Rivian CEO says US auto industry reprioritizing gas-powered vehicles is 'very bad' and 'blows my mind'
Published on Sep 03, 2025 at 9:22 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Sep 03, 2025 at 12:54 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Claire Reid
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe has said that the US auto industry reprioritizing gas-powered vehicles is a ‘very bad’ move.
The CEO said he’s currently seeing things happening in the States that he ‘never thought would happen a year ago’.
He went on to say that he believed the move could lead to a choking of EV competition in the US market.
Like Tesla, Rivian exclusively makes EVs, so it’s understandable to see why a shift back towards ICE vehicles might leave Scaringe feeling irritated.
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Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe says a reprioritization of ICE vehicles is a bad move
Over recent years, it’s been widely suggested that the future is electric when it comes to vehicles.
However, with EV sales slowing in North America, there have been several developments that make it seem as though ICE-powered cars will be here for longer than some may have thought.
Recently, President Donald Trump announced he was scrapping the federal tax credit on electric vehicles; meanwhile, General Motors announced it was pouring $888 million into its Tonawanda Propulsion Plant in Buffalo, New York, to create a next-generation V8 engine.
Now, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe has shared his thoughts on how things are going, and he admitted that it’s very different from how he thought the future would look.
Speaking on the InsideEVs podcast, he said he saw an unexpected ‘reprioritization of capital towards internal combustion’ that is ‘very bad for my kids and their kids, and very bad for the US auto industry’.
He went on to say that he saw things happening in the American motor industry that he wouldn’t have thought possible just last year.
“It blows my mind this is happening,” he said.
“But nonetheless, it is.”
He went on to say it did offer both Rivian and Tesla a small advantage
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe went on to say that if things continue as they are, EV competition will be severely limited.
However, he did note that America’s move back toward combustion engines would stifle competition in the EV market, which could indirectly give Rivian an advantage.
“You’re going to have a sort of a vacuum of competition,” he said.
“The pure-play EV-focused companies Rivian, Tesla, there’s not very many, because they’re completely and fully focused on electrification, will have the advantage of a pretty thin competitive playing field.”
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With a background in both local and national press in the UK, Claire moved to New Zealand before joining the editorial team at Supercar Blondie in May 2024. As a Senior Content Writer working on New Zealand Standard Time (NZST), Claire was the first writer on the team to make the site’s output a slick 24/7 operation covering the latest in automotive news.
