Rivian Recap: 03/20/2026
Hey there,
Here's your weekly Rivian Recap for March 20th, 2026.
A surprise investment from Uber (with strings), a new phone charger that finally doesn't suck, Rivian Assistant inbound, and R2 production has started?
Let's dive in!
Software
Rivian is finding themselves in a funny spot.
After SXSW, all signs point to R2 setting up to be a total home run.
The packaging is incredible, with specs (both capability and price) that strike directly at the heart of the market. All while offering a form factor and a few key upsides that are missing in the best-selling Model Y.
I'm super excited by what I'm seeing in "Rivian OS 2.0", which was highlighted last week in RivianTrackr (Jose's) video, and this week with Kyle from OutOfSpec (time stamped link to the software portion).
It's really clear that the software team has put a lot of consideration into so many parts of the new user interface and overall user experience.
Thankfully, the best bits of this should be back ported to R1 later this year.
But the part where Rivian finds themselves in a funny spot is primarily focused around the Autonomy expectations going forward.
This week, Uber announced an (up to) $1.25b investment into Rivian, along with the plan to introduce up to 50,000 Robotaxis built around R2.
As with anything this size, there is fine print, and the "up to" is doing some heavy lifting here.
Here are the highlights:
- $300m up front, $950m as milestone are hit (think VW joint venture)
- Approximately 10k R2's per year, starting in 2028 (think Amazon deal)
But as you can see... this is predicated on RAP1, LiDAR, & Autonomy software.
A few holes that the launch R2 vehicles will have, but have taken an intensely focused eye by the company and the R&D balance sheet.
Here's why I stuck this under "software" instead of "hardware" though. The compute and sensors are only a piece of the puzzle, what is going to unlock the majority of that Uber money is hitting the software milestones.
Similar to how we saw Rivian priorities shift to unlock VW joint venture funds, it seems clear we are seeing a "burn the ships" kind of approach here when it comes to autonomy.
After scrolling through some of the replies on X and Threads, it's interesting to see as many negative comments around this partnership.
While the vast majority of buyers don't care about autonomy, I have a feeling this attitude will change a bit once it's tangibly great and owners actually get their time back from shifted legal liability.
Even then, Rivians in particular have a spirit and soul to them that make them a blast to own and drive.
Having the duality of both a ridiculously fun car to drive when it suits the driver, while also having the option to let the car handle the mundane parts of driving such as commuter traffic feels on-brand for Rivian.
Similar to how the R1 models are essentially 3 very distinct personalities all powered by software and impressive engineering.
An off-roader, a sports car, and a luxury cruiser.
Soon, that list may include 'truly autonomous'.
The next few years should be fun to watch.
In a pretty funny turn of events, it seems that a few loaner vehicles have cropped up with the Rivian Assistant enabled.
Based on the comments from this Reddit thread, it seems like this has happened for a few people running 2026.03.0 which indicates that this feature is already on our vehicles, just hidden behind a feature flag.
This in theory means Rivian could light this up for the fleet at basically any point.
The lack of text integration has been a sore spot for owners since the start, given the lack of CarPlay or Android Auto. However, the Rivian Assistant ambitions go far beyond text messaging.
I'm really looking forward to far improved in-car voice controls for navigation, messaging, and general AI queries that have vehicle context.
Rivian Assistant will be coming all Rivians (Gen1 and Gen2), and should offer an even more compelling experience on R2 with the upgraded infotainment computer (XMM3) where more requests stay in-vehicle vs the cloud.
Hardware
Some of the biggest drawbacks to current R1 vehicles are being addressed with even the very first models of R2 off the line.
1. Thermals (heat pump capacity/noise & battery temps).
2. A wireless phone charger that actually works
While hoping for a big battery and thermal redesign isn't in the cards anytime really soon for R1, it does appear that new builds off the line at least include a wireless phone charger that looks exactly like the one in R2.
Thanks to reporting by Jose, we get our first peek at a customer bound R1 that has the new magnetic charger.
Aesthetically, it looks great! But it seems to have a quirky bottleneck.
It appears that it only outputs 5w of Qi charging with magnetic centering for the phone. That magnetic part is the biggest improvement here, along with the shelf to fit the camera bump for modern phones.
It's disappointing to see the lack of 15w (Qi2) or even 25w Magsafe, but the stability of location should mean far more consistent charging.
But how does this compare to the aftermarket solution from Soonish?
I think both look aesthetically pleasing, and I'm so happy to see Rivian finally fix this from the factory in a way that is a meaningfully better customer experience.
But if you have an existing Gen1 or Gen2 vehicle, I would still recommend the Soonish solution thanks to the far improved charging speeds.
(Disclaimer: The Soonish links are affiliate, but the product is excellent.)
Next up, it looks like real R2 production may be underway!
Based on this Reddit post, it looks like Rivian wanted the Normal factory employees to check out what the buzz was all about.
This would seem to indicate that the initial employee deliveries of production R2 are imminent if they haven't started already.
Rivian execs have said that the initial vehicles were going to employees to make sure the software is fully settled for a few months before these cars start getting into the hands of regular customers.
(This matches what they did with R1 initially as well).
If you notice the 317 on the back glass, it's possible this is build 317, and I would expect approximately the first ~2k or so to be employee only.
Good stuff!
Community
One quick community note.
First I wanted the thank the Bothell, WA service center for quick recall work on both our early Gen2 vehicles that had some supplier parts they wanted to replace for improved cold-weather performance.
I hope those around the office enjoyed the extra donuts, and it was also such a pleasure to bump into a few of you from the community while I was there.
It was fun to be there for a few hours and hear multiple new owners showing up for delivery just being so incredible excited for their new vehicles.
Welcome to the Rivian family!
Worth Checking Out - VION
I've had our VION sunshades in both our R1S and R1T for months now. They're custom-fit for Rivian's expansive glass roof, and honestly, they can make a big difference on hot days or when the vehicle is parked.
VION sponsored my 1-year review video, and they're offering Rivian Recap readers 10% off anything site wide with code "TRAVIS".
Check out their sunshades, carbon activated air filters, and more:
VION Sunshade // VION Air Filters
My thanks to VION for helping make this newsletter possible.
Latest Deals
The dual-standard lease offer has now expired, and I would not recommend purchasing this configuration anymore due to the imminent end of production, and on-going BMS issues that Rivian has had getting the full range figures.
Here's what's sticking out for deals this week:
Get 1.99% financing for 60 months on these builds:
Dual Large w/Performance [Lease vs Buy Example]:
2026 R1S Dual-Large w/Performance (Premium Audio)
2026 R1T Dual-Large w/Performance (Premium Audio, Utility V2 Tonneau)
Dual Max w/Performance [Lease vs Buy Example]:
2026 R1S Dual-Max w/Performance (Premium Audio)
2026 R1T Dual-Max w/Performance (Premium Audio, Utility, V2 Tonneau)
Tri-Max [Lease vs Buy Example]:
*If you need to chat with a sales advisor and want a direct introduction, I'm happy to make that happen, just reply and I'll get you in touch.*
All referrals also get 3 months of free charging on the Rivian Adventure Network.
I hope enjoyed this weeks edition of the Rivian Recap. Let me know what you'd like to see more of in future editions!
Even if you just want to say hi, hit reply – I'd love to get to know you 👋
Stay curious ✌️,
Travis Ketchum
P.S. Thinking about buying a new Rivian?
Make sure you use a referral code. A friend, a neighbor, or someone who has helped you along the way.
Here's mine: TRAVIS4699411
P.P.S. Here are some tools and resources you may find useful: