port from the car, allowing you to pull it out and place it back in its housing.
This feature is currently only available on the Model 3 and Model Y, so Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck owners will have to wait for a different solution to this particular feature.
News
LG Energy Solution pursuing battery deal for Tesla Optimus, other humanoid robots: report
Optimus is expected to be one of Tesla’s most ambitious projects, with Elon Musk estimating that the humanoid robot could be the company’s most important product.
A recent report has suggested that LG Energy Solution is in discussions to supply batteries for Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot.
Optimus is expected to be one of Tesla’s most ambitious projects, with Elon Musk estimating that the humanoid robot could be the company’s most important product.
Humanoid robot battery deals
LG Energy Solution shares jumped more than 11% on the 28th after a report from the Korea Economic Daily claimed that the company is pursuing battery supply and joint development agreements with several humanoid robot makers. These reportedly include Tesla, which is developing Optimus, as well as multiple Chinese robotics companies.
China is already home to several leading battery manufacturers, such as CATL and BYD, making the robot makers’ reported interest in LG Energy Solution quite interesting. Market participants interpreted the reported outreach as a signal that performance requirements for humanoid robots may favor battery chemistries developed by companies like LG.
LF Energy Solution vs rivals
According to the report, energy density is believed to be the primary reason humanoid robot developers are evaluating LG Energy Solution’s batteries. Unlike electric vehicles, humanoid robots have significantly less space available for battery packs while requiring substantial power to operate dozens of joint motors and onboard artificial intelligence processors.
LG Energy Solution’s ternary lithium batteries offer higher energy density compared with rivals’ lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, which are widely used by Chinese EV manufacturers. That advantage could prove critical for humanoid robots, where runtime, weight, and compact packaging are key design constraints.
Tesla (TSLA) Q4 and FY 2025 earnings results
Tesla rolls out new Supercharging safety feature in the U.S.
