Inside Rivian's Affordable Lidar Breakthrough

The R2 won’t get lidar right away, but at the end of 2026. As we reported at InsideEVs, data collected via lidar will train AI driving models to improve its entire fleet of cars. (The older R1 platform is not getting lidar.)

Universal Hands-Free (UHF): anywhere a road has marked lines, a Rivian can operate with your hands off the wheel. That’s 3.5 million miles of roads in the U.S. and Canada.

It’s not yet as robust as Tesla’s Full Self-Driving—for now, anyway. A driver will still need to use their brake pedal at a stoplight, for example. But it’s expected to get better.

It’ll be a subscription feature called Autonomy+, launching early next year. It costs $2,500 as a one-time purchase or $49.99 per month.

The R2 is also getting Rivian’s first in-house computer chip—a huge deal in the auto industry, where such components are usually outsourced. This means Rivian is building a vertically integrated autonomy system.

Rivians are getting an in-car AI voice assistant. It will integrate with Google Calendar, so you can tell the car things like “Drive to my next appointment.”

The overwhelming consensus in the AV space is that you need lidar to achieve true self-driving. A vehicle needs as much data as possible to “see” the world around it, so many believe Tesla’s camera-only approach isn’t enough.

See this video from Rivian to understand why it’s so needed. Yet while it’s a robotaxi staple, it’s barely been used on passenger cars so far.

Volvo had lidar on the EX90, but problems forced it to drop the sensor after a year. GM is adding it in 2028—to the much more expensive Cadillac Escalade IQ.

It says a lot that Rivian is putting it on a much cheaper car. And it also implies that lidar will be added to many of the brand’s future cars over time.

Lidar costs have dropped dramatically in recent years. A unit was tens of thousands of dollars a decade ago; now, a good one is under a grand.

That’s even more pronounced in China, where automakers like BYD, Li Auto, Xpeng, Zeekr, Leapmotor, and Nio are adding lidar-aided autonomy to even Toyota Corolla-priced cars.

Meanwhile, people may balk at in-car subscription services, but they are paying for hands-free driving. Rivian execs said it’s their most-requested feature.

Both GM’s Super Cruise and Ford’s BlueCruise have pretty high take rates, all things considered.

“Investors reacted with caution. [They] might be a little worried about how much it will cost to develop self-driving cars. Cash is also essential for Rivian, which isn’t profitable yet.” [Barron’s]

“A bold—if belated—move to catch up with Tesla and other automakers that have been working on the technology for far longer.” [The Verge]

“The pressure is on for Rivian to deliver. It has tactically brought its software and automation efforts in-house to unlock future growth potential for investors and to try to expand its customer base amid slowing sales of EVs and regulatory changes.” [CNBC]

“The updates will allow Rivian to ‘pursue opportunities in the rideshare space,’ hinting at future robotaxi plans, which rivals Tesla and Lucid have already begun.” [Sherwood News]

“By developing its own chip, Rivian says it can move faster to deploy advanced driver-assistance features than it would if it needed to work with suppliers.” [Automotive News]

The in-house chip thing is a very big deal, in and of itself—a huge step toward the vertical integration that’s increasingly necessary for speed and control in a software-driven world.

Until now, Nvidia and Qualcomm have felt like the only real names in automotive chips. Keeping up with both is an expensive and complex endeavor; it says a lot that Rivian is trying.

Yet even Tesla has backed off on things like an AI training supercomputer, and it’s been at autonomy for a while.

But the lidar news stands out to me the most. Simply put: if Rivian can get lidar right on such a normal car, it makes a strong case for the whole industry to move in that direction, too.

And if anything can unlock the auto industry’s dreams of recurring revenue through software, it’s hands-free driving.

One thing not getting enough attention: Rivian’s deal to co-develop software and EV architectures with the Volkswagen Group. I’m curious if any of these developments could see greater scale with VW onboard. (I asked, and Rivian won’t say.)

Can all of this together turn Rivian from an EV upstart into an autonomy powerhouse? We’ll see.

Ford and Volkswagen already have a partnership for EVs and vans, but now the American automaker is turning to Renault for smaller electric cars to survive “a fight for our lives” against China. [CNN]

“They wouldn’t have been burning the cars.” Tesla CEO Elon Musk has a muted opinion of the efforts at DOGE, and said he wouldn’t do it again. [AP]

Globally, EV sales went up again in November. They’re up to 18.5 million this year, a 21% year-over-year increase. Only North America is seeing declining sales. [Benchmark Mineral Intelligence]

“That is something we as humans do all the time. But it sounds like a hard problem for an automated driving system.” More on the beloved neighborhood cat in San Francisco that got run over by a Waymo AV. [New York Times]

I’ll be at CES in January. But it may not be such a big year for automakers—although plenty of mobility tech will be on display. [Digital Trends]

The European Union will review a controversial 2035 ban on internal combustion next week, and the decision could reshape the entire auto industry. [France 24]

BMW has named a new CEO to take the reins next year, manufacturing boss Milan Nedeljkovic. BMW’s doing well on the future-tech front, but he will have a lot to navigate. [Bloomberg]

How long does Vietnamese upstart Vinfast, known for its questionable quality but incredible EV deals, have in the U.S. market? Dealerships are closing. [Automotive News]

The Trump administration tried to kill the program, but after the courts intervened, federal money is flowing back to states for more EV chargers—and the rollout is moving fast this time. [Bloomberg]

Case in point: 468 DC charging ports at 91 charging locations were added last week, according to federal data. [The Weekly 1.21]

BP Pulse charging network has recently opened its first DC fast-charging site in Arizona, and it’s continuing its expansions across Texas, Florida, and Ohio. [EV Charging Stations]

BMW EVs can now charge at Tesla Supercharger stations. [InsideEVs]

Tesla’s Superchargers also saw record use during Thanksgiving road trips, due to many more EV sales and cars with access to those stations. [The Weekly 1.21]

Fast-growing charging startup It’s Electric hit a new milestone: 5,000 uses of its curbside chargers. [It’s Electric via LinkedIn]

Global fintech company Nayax acquires Lynkwell, an AI-enabled EV charging platform. It serves thousands of EV chargers across multiple networks. [ChargedEVs]

EV battery pack costs are down—way down. As the technology scales, batteries are getting cheaper, and at $108 per kilowatt-hour, they’re down 150% since 2013. That means cheaper EVs over time. [BloombergNEF]

Ace battery beat reporter Suvrat Kothari gives a rundown of the year’s biggest stories in the energy storage space, for EVs and beyond. [InsideEVs]

Ford and South Korea’s SK Innovation are going their separate ways on the BlueOval SK plant in Tennessee. [Bloomberg]

Battery recycling firm Redwood Materials is reportedly shifting its focus to energy storage systems as EV demand slows in the short-term—and as EV batteries hold up longer than expected. [Automotive News]

LG Energy signed a $1.4 billion battery supply deal with Mercedes-Benz, possibly including cheaper LFP batteries for more affordable EVs. [Korea Economic Daily]

U.S.-based Factorial Energy and South Korean firm Posco Future M are teaming up on solid-state batteries. [Electrek]

Two U.S.-based battery companies claim to have reached a breakthrough with silicon anodes, which could revolutionize your next EV. [InsideEVs]

Nissan is aiming for point-to-point urban driving starting in Japan in 2027 thanks to Wayve, its AI partner. [Just Auto]

Hyundai Motor Group makes incredibly advanced EVs, but it’s behind many rivals on autonomy and software. Now, its Advanced Vehicle Platform (AVP) chief is out. [Yonhap News Agency]

Waymo is issuing a software recall on its cars because they keep blowing past parked school buses. [Reuters]

Self-driving expert Phil Koopman has some tough questions about Waymo’s rapid expansion as of late, including about who’s really at fault when the taxi service ducks blame. [Phil Koopman]

On the bright side: A pregnant woman en route to UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco has given birth in a Waymo. Is this the first robotaxi baby? [SF Standard]

Tesla says the safety monitor drivers will be gone from its Robotaxis in Austin before the year is out. [Electrek]

Will the auto industry’s current “euphoria” over AI yield tangible benefits? This study says only a fraction of automakers will maintain their big investments by 2029. [Reuters]

Meanwhile, car dealers are expected to spend big on AI next year. Uses include “automation in lead response, inbound call management, and service scheduling.” [Car Dealership Guy]

Speaking of CES: Hyundai is expected to unveil its humanoid robot, Atlas, at the big tech trade show. [Korean Car Blog]