RJ Scaringe just won’t stop.
He’s pulled in over $12.3B in under a decade. And the investors? They’re still handing him cash.
Think about that for a second. Supersized seed rounds—those hundred-million-plus checks—usually go to the cool kids in AI or defense tech. Guys coming from OpenAI. Anthropic. Not an electric scooter company. Not micromobility.
And yet.
In 2025. Scaringe took $105M for Also. A niche EV play. By now that pot sits past $300M. DoorDash is inside.
Jiten Behl at Eclipse watches him work. Behl knows. He was there at Rivian when it was just a few guys and a dream. Now Eclipse leads the charge for Both Also and the new kid, Mind Robotics.
“When RJ explains a certain issue… it comes across so credible,” Behl says.
It’s an art. Not overselling the chance. Not underselling the grind. Just facts. And confidence.
Scaringe fits a tiny box of serial giants. Musk. Altman. Dorsey. Luckey. Founders who treat billion-dollar checks like pocket change.
But Scaringe? He doesn’t want to be Elon.
Behl points out the distinction. Scaringe keeps his ego off the stage. It’s not about the man.
“It’s about the product,” one insider said.
You leave his meetings feeling special. Heard. Understood. Is that ego? Maybe. But it doesn’t weigh heavy.
This is hard to maintain.
Three companies. Travel between Palo Alto and Irvine. Normal, Illinois. Soon, Georgia. Three kids at home with an ex. The logistics alone should break a normal CEO.
Joe Fath at Eclipse sees the magic trick. Engineering genius mixed with design instinct. Rare. Almost non-existent.
“Very few founders can operate at that Level technically while also understanding what reson emotionally… That combination is incredibly uncommon.”
Look at the money. The sheer volume.
Rivian started as Mainstream Motors in 2009. Dormant. Unknown. Then November 2018. LA Auto Show. The R1T drops.
The floodgates burst.
Early 2019: $700M from Amazon.
Ford: $500M.
Cox Automotive: $350M.
By year-end 2019: A $1.3B round. T. Rowe Price leads. Amazon and Ford stay.
July 2020: $2.5B.
One month later: Another $2.6B.
Then a private round led by Amazon’s climate fund, Ford, and D1. Dragoneer. Coatue. Third Point. Everyone wanted in.
Then the IPO. November 2021 Nasdaq debut.
Price per share: $78.
Gross proceeds: Near $12B.
Peak market cap: $100B.
Today? $18.2B.
The EV sector is brutal. The dream faded. But the raising continued.
Rivian isn’t stopping. Volkswagen partnership valued at $5.8B. Uber robotaxi deal worth $1.25B.
Meanwhile. Also and Mind Robotics. Together they’ve cleared $1.3B.
Mind is the fast mover. $115M year one. $500M in March. $400M this week.
Behl asks the right question.
“How much can he do?”
It sounds like a limit. Scaringe doesn’t hear a limit.
He sees value. Impact. Work to be done.
The money is there. The hype is there.
Will he run out of steam? Or just the next big idea?
Probably not tired yet. 🚀
