Rivian announces new AI tech, chip and robotaxi ambitions
Rivian unveiled the new technology at its first “Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence Day” in Palo Alto, California, on Thursday.
Credit: Rivian
electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian Automotive At the first “Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence Day” held in Palo Alto, California on Thursday, the company announced that it has developed a special chip, car computer and new artificial intelligence models that will enable it to bring autonomous driving features to its future vehicles.
Rivian also said it plans to offer customers an Autonomy+ subscription in early 2026 with “ever-expanding capabilities” that will be powered by Rivian Autonomy Processors and autonomy computers.
The Autonomy+ offering will be priced at $2,500 as a one-time pre-purchase or will initially be available for $49.99 per month. In comparison, rival Tesla’s offers its premium FSD (Supervised) option for $8,000 upfront or $99 monthly.
The company said in a statement that a near-future software update will include a “Universal Hands-Free” feature, allowing Rivian customers to drive hands-free on “more than 3.5 million miles of roads in North America, covering the vast majority of marked roads in the United States.”
Rivian, unlike its main rival Tesla, has said it plans to use lidar, or light detection and ranging systems, and radar sensors in its future cars to enable “level 4” or fully automated driving, as defined by the SAE Levels of Driving Automation.
A passenger can sleep in the back seat of a level 4 driverless vehicle while driving to their destination, under normal traffic and weather conditions. Waymo, AlphabetThe robotaxi leader in the US considers its vehicles to be level 4.
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said Thursday that the company’s upcoming driverless vehicles allow the company to “pursue opportunities in the ride-sharing space,” also known as robotaxi.
Rivian isn’t the only one aiming to offer autonomous systems that meet level 4 expectations, making partially automated features available to drivers looking to reduce fatigue on long trips or make them safer behind the wheel in general.
Rivian and Tesla shares since Rivian went public.
Tesla and General Engines They are working on their own proprietary driverless system. honda, Lucid and Nissan have partnered with venture-backed autonomous vehicle technology startups (Helm.AI, Nuro, and Wayve, respectively) to develop similar systems through a number of different technical approaches.
Rivian is under pressure to prove its future growth potential to investors and grow its customer base amid slowing sales of battery electric vehicles in the U.S. and international competition from Chinese EV makers.
The all-electric vehicle segment suffered a decline in sales domestically after the Trump administration in September prematurely ended the $7,500 federal tax credit previously offered to EV buyers in the United States.
Rivian’s shares are up about 25% this year, but remain down more than 80% since the company’s initial public offering in 2021 amid internal and external challenges.
