Rivian

Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe on Saturday told graduating students at his alma mater to stay idealistic and curious and to “tune out the noise” ‒ and that life’s biggest challenges are when you learn the most.

Leaders at the electric automaker Rivian said Tuesday they’ve recorded their second-straight profitable quarter to start 2025, even as President Trump’s tariffs present “significant uncertainty” and will raise production costs by several thousand dollars per vehicle.

The Town of Normal wants a homeless encampment removed by the end of the month.

Rivian will get $16 million in state incentives plus more local tax breaks to help build a new supplier park just west of the electric automaker’s manufacturing plant in Normal, officials said Monday. The project is expected to fortify Rivian’s supply chain and create “hundreds of new jobs” once suppliers move in.

Gov. JB Pritzker has named a Rivian executive to the board of trustees at Illinois State University. Julie Hoeniges is director of trade compliance at Rivian. She is an ISU graduate.

The electric automaker Rivian said Wednesday that it’s spinning off a micromobility business into its own separate startup, called Also.

The electric automaker Rivian said Thursday it has recorded its first quarterly gross profit even as the company braces for potential U.S. policy changes on incentives, tariffs and regulations that could bring “hundreds of million of dollars” in financial impact.

Mayor Chris Koos says the atmosphere in Washington, D.C., is unsettled, as the flurry of executive orders seeking to chop federal spending continues.

The Town of Normal approved the strategic plan in 2023, with only a few projects still yet to begin.

Charles McCubbin and several other former Rivian employees told WGLT they believe production demands and employee turnover combined with a lack of training have compromised safety conditions at the plant.