Rivian, the well-financed electric vehicle startup about to start delivering its pickup truck, says it has filed plans to go public with securities regulators.
The big picture: The company is quite well-capitalized. Rivian's financial backers include Ford, Amazon and BlackRock.
Rivian's recent $2.5 billion funding round brings the total amount raised above $10 billion.
It's also breaking from the pack of EV startups going public with apparent plans to eschew listing via merger with a special purpose acquisition company, the route many others are taking.
Bloomberg reported that Rivian is hoping to do an IPO around the Thanksgiving timeframe and hopes for an $80 billion valuation, while the NYT says it's aiming for $70 billion.
Those numbers are eye-popping. Consider that Ford's market capitalization is currently $52 billion.
The intrigue: The EV market is getting crowded even as EVs remain a very small slice of auto sales. But Rivian, flush with cash, has reason for confidence, analysts said in response to Friday's announcement.
"[W]e believe Rivian is an ideal position to go public as investor enthusiasm for EVs is high," PitchBook analyst Asad Hussain said.
"Similar to Tesla, Rivian’s premium market valuation reflects its ownership of the entire value chain, including direct-to-consumer sales, charging networks, and commercial vehicle business," Hussain said in a note.
Catch up fast: Rivian will begin deliveries of its pickup truck next month, with plans to start delivering its SUV this fall.
The Michigan-based startup also has a large deal with Amazon to build up to 100,000 electric delivery vehicles this decade.