Rivian has brought Aidan Gomez, co-founder and CEO of the generative AI firm Cohere, onto its board of directors. This appointment signals the electric vehicle maker’s clear intent to weave advanced AI technologies deeper into its business, according to a recent regulatory filing.
Gomez’s term on the board will run through 2026. He offers a rich background in data science and artificial intelligence, having co-founded Cohere in 2019 with Nick Frosst and Ivan Zhang. Their goal was to build solid AI foundation models for businesses, attracting big names like Oracle and Notion as clients.
Before launching Cohere, Gomez worked at Google Brain, the deep learning team led by Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton. He’s well known for co-authoring the 2017 paper “Attention Is All You Need,” which laid the groundwork for many leading generative AI models in use today.
This strategic move fits well with Rivian’s $5.8 billion joint venture with Volkswagen Group to create innovative software solutions. The partnership will tap into Rivian’s expertise in electrical architecture and may involve licensing its intellectual property to the venture, with plans to offer this technology to other companies down the line.
Meanwhile, Rivian has been developing its own AI assistant for vehicles since 2023. According to Rivian’s chief software officer Wassym Bensaid, this project focuses on the orchestration layer and operates separately from the Volkswagen joint venture.
RJ Scaringe, Rivian’s founder and CEO, welcomed Gomez’s addition, saying his “thinking and expertise will support Rivian as we integrate new, cutting-edge technologies into our products, services, and manufacturing.” For those following the intersection of AI and automotive innovation, this move suggests Rivian is serious about staying ahead in a fast-changing landscape.
