Rivian is, by all accounts, a maker and marketer of EVs. But by 2025, it’s the company’s software and services that have helped annual revenue grow by 8%.

Rivian reported on Thursday $5.38 billion in total revenue by 2025, up from $4.97 billion from last year. That rosy picture is somewhat dull when looking at automotive revenue, which fell 15% to $3.8 billion in 2025. The fall was caused by a $134 million decrease in regulatory credit sales and lower vehicle deliveries, which were partially offset by higher average sales prices, according to Rivian.

Meanwhile, software and services revenue more than tripled to $1.55 billion for the year. And the joint venture with the Volkswagen Group is behind most of that growth, according to Rivian. The “services” portion of this line item, which Rivian did not break down, includes a variety of items, including vehicle repair, vehicle sales, and maintenance services. The rest, and most of the revenue, comes from software, and is mainly due to the joint venture with the VW Group.

VW and Rivian form a technology joint venture by 2024 worth up to $5.8 billion. The joint venture is based on a milestone and in 2025 Rivian hits the mark, which means a $1 billion payout in the form of a share sale. Under the terms of the JV, Rivian will provide the VW Group with its existing electrical architecture and software technology stack.

Rivian received an initial $1 billion convertible note due 2024 and others $1 billion in compensation in July 2025.

Rivian is expected to continue receiving payments from VW Group until 2027. Rivian is expected to receive an additional $2 billion in capital as part of the joint venture in 2026, CFO Claire McDonough said Thursday on the company’s earnings call. About $1 billion of that is subject to the successful completion of winter testing, which is ongoing. The remaining $1 billion is nonrecourse debt, which is expected to be received in October.

And while the funds provide a big break, Rivian’s financial success in 2026 will depend largely on the launch of the next EV, the R2.

Rivian confirmed in its earnings report Thursday that the R2 SUV, designed to be cheaper to build and less expensive for customers, will hit the market in June 2026. That “cheaper to build” line item is especially important for Rivian, which has historically lost money on every car it makes.

Rivian has spent years trying to lower the cost of merchandise sold. And it made progress with the launch of the second-generation flagship R1T truck and R1S SUV. For example, McDonough said that “in the fourth quarter it delivered $92,000 of cogs per unit and that’s almost a $4,000 per unit improvement relative to the third quarter.” Rivian’s cogs per unit are $99,000 in the fourth quarter of 2024.

The company sees the total cost of automotive revenue decrease year-over-year from $1.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024 to $898 million in the same quarter of 2025. In particular, the company’s cost of revenue for software continues to rise throughout 2025.

The R2 SUV, which will initially launch as a dual motor all-wheel-drive model, is an opportunity to further reduce costs. The company is expected to release more information about the R2, including final specs, on March 12.

Rivian’s guidance for 2026 suggests it is banking on demand for R2 and its ability to ramp up production. The company said Thursday that it expects to deliver between 62,000 and 67,000 cars in 2026 — which would represent up to a 59% bump from last year. Rivian delivered 42,247 vehicles in 2025, which includes its two R1 consumer vehicles and the electric delivery van (EDV).

Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe noted that the company expects some growth in EDV sales in 2026. Rivian plans to produce an all-wheel-drive version and a larger battery pack variant of the EDV, with Amazon as its main customer.

“Both are helping to unlock specific use cases within the Amazon network,” said Scaringe. “We are working closely with Amazon to determine the requirements of those and are excited to get those launched.”

The company has not signaled profit – on an adjusted basis – before. But it offers a lot of improvement on that front. Rivian reports a $3.6 billion net loss by 2025; it expects an adjusted net loss between $1.8 billion and $2.1 billion for 2026. Rivian also projects capital expenditures to be between $1.95 billion and $2.05 billion this year.