Rivian wants out of Amazon electric van lock-in

Electric van maker Rivian and Amazon are reportedly in talks to scrap part of a 2019 deal that made the retail giant Rivian's sole customer for its electric delivery vans. According to the Wall Street Journal, which spoke to unnamed sources familiar with the matter, Rivian wasn't happy with the fact that Amazon decided to only …

[Anonymous Coward]

due to bad fasteners that could cause the steering wheel to detach.

So the entire AI self driving push is actually due to the inability of techno-car companies to master the old-fangled "nut" technology.

[Anonymous Coward]

At least they still fitted fasteners. Tesla apparently recently tried doing without them completely..

[Piro]

Weight savings!

[MrDamage]

They removed the wrong loose nut at the wheel of Tesla.

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, really?

"I forgot to screw the steering wheel on" is a pretty major F-up to be happening at that many car companies.

(Ford too not that long ago, and Tesla as an ongoing issue)

[Kev99]

I've a simple question. Was that $6.8 billion loss a real loss or was it just aicpa accounting chicanery?

[Anonymous Coward]

The Wizard of Oz and the Electric Jesus movement

Just levers and fancy lights.

[joed]

I guess Amazon's commitment reflects business sense (or lack of if) for fancy EVs of any kind. To be honest I'm surprised to see these slow rolling blackout that far north in winter. Having said that, these are still better than luxury personal rides subsidized with taxpayers money (and parasitizing grid beyond what's reasonable to move ~200# human from A to B).

[NeilPost]

It’s just a modern reimagining of the UK’s previously ubiquitous electric milk-float that died off due to supermarket’s killing the margin on local dairy home delivery.

No real issues in a cold a cold Scottish Winter … though they were not Li-Ion batteries !!

[Anonymous Coward]

They didn't see what Amazon does to competition? Amazon doesn't play fair ever! They start there own Airline to cut out others now they knew only buying a few EVs from a Startup would hurt them the mistake was that contract. Now Amazon has a chance of buying that company and make it their own . Amazon is a bully a smart BULLY and a Predator! They push around the little guy make promises then wait until they are weak and pounce on there prey!

[Anonymous Coward]

Amazon the Black Widow of the retail world have fun then Take out it's partner.

Anyone can see what's happening here. Bezos is not stupid. He sighed a contact for a minimum purchase with a promise of more. Amazon fulfils the minimum purchase then stops because they can why it's an exclusive contract. Now this EV is going to hurt financially when they start to falter Bezos Will jump on his Trojan horse disguised as a White Horse and save the day buying up the company he will then own a EV he can do whatever he wants with. If the owner of Rivian sees whats happening he has 2 choices give in to the Preditor Bulky "Amazon ' and sell it and loose control of it. Or burn it to the ground so Bezos can't take what he/she worked for . Mega monopolies tend to operate like this.

[Anonymous Coward]

Hopefully this works!

Those Amazon vans are REALLY nice, a lot of people will want them. Rivian has a huge potential market both with other delivery companies and with individuals wanting an electric RV.

If I had the money, I'd definitely buy one, a 4 wheel drive electric van is almost the perfect car for me. I'd build a quick-remove camping package and a quick-remove shop package that slide out on rails, and it would be absolutely perfect. Those 3 possible configurations (goofing off, working, or empty to haul big stuff) in a van that can do snow or off-road and burn no gas? Yes, please.

So yeah. I really hope they get out of the exclusivity. And then maybe in 5 or 6 years I'll be able to afford a used one.