Rivian Autonomy & AI Day! Lidar, Hands-Free Driving, Rivian Assistant & more announced

[mkhuffman]

Down 7%. If the market had any sanity, Tesla would be off 80% on this. What Rivian has shown is that any OEM can (and many are) lapping Tesla on autonomy and AI and most especially on the hardware stack.

Now coming up on -10%.

I suspect people are disappointed regarding how long it is going to take for Rivian to get this technology into products. R2 starting as a Gen2 vehicle is not good. Delaying the R2 until the end of 2026 so it starts at a Gen3 isn't good either.

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[Lsthrz]

That's true for some people. There will always be some people that need the latest & greatest thing.

The type of person that keeps a car for ~10 years doesn't really care. Neither do the people who don't care to pay some subscription fee for self-driving whatever.

With Tesla's uptake of FSD reportedly in the ~15% range, I'm skeptical this is a market that will have mass consumer adoption without dramatically lower prices. Tesla consumers are among the most tech-interested of any brand.

FSD is just great on my Tesla. I suspect adoption will only increase in time on all platforms.

 

[mkhuffman]

I got the impression Autonomy + was G3, eye's off. Everyone on G2 was getting the expanded roads, hands off capabilities for free. I could be wrong and will wait for what's officially posted by Rivian.

They said it will be "free" until March 2026. There won't be any Gen3 vehicles by that time.

 

[TexasBob]

Now coming up on -10%.

I suspect people are disappointed regarding how long it is going to take for Rivian to get this technology into products. R2 starting as a Gen2 vehicle is not good. Delaying the R2 until the end of 2026 so it starts at a Gen3 isn't good either.

Agree, but it will be a valuable asset in the VW acquisition.

 

[waitingonanr1s]

Now coming up on -10%.

I suspect people are disappointed regarding how long it is going to take for Rivian to get this technology into products. R2 starting as a Gen2 vehicle is not good. Delaying the R2 until the end of 2026 so it starts at a Gen3 isn't good either.

OK, so R2 is delayed officially? That's why then. This was all smoke and mirrors to bury the bad news?

 

[Mellowyellow]

“Gen 3 Autonomy hardware including ACM3 and LiDAR is currently undergoing validation and we expect it to ship on R2 models starting at the end of 2026.”

so a reason not to buy an R2 early on? That could be really bad for the unveiling where strong sales are needed most

If true this is bad.

 

[mkhuffman]

OK, so R2 is delayed officially? That's why then. This was all smoke and mirrors to bury the bad news?

I didn't hear them say that, so maybe? A lot is riding on the R2. It might be less bad to delay production start, so the first ones are Gen3.

It seems to me they could roll this technology into the R1 before the end of 2026 and get some more data points to use to improve the R2 experience. But I suspect they have long manufacturing lead times for the chips and others custom components they have developed.

On the other hand, I keep forgetting the end of 2026 is only one year away. LOL.

 

[Giddy89]

RJ just killed off R1. R2 is gen 3 including LiDAR and Rivian developed AI chip.

This is exactly the reason holding onto EVs for more than 3~5 yrs is just like computers - outdated.

Just as I've said before these vehicles are laptop with wheels and cannot place ICE paradigm onto EVs.

YOU think EV’s are outdated after 3 to 5 years. Plenty of people, myself included don’t really care about the autonomy stuff. I like that my truck is quick, has lots of storage, good comfort features, and just gets me A to B without fuss. It’ll continue to be these things next year, 5 years from now etc

Don’t buy into the consumerism gotta have the latest and greatest mindset. Just enjoy

 

[waitingonanr1s]

I didn't hear them say that, so maybe? A lot is riding on the R2. It might be less bad to delay production start, so the first ones are Gen3.

It seems to me they could roll this technology into the R1 before the end of 2026 and get some more data points to use to improve the R2 experience. But I suspect they have long manufacturing lead times for the chips and others custom components they have developed.

On the other hand, I keep forgetting the end of 2026 is only one year away. LOL.

Yes, they were strangely silent. Configurator should be opening soon if they're shipping early 2026. It doesn't seem a gen 1 R2 would sell well if gen 2 R2 is just around the corner. The 8% market drop seems to suggest that may be the case, but who knows.

 

[VandalSibs]

OK, so R2 is delayed officially? That's why then. This was all smoke and mirrors to bury the bad news?

No.

R2 will still ship starting 1st half 2026 - models with Lidar will ship 2nd half 2026:

Rivian Autonomy & AI Day by Rivian - Rivian Stories | Electric Vehicle Adventures

Building on this foundation, we will integrate LiDAR into our fleet, starting with future R2 models.

(Emphasis mine)

 

[mkhuffman]

YOU think EV’s are outdated after 3 to 5 years. Plenty of people, myself included don’t really care about the autonomy stuff. I like that my truck is quick, has lots of storage, good comfort features, and just gets me A to B without fuss. It’ll continue to be these things next year, 5 years from now etc

Don’t buy into the consumerism gotta have the latest and greatest mindset. Just enjoy

I can wait for the R1 Gen3.

Not sure I will want to pay $50 a month for no eyes-off capability, but maybe I will change my mind after living with it for a few months. Assuming they get point-to-point done before March. I doubt it. Point-to-point is what I might be willing to pay for.

So does the $2500 one-time purchase stay with the truck, or stay with the buyer? It might be worth it if I can transfer that to the next Rivian I buy.

 

[Webleyaz]

What I gathered is my R2 reservation is more exciting than when I woke up but more importantly is that Alexa in my 23 T will be replaced with something with actual functionality. I can handle driving my 835hp toy myself like no Ai would dare.

 

[waitingonanr1s]

No.

R2 will still ship starting 1st half 2026 - models with Lidar will ship 2nd half 2026:

Rivian Autonomy & AI Day by Rivian - Rivian Stories | Electric Vehicle Adventures

(Emphasis mine)

Nowhere in that does it say R2 is launching 1st half of 2026 (Autonomy plus is though). Still bad news either way. They basically knee-capped their R2 sales until the next gen is out, or it's delayed. Neither is good for stockholders.

 

[mkhuffman]

No.

R2 will still ship starting 1st half 2026 - models with Lidar will ship 2nd half 2026:

Rivian Autonomy & AI Day by Rivian - Rivian Stories | Electric Vehicle Adventures

(Emphasis mine)

Maybe the R2 model without Lidar will be much cheaper. Although say said the Lidar module is only a few hundred dollars. Whatever that means.

 

[pricedm]

Same here.. I still kinda regret it but I'm also not that big on self driving so I guess it's a wash..

Easy to say until you're dog tired heading home from an adventure, or not feeling well, or sleepy, and your robot on wheels takes you door-to-door without you giving 2FKs about anything. Welcome to the future...now.

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