Rivian in Palo Alto

Rivian makes electric pickup trucks, SUVs and delivery vans. Its headquarters is in Irvine and its factory is in Normal, Illinois. Palo Alto is where a large share of its software, autonomy and electrical engineering work happens. Since 2020 the company has filled four buildings in Stanford Research Park. It also runs a showroom space at Stanford Shopping Center where anyone can look at the vehicles and book a test drive.

This profile covers Rivian's Palo Alto campus, the Volkswagen joint venture that grew out of it and the practical details of seeing a Rivian here. For the setting, start with our guide to Stanford Research Park.

The company in brief

RJ Scaringe founded the company in June 2009 in Rockledge, Florida, under the name Mainstream Motors. It went through other names before settling on Rivian. In January 2017 it bought a former Mitsubishi Motors plant in Normal, Illinois, for $16 million. That plant became its main factory.

Rivian began delivering the R1T pickup in late 2021. The R1S SUV followed. The company also builds an electric delivery van that Amazon uses for its routes. Its shares began trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker RIVN in November 2021. The R2, a smaller and cheaper SUV, began deliveries in June 2026, according to Wikipedia. Rivian also runs the Rivian Adventure Network of fast chargers.

Wikipedia lists Rivian's headquarters in Irvine with other facilities in Palo Alto, Carson in Southern California, Plymouth in Michigan, Vancouver in British Columbia, Wittmann in Arizona, Woking in England and Belgrade in Serbia. An East Coast office in Atlanta was set to open in late 2025.

The Stanford Research Park campus

Rivian has been in Stanford Research Park since the spring of 2020. In a November 2025 profile, the park said the company occupied nearly 200,000 square feet across four buildings. It listed the main teams as infotainment, software systems and architecture, electrical hardware, autonomy and advanced driver assistance.

That list explains why Rivian chose Palo Alto. Car software now matters as much as motors and batteries. The company needed engineers who build operating systems, sensor software and chips. Many of them already live on the Peninsula. Wikipedia describes the Palo Alto site as focused on software development and engineering, including self-driving features. Test vehicles with sensor rigs have been reported on Palo Alto streets since at least 2021.

The park's profile names Wassym Bensaid, Rivian's chief software officer and co-chief executive of RV Tech, along with founder and chief executive RJ Scaringe. Rivian does not publish a visitor address for its campus buildings.

Neighbors

Rivian is one of several carmakers in the park. Tesla has had a large engineering presence in Palo Alto for years. Ford Greenfield Labs sits on Hillview Avenue. The research park says General Motors signed a lease there in 2026. Few places outside Detroit have this many automakers within a mile of each other.

Volkswagen and RV Tech

On June 25, 2024 Volkswagen Group said it intended to invest up to $5 billion in Rivian, starting with $1 billion. The two companies then formed a joint venture to develop electrical architecture and software for future vehicles from both groups. The research park describes it as a $5.8 billion venture announced in November 2024. It is known as RV Tech.

Much of the software that made Volkswagen interested was built in Palo Alto. In October 2025 The Real Deal reported that RV Tech, based in Irvine, already occupied about 70,000 square feet in Palo Alto. It was looking for at least 75,000 square feet more for a headquarters in the city. The same report said it had dropped the former Fry's Electronics site at 340 Portage Avenue from consideration. We could not confirm a final choice, so treat any headquarters address you see as provisional until the company announces it.

The Stanford Shopping Center space

Rivian's retail space in Palo Alto is at 180 El Camino Real, Suite 450B, inside Stanford Shopping Center. Rivian's page places it next to Brooks Brothers and directly across from Neiman Marcus. It lists hours of 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Hours can change around holidays, so check Rivian's Palo Alto page first.

Rivian calls its spaces a playground rather than a showroom. You can climb into the back seat, open the front trunk, look through the Gear Tunnel on the pickup and compare colors, wheels and materials. There is also a shelf of Rivian gear. Demo drives need an appointment. The page says staff may be able to fit you in on the spot or book a later slot.

1. Book a demo drive online before you go, especially on weekends.
2. Park in the shopping center's lots or take a free Marguerite shuttle from the Palo Alto Transit Center on weekdays.
3. Bring your license if you plan to drive.
4. Combine the visit with lunch at the center. Bacio di Latte serves gelato there.

Rivian and Stanford

We found no formal research partnership between Rivian and Stanford in the sources we checked. The link is the same one that draws most carmakers here: talent. Stanford trains engineers in robotics, machine learning and electrical engineering. The research park also sits on university land. The Real Deal's report noted that a Palo Alto headquarters would put RV Tech near Tesla's engineers and Stanford graduates.

Students and recent graduates looking for roles can search Rivian's careers site by location. Many postings name Palo Alto. Our guide to finding a tech job in Palo Alto has general advice on commutes and housing.

Charging in Palo Alto

Rivian owners visiting Palo Alto have plenty of options. Rivian announced in June 2023 that it would adopt the North American Charging Standard, the plug Tesla developed, which opens Tesla Superchargers to its drivers. The City of Palo Alto runs public chargers in its garages and lots. Our EV charging guide lists where they are and how much they cost.

Getting there and food

Stanford Shopping Center is a short walk or shuttle ride from the Palo Alto Caltrain station. Caltrain express trains reach San Francisco in about 39 minutes and San Jose Diridon in about 21. The research park campus is farther from the station. Most employees drive, bike or ride shuttles. The park's commute program, SRPGO, lists the bus and shuttle routes that serve it.

For food near the campus, Coupa Café runs the coffee shop at The Hub, 3215 Porter Drive, which the park lists as open on weekdays. The restaurants of California Avenue are a few minutes away by car or bike. Near the showroom, the shopping center has dozens of places to eat.

Frequently asked questions