Tesla Pickup Killer, Rivian, Reveals Impressive Modular Camper Electric Truck [Watch]

Rivian LLC, the engine behind the growing craze for all-electric pickups, has released a glitzy promotional video of the camper version of its upcoming Rivian R1T truck, which it's confident will beat Tesla Inc. at this game.

Tesla is still working on its electric pickup and is due to release its first after Rivian does so in 2020.

In an email to reservation holders, Rivian said its R1T camper’s kitchen system is designed to make food preparation easy and cooking fun. Dubbed as the “adventure vehicle,” the truck's camp kitchen features a slide-out cabinet with an induction cooktop, built-in sink, dish rack, five-gallon water tank, and storage for all the camp utensils and tools needed to build a proper feast.

It’s powered by the same battery pack that powers the R1T. In the U.S., the Rivian R1T electric pickup truck will start at $69,000 before incentives. No word yet as to the price of the camper.

Rivian revealed a prototype of the R1T at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November 2018.

The R1T has since received rave reviews from the likes of Morgan Stanley, which described Rivian to its investors as the next serious competitor to Tesla.

But more important are the investors that have come on board since. The most notable believer is Amazon.com, which plunked in $700 million last May.

“If you think about the auto industry right now, there’s so many things going on with Uber-ization, electrification, the connected car -- so it’s a fascinating industry,” said Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

“It’s going to be something very interesting to watch and participate in, and I’m very excited about that whole industry.”

Analysts said Amazon’s interest in Rivian is also being driven by the need for more efficiency in delivering packages to its millions of customers in the United States. For this, Amazon will need electric trucks and other electric vehicles.

Rivian’s other notable investors include Abdul Latif Jameel Company (ALJ), Sumitomo Corporation of Americas and Standard Chartered Bank. ALJ has agreed to invest almost $500 million. Sumitomo invested an undisclosed sum while Standard Chartered provided debt financing of $200 million.

The promo tour for the R1T camper will later visit Atlanta, Seattle, and San Francisco. More cities will join the list in 2020.