Elon Musk Calls High Production And Break-Even Cash Flow A Rivian Test, Here's The Explanation!

Rivian is one of Tesla's toughest competitors in the production of electric cars. (photo: twitter @rivian)

JAKARTA - Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk said on Thursday November 11 that high production and break-even cash flow would be a "true test" for electric carmaker Rivian Automotive Inc, a day after the electric vehicle maker's blockbuster market debut.

"There are hundreds of automotive startups, both electric and combustion, but Tesla is the only American automaker to achieve high volume production and positive cash flow in the last 100 years," Musk said in a tweet.

"I hope they (Rivian) are able to achieve high production and break even cash flow. That's the real test."

Rivian raised about $12 billion in the world's largest initial public offering this year and its market valuation stands at more than $100 billion as shares soar, making it the second most valuable automaker in the United States after Tesla.

Rivian, who has just started selling his vehicles, was not immediately available for comment on Musk's tweet.

Musk responded to one of his followers pointing out that Tesla had been selling its Roadster model for more than two years and plans to launch the Model S when it went public more than a decade ago.

Since the IPO, Tesla has ramped up production to deliver about 500,000 cars annually, as the company entered the corporate club with a trillion-dollar market value last month.