Chamath Palihapitiya defends Rivian’s $110 billion market cap, and says the EV startup’s critics remind him of Tesla bears

Chamath Palihapitiya defends Rivian’s $110 billion market cap, and says the EV startup’s critics remind him of Tesla bears

Billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya has defended the market valuation of electric-vehicle startup , saying investors think the company has a solid product and the underwriters of the deal are experts in what they do. Speaking at the weekend, Palihapitiya said people criticising Rivian's market capitalization of $110 billion reminded him of the group of investors who have consistently bet against . Rivian last week in the biggest US market debut since Facebook in 2012. The company has since soared from an IPO price of $78 a share to a closing price of $129.95 on Friday. That gave Rivian a market capitalization of $110.8 billion, or $130.1 billion on a fully diluted basis. Rivian's valuation has been , given that the company is yet to produce any meaningful revenue and has made fewer than 200 vehicles. it's a sign of a stock market bubble. Yet Palihapitiya defended the company on the on Saturday against his co-host and fellow investor Jason Calacanis, who said the EV maker was way overvalued. Palihapitiya said investors had seen and liked Rivian's product, and pointed to the fact that it has already signed a deal to sell 100,000 electric trucks to e-commerce giant . "What I