Volkswagen becomes Rivian’s largest shareholder, edging out Amazon

Volkswagen has pushed Amazon out of the top spot to become the largest shareholder of Rivian, according to new filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

The VW Group’s financial increase in Rivian, which has grown from 8.6% to 15.9% in less than two years, is linked to the partnership and the launch of the EV. Rivian’s partnership with Volkswagen Group Technologies – was officially launched in November 2024 – focuses on the development of electronic infrastructure and software.

And that price will continue to grow, as long as Rivian continues to live up to the end of the deal.

VW has committed to investing $5.8 billion in Rivian, the capital of which has not yet been opened pending further developments. The German automaker launched the partnership with an initial investment of $1 billion, followed by a follow-up another $1 billion within 2025.

Rivian accepted another $1 billion last month after completing the winter test for VW ID.EVERYONE1a small four-door hatchback that will be the first car under the contract to have its software and electronic infrastructure.

The latest SEC filingswhich was issued on Monday, shows that the VW Group now owns 209.7 million shares of Rivian stock.

Amazon, a long-time supplier and customer, owns 12.28% of Rivian. Amazon was behind the original Rivian, sales of $700 million to the company when it was a private startup. The company disclosed in 2021, ahead of Rivian’s IPO, that it had a 20% share in Rivia. Amazon is not only an investor in Rivian, but also a customer. In September 2019, Rivian signed an agreement with Amazon to produce 100,000 electric delivery vans.

Other top shareholders include Oryx Global with an 8.6% share, and Vanguard with 5.1%. Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe owns about 1.1% of the company.

Volkswagen’s deal with Rivian comes at a critical time for the EV maker as it pours millions of dollars into R&D and pushes to bring its R2 from the design studio to the assembly line. Rivian he started making of the R2 in April and is expected to start delivering the mid-size SUV to customers in the coming weeks.

If successful, the VW-Rivian partnership could lead to future technology licenses with other companies or new groups. For example, the partnership with VW does not include AI and autonomy, two areas that Rivian has focused on in recent years. Rivian plowed $1.7 billion on R&D in 2025, up from $1.6 billion in 2024, the company annual presentation. Much of that has been directed towards its independent efforts – so much so that it has enabled the company to push its profitability targets through 2027.

In the detailed files Rivian’s new partnership with UberRivian revealed that it was not expected EBITDA positive next year due to its R&D investment.