Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe’s voting control slips following divorce settlement

Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe has transferred a portion of his ownership stake and voting power as part of a newly-settled divorce proceeding, according to a regulatory filing.

Scaringe moved about 4 million in shares and 6 million in options to his ex-wife, Meagan Scaringe, on July 9 as part of the settlement, the filing shows. At Rivian’s current stock price, those shares and options could be worth roughly $130 million, though they have varying strike prices that would affect the total return if sold. The change in stock ownership comes at the end of a two-year-long divorce proceeding, court documents show.

Scaringe owned more than 15 million shares of Class A stock and nearly 8 million Class B shares when the company submitted its annual proxy report April 29. As a result of the transfer, Scaringe’s voting power has slipped from 7.6% earlier this year to around 4%, the lowest since Rivian’s 2021 IPO.

The shift in stock ownership doesn’t have an impact on Rivian’s business or operations, according to the company.

In an official statement emailed to TechCrunch, a spokesperson said “RJ and Meagan finalized their divorce. They will continue to prioritize co-parenting their children.”

The settlement comes at a pivotal time for Rivian. Rivian has redesigned its R1S SUV and R1T truck in a bid to lower manufacturing costs, while improving performance of its flagship vehicles. However, the company is banking on the next addition to its lineup — the highly anticipated R2 SUV that has a $45,000 base price — to grow sales. That vehicle won’t go on sale until the first half of 2026.

The ownership structure of Rivian has shifted since its IPO in 2021. At that time, Amazon and Ford were among the largest stakeholders. Today, Ford is essentially out and Volkswagen Group has emerged as a major player.

In late 2024, Rivian entered into a joint venture valued at $5.8 billion with Volkswagen focused on software and electrical architecture. Rivian has provided technology and employees to the joint venture, while Volkswagen has largely contributed money in the form of share purchases and convertible debt.

As a result, the German automotive giant now owns 12.3% of Rivian, according to a recent filing. That puts it slightly behind Amazon, which owned 14.2% of Rivian as of the April 2025 proxy filing. That’s enough to give Amazon the most voting power of any single shareholder: 13.3%. (Ford and T. Rowe Price also used to be major shareholders after the IPO, but have since sold down their stakes.)

Scaringe’s ownership stake in Rivian was 2% prior to the divorce settlement, according to the proxy filing. But he had a 7.6% share of the voting power, thanks in part to the Class B stock, which comes with 10 votes per share. (Rivian’s Class A stock only comes with 1 vote per share.) The transfer of shares and options in the settlement cuts his voting power to around 4%.

Unlike many high-profile tech founders, Scaringe never had a tremendous amount of voting power post-IPO. The most he wielded was 9.2% in 2022. That figure remained unchanged in 2023, fell to 8.7% in 2024, and again to 7.6% in 2025 following the Volkswagen investment.

The Class B stock included in the settlement was automatically converted into Class A stock, meaning Scaringe’s ex-wife will not likely have much voting power relative to other shareholders if she maintains the holding. A lawyer representing her did not respond to a request for comment sent over the weekend.

The CEO and founder still controls a mix of around 50 million shares, options, and Restricted Stock Units, or RSUs. As those fully vest, his ownership stake and voting power could go back up.

Scaringe founded Rivian in 2009, and he was married in 2014. He took Rivian public in 2021.

Records obtained from Orange County Superior Court show that he filed for divorce in October 2023, with his ex-wife agreeing to separate in another filing one month later.