Rivian chief sees autonomy enabling radically new vehicle designs

Rivian chief executive RJ Scaringe says autonomous driving could let the company design vehicles with forms and uses far beyond its current SUVs and trucks. He sees the technology as opening new possibilities over the next decade, although Rivian still has substantial work to do before its vehicles can drive themselves.

Past predictions that autonomy and electric power would transform vehicle design largely remained at the concept stage, as self-driving technology and manufacturing proved harder than expected. Rivian currently offers a hands-free driver assistance system that still requires drivers to watch the road; it aims to add supervised point-to-point driving by the end of 2026 and is developing fully autonomous R2 robotaxis for Uber. The company is also scaling R2 production, which it needs to help address years of losses.