There are many reasons to be cautiously optimistic about Rivian's future. The startup said on Thursday that it turned its first quarterly profit at the end of last year. It has streamlined production and its plans to launch the affordable R2 are moving at full speed. And let’s be honest, Rivian doesn’t carry Tesla’s baggage. In a polarized world, a clean brand image could be its golden ticket to winning over buyers across the political and cultural spectrums without having them plaster dissenting bumper stickers on their cars.
