Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said everyone’s fixation on the cost of China’s EVs is wrong because it’s “that the technology is much better” and “if I were an existing manufacturer, I’d get less hung up on the cost and more focused on ‘the cars are actually better.'”

  • IndescribablySad@threads.net@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    50
    arrow-down
    4
    ·
    edit-2
    2 days ago

    Well yes, they’re subsidized by a country that has focused on increasing the quality and speed of manufacturing for like 3 generations. The US stagnated on that front. You cannot compete with a subsidized oligopoly composed of more skillful people.

    • tyler@programming.dev
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      53
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      2 days ago

      Just to be clear, the US heavily subsidizes the auto industry as well, it’s just that because we’ve bailed them out so many times the auto industry hasn’t cared to innovate in decades.

      • DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        5
        arrow-down
        13
        ·
        2 days ago

        Uh huh. So China’s subsidies make them competitive and America’s makes them lazy, I wonder if maybe there might be another problem in this equation.

        • TBi@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          26
          ·
          2 days ago

          China doesn’t bail out companies. It funds new companies to help them get started, but if you fail you fail. You don’t get bailed out.

          • njm1314@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            11
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            2 days ago

            Plus when our companies fail the CEOs get golden parachutes whereas if their companies fail the CEOs might get pushed out of plane without any type of parachute…

            • TBi@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              6
              arrow-down
              1
              ·
              2 days ago

              Tackling out of planes is more like Russia. Look at Jack Ma. He’s alive and well. Probably he was smart enough to shut up and take what he was given.

        • ☂️-@lemmy.ml
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          1 day ago

          i think its the capitalism and the get rich at any cost mentality, but i digress.

        • MrMakabar@slrpnk.net
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          13
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          2 days ago

          Bad management. Just look at Europe. It is in many ways a US colony. Tesla which used the subsidies best, has an insane CEO and the main new product can not be sold in Europe. GM is basically not even competing since selling Vauxhall/Opel. Chrysler has been merged into Stellantis, so taken over by European car makers. Only Ford manages to do somewhat well.

    • Brkdncr@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      21
      ·
      2 days ago

      I saw this guy talking to his assistant at a shitty hotel/resort and he treated her like a normal human. It was oddly comforting that CEO’s could do that.

      • Septimaeus@infosec.pub
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        1 day ago

        Founding CEOs and those working for small companies usually are at least not-far-removed from the life experiences of their employees. In many cases they draw a relatively low salary and have a meager lifestyle compared to their most skilled employees. The pop culture tropes of the callous fatcat, ruthless machiavel, nepotistic bungler, etc are informed mostly by career CEOs hired by much larger corporations.

    • al_Kaholic@lemmynsfw.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      19
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      2 days ago

      Imagine believing American industries are not heavily subsidized. Imagine the US government wouldn’t just bail them out if American CEOs ran the companies into the ground out of shear greed. Line must go up tiny brain.

      • gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        7
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        2 days ago

        The companies are subsidized, not the manufacturing. The manufacturing got off-shored at least two decades ago to increase shareholder value.

      • IndescribablySad@threads.net@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        2 days ago

        I didn’t feel like adding details to the American side of the equation, given that I replied during prime American hours on a conscientious community on a politically active website. It felt diminishing to assume this incredibly well known fact wasn’t known to most of the people who might read my comment

  • vga@sopuli.xyz
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    10
    arrow-down
    3
    ·
    2 days ago

    Just try to make a better car than Tesla. Seems like that shouldn’t be so difficult, given how much their cars suck by general opinion.

    • dom@lemmy.ca
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      7
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      1 day ago

      There are plenty of cars better than tesla. Tesla has the mind share though. And that counts for a lot.