As part of an investor presentation held on Tuesday of this week, and concurrently with the announcement of Volkswagen's $5-billion investment in a new partnership with the EV maker, Rivian shared an image showing five unknown, presumably future models under a canvas.
We know the company is working on a compact SUV called the R2, as well as a sedan to be called the R3 (and R3X). Those are not among the five models hiding under the sheets.
The image shows the products (current and future) in Rivian's range, grouped in four columns corresponding to the platforms on which they’re based. The first represents the Gen 1 platform that serves the models we're familiar with, the R1S SUV, the R1T pickup, as well as the van developed for Amazon deliveries.
The second column shows the Gen 2 platform Rivian unveiled on June 6, with updated R1S and R1T models. They’re expected later this year as 2025 models. This column's mystery vehicle could be a tweaked version of the commercial van, but we’ll remain cautious - the shape of the canvas shows something else, and it could be a generic image.
The third column shows vehicles designed on the MSP platform (identified in the image) that Rivian announced at the presentation of the R2 and R3/X. Another vehicle is being developed on the MSP platform, possibly a compact van named R2T, a name that Rivian had already reserved in 2021.
The last column presents what Rivian calls the Affordable Mass Market platform. Here's where it gets interesting, because Rivian hasn't yet mentioned any plans for a structure beyond the MSP. So the image shows a structure still to come, with at least three vehicles destined to use it. Speculation is rife, but those could be more affordable models, which become possible once the firm is well established, both financially and with a solid market presence.
Recall that in 2021, the manufacturer reserved several names, up to and including R5T and R5S.
Rivian plans to share more information on these models in the near-future. Clearly, the new partnership with Volkswagen makes Rivian's ambitions more realistic.