Rivian Appoints Cohere CEO Aidan Gomez to Board Amid Strategic Push into AI

Rivian, the electric vehicle manufacturer, has appointed Aidan Gomez, co-founder and CEO of generative AI company Cohere, to its board of directors. This move highlights Rivian’s growing focus on artificial intelligence and its ambition to position itself as a leader in automotive software. The company expanded its board to include Gomez, whose term will last until 2026, according to a recent regulatory filing.

Gomez is a well-known figure in the AI industry, particularly for co-authoring the groundbreaking 2017 research paper ‘Attention Is All You Need,’ which laid the groundwork for modern generative AI models. Before launching Cohere in 2019, Gomez worked at Google Brain under the guidance of AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton. Cohere specializes in enterprise AI solutions and counts major companies like Oracle and Notion among its clients.

Rivian is currently developing an AI assistant for its vehicles and is also engaged in a $5.8 billion software joint venture with Volkswagen Group. This collaboration will allow Rivian to contribute its expertise in electrical architecture and potentially license its software to other companies in the future. Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe stated that Gomez’s experience will be instrumental in integrating advanced technologies across the company’s products and operations.