Top Paid Auto CEO: RJ Scaringe's $403m Rivian Pay Package
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe earned US$403m in total compensation during the past year, according to a company filing.
This places him among the highest paid auto executives in the US.
RJ received more than US$373m in stock options and US$26.6m in stock awards as part of a board-agreed deal in 2025, in addition to his US$1.1m salary and US$1m bonus, according to the filing.
His salary is set to double to US$2m in 2026 and his maximum bonus will rise to US$1.7m, the filing states.
Directors at Rivian justified the package by saying it was "entirely at-risk" and that the shares would only be unlocked following the "achievement of significant stock price and financial improvements".
R2 SUV and policy changes
The Californian company is betting on its newly released mass-market R2 SUV reversing the company's multibillion-dollar losses over the past few years. In addition, the US EV industry is also trying to realign financial strategies following the Trump administration's decision to end incentive programmes.
These included the US$7,500 tax credit for new vehicles and emissions trading schemes that had become key sources of profit. In March, Rivian received a boost when Uber agreed to invest as much as US$1.25bn to buy 50,000 self-driving R2s by 2030.
It also agreed to a US$5.8bn software and electrics deal with Volkswagen to develop technologies for the German car manufacturer's EV product line. In an interview with the Financial Times on 17 April, RJ said he envisages more legacy car companies purchasing Rivian's software and autonomous vehicle systems if the deal with Volkswagen goes ahead.
Discussing car manufacturers' shift to implement new technologies, such as AI, in their vehicles, RJ said: "If you don't have a high level of autonomy, and an increasingly software-and AI-defined vehicle, you'll lose market share."
He explained that "car companies are brute-forcing a way to having comparable features", and that trying to retrofit older systems and co-ordinate with hundreds of external suppliers is "an immensely inefficient way to deliver software".
Speaking on Rivian's challenges around attracting manufacturers and maintaining a profitable status, RJ said to the Financial Times: "There are inherently challenges, not because of people, organisation or culture. It's just hard work.
"The path to becoming a very large revenue company requires us at this moment in time to invest."
Pay structure comparison
RJ's pay exceeds the compensation of competitor auto company CEOs. Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley earned US$27.5m in 2025 and General Motors CEO Mary Barra received US$29.9m.
On average, RJ's pay is 13 times higher than Mary Barra's. She is the next best paid US auto CEO.
This kind of pay structure is not dissimilar to the one proposed by Tesla for CEO Elon Musk, who was approved by shareholders to receive a US$1tn pay deal in 2025, on the condition he earns the company up to US$400bn in core profit and lifts Tesla’s market value to US$8.5tn.
For RJ to receive the stated amount, Rivian must meet a series of stock price, operating income and cash flow targets.
Performance goals and cancellations
In connection with last year's award, the company's compensation committee cancelled a 2021 plan for the CEO that featured unrealistic stock price expectations. Rivian added that there was a "lack of incentive" for the CEO due to "the unlikeliness of attainment of the associated performance goals" in a company statement on the plan.
The proposed US$403m pay award could be worth as much as US$4.6bn over the next 10 years provided Rivian meets the desired financial targets. Following the market's closure on 30 April, Rivian is scheduled to report its Q1 2026 results.
Rivian reported a US$3.6bn net loss in 2025. This was an improvement following its US$4.75bn loss in 2024, even after the company achieved its first annual gross profit of US$144m in the same year.
