Rivian's 'beautiful' cars, $6 billion war chest, and deals with Amazon and Ford put it at the front of the pack of startups vying to be the next Tesla, VCs say

Each of the four VCs mentioned at least one of Rivian's partnerships with Amazon and Ford. The former has placed an order for 100,000 electric delivery vans, while the latter intends to use Rivian's EV platform in one of its own vehicles.

Aside from signaling confidence in Rivian's technology, those deals give Rivian a more diverse business model than EV startups that are focused entirely on selling cars to fickle consumers.

"Where we see EVs — the next generation of EV penetration — is probably in fleets or vans," said Jeff Peters, a partner at Autotech Ventures.

Developing and building cars is expensive, especially if you're making your first attempt at manufacturing. Rivian has attracted $6 billion in funding so far, more than any other private EV startup, and has landed big-name investors like T. Rowe Price and BlackRock.

"They well capitalized," Peters said.

While Rivian originally planned to follow Tesla's lead by debuting with an electric sports car, the startup has since pivoted to make its first two vehicles an SUV and a pickup truck. The company has marketed those vehicles to consumers who value cargo space and off-road-driving capabilities for outdoor activities like camping, surfing, and snowboarding.

By focusing on the SUV and pickup truck segments, and targeting a specific set of consumers within that market, Rivian has set itself apart from its competitors in the EV industry, said Dan Ratliff, a principal at Fontinalis Partners.

"They did something very different," he said.

Three of the four VCs complimented the styling of Rivian's R1S SUV and R1T pickup truck.

"Product is still king," said Mark Norman, a managing partner at Fraser McCombs Capital. 

Aaron Jacobson, a partner at New Enterprise Associates, said he wants to buy an R1S soon after its planned 2021 release.

"They're beautiful," he said.

• Read more:
• Rivian and Lucid Motors are the electric-vehicle startups most likely to follow Nikola and Fisker by going public, experts say
• 11 hot electric-vehicle startups that will revolutionize the car industry, according to VCs
• Rivian says its electric pickup truck and SUV will both have interiors that rival Bentley, Lamborghini, and Lincoln
• No burnouts, no alien dreadnoughts: How Rivian's culture and simple manufacturing strategy could help it avoid Tesla's growing pains