Rivian, Electric Vehicle Startup, Gets $ 350 Million Investment From Cox Automotive

When it comes to new car manufacturers, we are generally skeptical about their chances of success. After all, it's very difficult to design and build a car from scratch, so when we saw the Rivian R1T and R1S in Los Angeles last yearwe were cautiously optimistic – focusing on the cautious part.

Yet, despite the record of new businesses in this sector, large companies are lining up at the gates of Rivian to invest money – companies like Ford and Amazon, which together have invested more than a billion dollars – and now Cox Automotive, according to an announcement made Tuesday by Cox.

Who or what is Cox Automotive? It's the parent company of some brands you probably know, such as Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book, and others that you might not like like Manheim. Although it's not necessarily a known name, Cox has surprisingly deep pockets and decided to use them for a $ 350 million investment in the burgeoning start-up of electric vehicles.

What does Cox get for his money? A little much, it turns out. More specifically, he holds a position on the Rivian Board of Directors. Rivian said he would work with Cox to "explore partnership opportunities in digital retail, service operations and logistics."

This may sound boring, and you may be already asleep reading it, but for Cox, it's a big deal because a lot of his business is working with car dealerships to put them on, as well as their lists, in front of the eyes of the consumers. If it can get even closer to the source of things, it's even better.

"We are building a Rivian ownership experience that matches the care of our vehicles," said RJ Scaringe, Rivian's founder and CEO, in a statement. "We are excited to be working with Cox Automotive to deliver a consistent customer experience across our various touchpoints." Cox Automotive's global footprint, service and logistics capabilities, and sales technology platform make it a partner of choice for us. "

Rivian expects its vehicles to begin delivering to customers in the winter of 2020.

Update 16h48: Addition of a Rivian statement.