Rivian Lease Atlanta Office for East Coast Headquarters

Rivian is planting its East Coast flag in Atlanta, even though its massive Georgia factory is on ice.

The California-based electric vehicle maker leased 45,000 square feet at Junction Krog District, a recently completed mixed-use project along the Atlanta Beltline, where it will establish a corporate hub, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported.

The lease is a win for Junction Krog developer Portman Holdings, which completed the project in 2023. While several restaurants have opened, Rivian is the first office tenant to sign on.

It is Rivian’s first confirmed office lease in the Southeast and could eventually house up to 500 employees. The lease adds to Rivian’s growing East Coast presence and gives the Beltline another marquee name.

The company plans to staff the headquarters with local hires, starting with 100 workers by the end of this year. Roles will span finance, sales, enterprise tech and other general and administrative functions, Chief Financial Officer Claire McDonough said. Rivian intends to build out part of the lobby into a brand showcase open to passersby on the Beltline, a soft retail touch in line with its showrooms in Ponce City Market and Avalon in Alpharetta.

The office lease is a vote of confidence in Atlanta, even as Rivian’s long-promised Social Circle manufacturing plant, one of the largest economic development projects in state history, is stalled.

Construction on the $5 billion factory was delayed last year, with the start date pushed to 2026 and production not expected until 2028. State and local officials have championed the company despite the hold up, pointing to a $1.5 billion incentive package approved in 2022 and the 150 Rivian employees already working in Georgia.

Rivian has also received a $6.6 billion federal loan and a major investment from Volkswagen to shore up its balance sheet. The Atlanta office move suggests the company still intends to scale operations across Georgia even if timelines have shifted. McDonough said the lease would “certainly accelerate a lot of the hiring.”

— Judah Duke