Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe now takes on the top product role at the electric vehicle maker.

Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe has taken on another role at the publicly traded electric vehicle maker while its chief product officer Nick Kalayjian takes an advisory role, according to a regulatory filing and internal emails consulted by TechCrunch. Scaringe will now be responsible for all product development – ​​a critical position at a company working on a next-generation R2 platform expected to deliver more affordable electric vehicles and help catapult Rivian into the mass market.

Kalayjian will become executive vice president of vehicle engineering and propulsion and will continue to report to the CEO. Scaringe said in an internal email seen by TechCrunch that Kalayjian would focus on “Peregrine” (the next generation platform) before ultimately moving into a product and technology consulting role.

In an internal email, Kalayjian wrote:

With this, the time has come for me to make a change. Over the past few months, I took the time to zoom out and talk with RJ to understand how my involvement could continue to allow me to make an impact while also allowing me to step back from my current role. My desire to make changes aligns perfectly with RJ’s desire to redirect more time and energy toward product leadership. I have never met anyone in my life or career who is a better blend of engineer and visionary product manager than RJ. I know that him spending more time working with our Product teams will create significant value for all of us and our shareholders.

The move includes other leadership shakeups.

The story develops…