Rivian’s CEO and founder, RJ Scaringe, said the US needs a lot more cheap electric vehicles.
Speaking at the Fortune Brainstorm AI conference in San Francisco on Tuesday, Scaringe said a lack of choices was the reason for low EV penetration in the US.
He said that electric vehicle adoption in the US, at 8%, is significantly lower than in the rest of the world.
“I really think the constraint isn’t the demand side, I think it’s the supply side,” Scaringe said. “I think there’s a shocking lack of choice, that there are much better choices in Europe. And by far, there’s the most choice in China.”
He said that for consumers interested in EVs, there were “well under five great choices” at a price point close to the average price of a new car in the US.
He added that, within a price range of $50,000, there was only one compelling choice of EV: a Tesla. In October, Tesla unveiled its most affordable models to date: the $36,990 Model 3 Standard and the $39,990 Model Y Standard.
“And that’s not a reflection of a healthy market with lots of choice,” Scaringe said. “If you think of it as a consumer, you have 300 different internal combustion engine choices at that price or lower, and you have maybe one highly compelling EV choice.”
Rivian is working to provide cheaper EV alternatives. It is gearing up to start production on its cheapest EV to date, the R2 model, a $45,000 SUV.
In the interview, Scaringe also said he agrees with the Trump administration’s push to bring manufacturing back to the US.
“I think the push to industrialize in the United States is appropriate, and it’s something we’re very aligned with the administration on,” he said.
The US EV industry comprises Rivian, Tesla, Ford, General Motors, Hyundai, BMW, and Kia, among others.
Brands like Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Tesla dominate the EV market in Europe. Chinese brands like BYD, NIO, and MG also sell on the continent.
Meanwhile, the EV industry in China is seeing fierce competition. BYD, Tesla’s biggest global rival, saw its sales fall 12% in October compared to the same period a year earlier, as it faces a tough fight from local EV startups Xpeng, Nio, and Leapmotor.
Other players, such as smartphone manufacturer-turned EV maker Xiaomi, are also seeing success in the country with strong sales.
