Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe Started a Separate $1 Billion Robotics Company Called Mind Robotics, With Rivian as a Minority Shareholder and Launch Customer

Since prior coverage of Rivian's R2 launch event in Utah on June 3, 2026, more detail has emerged about CEO RJ Scaringe's parallel bet on humanoid robotics through a company he founded called Mind Robotics.

Scaringe told CNBC that Mind Robotics has raised more than $1 billion. He serves as executive chair and acting CEO of Mind while remaining CEO of Rivian. Rivian holds a large minority stake in Mind and is its designated launch customer.

The Structure Is Intentional

Scaringe was explicit with CNBC about why Mind and Rivian are kept as separate entities: "A big part of structuring the business was to allow me to be able to spend time on both."

Rivian is not pivoting to build robots. Mind Robotics is a standalone company. Scaringe's vision, as described to CNBC, is that Rivian's manufacturing floor will eventually have human workers and humanoid robots working side by side. Rivian would be a paying customer of Mind, not its parent.

Mind currently lists roughly 20 open positions on its website, according to CNBC, covering software engineers, hardware engineers, and data architects. A product reveal is expected within a year from the June 3 event.

Contrast With Tesla

Tesla, under Elon Musk, has integrated its Optimus humanoid robot program directly into the automaker's operations. Tesla factories have been used as development environments, and Musk has publicly projected that Optimus will eventually become Tesla's most valuable product line.

Scaringe's approach inverts that logic. By keeping Mind separate, he avoids diluting Rivian's manufacturing focus at a moment when the company cannot afford distraction. Wired reported that Rivian lost $3.6 billion in 2025 and has burned through nearly $25 billion over eight years. The R2 SUV is not optional for the company's survival. It needs to sell in large numbers.

The strongest counter-argument to Scaringe's structure is legitimate: running two companies simultaneously, especially when one is in startup mode and the other is burning billions, is a real governance risk. Investors in Rivian are entitled to ask whether the CEO's time and attention are fully available to the EV business at exactly the moment the company needs its most important product launch to land. Scaringe's answer — that the separation was designed precisely so he could manage both — is a reasonable one, but it is also the answer a founder would give regardless of whether it is true. Rivian's board and shareholders will be watching whether R2 sales validate the split focus or indict it.

Rivian's Broader Position

Wired's interview with Scaringe provided the financial backdrop. Rivian's stock has fallen from a high of around $130 to roughly $16. Since the R1 went on sale in 2021, Rivian has sold 175,000 vehicles; Tesla sold approximately 8 million over the same period.

The company has secured significant outside commitments. Volkswagen Group committed up to $5.8 billion for a joint venture on software and electrical architecture. Uber announced it will invest up to $1.25 billion and deploy up to 50,000 fully autonomous Rivian robotaxis. Those partnerships give Rivian runway, but they do not replace the revenue that only volume sales of the R2 can provide.

Scaringe was candid with Wired about the stakes: the R2 needs to not just sell, but sell in large numbers.

The Open Question

Mind Robotics has $1 billion raised and a product reveal expected sometime before mid-2027. What remains unknown: who the other investors are, what the valuation is, and whether Mind will seek its own public listing or stay private. Scaringe has not disclosed those details publicly, according to CNBC's reporting as of the June 3 event.