joint-venture
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Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies
Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies (RV Tech) is a 50/50 joint venture launched in November 2024 that fuses Rivian's software and electrical-hardware know-how with Volkswagen Group's global manufacturing scale. Co-headquartered in Palo Alto, it builds the zonal electrical architecture, operating systems, in-vehicle AI, and cloud-connectivity stack that will power next-generation software-defined vehicles across Volkswagen, Audi, Scout, Rivian, and more - aiming to make every new car smarter, cheaper to build, and continuously upgradable over the air.
Carsten Helbing
Carsten Helbing is the COO and Co-CEO of Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies, the $5.8 billion joint venture headquartered in Palo Alto that is building the software and electrical architecture stack for a new generation of software-defined vehicles. A mechanical engineer by training who spent more than two decades at Volkswagen - rising from graduate engineer to Group Chief Technology Engineer - Helbing now leads a ~1,500-person organisation alongside Rivian co-CEO Wassym Bensaid, bridging German engineering discipline with Silicon Valley's software-first culture to redefine how cars are built, updated, and experienced.