It is essentially a law of nature that when an individual rises to the top, a competitor soon emerges to rival its dominance. Such is the case with Rivian. The sustainable transportation startup aims to dethrone Tesla and become the industry’s new king of the hill and is making its case with an impressive debut of two high-caliber electric adventure vehicles. Even at a glance, the quad-motor AWD R1T is as “remarkably different” as its engineers intended. The pickup’s sparse accent lines, which swoop upward at near 90-degree angles along the back doors and haunches, convey a futuristic, minimalist look. Its four-bulb stadium headlights and daytime light-bar add to its uniqueness. Torque vectoring for responsive offroading, along with 14 inches of ground clearance, three feet of water fording, and 11,000 pounds of towing are just some of the R1T’s many robust performance capabilities. The truck’s bed, with a liftgate that swings down 180 degrees for easy loading, is a modest 3.5 feet long. The R1T offsets this with auxiliary storage, including an 11-cubic-foot frunk and a cargo tunnel adjacent to the rear wheels wide enough to fit skis or a surfboard. The shallow back affords a spacious five-seat cabin for comfortable trips with friends. Rivian took a page out of Tesla’s book in crafting the R1T’s interior, which employs a simple wood dash interrupted only by a digital gauge cluster and a landscape-oriented infotainment touchscreen. With ingenious design and specs that speak for themselves, Rivian positions the R1T a frontrunner in the EV pickup race.