Rivian Will Be Challenging Tesla’s Autopilot Sooner Than Expected

After a successful 2024, particularly with the sales performance of its R1T, Rivian has announced a major addition to its arsenal: autonomous driving. In a media round table, RJ Scaringe, Rivian’s CEO, announced that it’s “hyper-focused on” bringing self-driving tech to its vehicles. Not a surprise, given that automakers have been working on offering autonomous driving tech for several years, but the young startup executive disclosed quite a tight timeline.

• 2025 Rivian R1S SUV

  The 2025 Rivian R1S is a premium electric SUV that offers a blend of off-road prowess and luxury amenities. Its three-row configuration provides ample seating for passengers, while its spacious cargo area can accommodate a variety of gear. The R1S’s powertrain options, including a quad-motor setup, deliver impressive acceleration and range, making it suitable for both daily commutes and long road trips.

  While the R1S has garnered praise for its performance and features, it also comes with a significant price tag. Additionally, its availability has been limited, making it a less accessible option for some consumers. Despite these factors, the R1S remains a compelling choice for those seeking a high-performance electric SUV with off-road capabilities.

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  2025 Rivian R1T Truck

  The 2025 Rivian R1T is a powerful electric pickup truck with a range of options. It offers impressive performance, with multiple motor configurations delivering varying levels of power and acceleration. While it’s not the cheapest electric truck on the market, it offers a unique blend of capability and efficiency. The R1T’s design is distinctive, and its interior is modern and well-equipped. However, it’s important to note that it may not be the most practical choice for heavy-duty work.

According to InsideEVs, Rivian will be introducing hands-free Level 2 autonomous driving tech on its cars in 2025, while a more advanced Level 3 tech, which will allow drivers to take their eyes off the road, will be added in 2026. Scaringe believes that these features will bring an “enormous amount of value to customers,” particularly the latter “in very specific domains.”

Thank AI For The Accelerated Progress

Current second-generation Rivian vehicles, introduced last year, don’t have hands-free driver-assist features, but its most advanced Autonomy Platform – which uses 11 cameras, five radars, and a multitude of sensors that can perform more than 250 trillion operations a second – allows assisted driving. However, it still requires the attention of the driver to safely operate, with their hands on the tiller ready to take over any time.

That said, the move to Level 2 this year has somehow accelerated, and that’s all thanks to the development of AI and its capability to train self-driving systems, according to Scaringe. The upgraded tech will be first seen on Rivian vehicles equipped with the Autonomy Platform, while the upcoming R2 and R3 models, which will come with a more affordable Rivian, will also get the advanced feature.

The Race To Self-Driving Cars

America has a few players in the race to offer self-driving tech to vehicle owners. GM has the Super Cruise, while Ford has BlueCruise, though both are still at Level 2, according to the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)’s levels of driver assistance technology. Even Tesla’s controversial Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature, which only allows hands-free driving, is still considered Level 2.

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Only one automaker in the US offers “eyes-off” Level 3 self-driving tech, and that is Mercedes-Benz. The German marque launched the tech in 2023 for its most advanced 2024MY vehicles, but it’s only usable on select roads in California and Nevada. Rivian joining the race for autonomous cars puts a little pressure on those already in the running, though we have yet to see how the startup company can pull off executing this advanced tech on its vehicles.

Source: InsideEVs