Rivian Claims ‘Hands-Off’ Driving Is Coming Soon

Driver-assist systems are the hot new way to justify texting behind the wheel, and it seems like every manufacturer is racing to offer the best way to stop paying so much attention to this whole “operating a motor vehicle” thing. The highest-level systems now allow some degree of hands-free driving, and Rivian wants in on that territory: The company’s CEO announced that “hands-off” driving would be coming “within the next several weeks.” 

The announcement came on an investor call, according to Autoblog, where CEO R.J. Scaringe claimed that both the hands-off system and a more advanced “eyes-off” system would be coming soon. While the latter is reserved for updated R1 models with more advanced sensors, the former seems to be open to all existing trucks per Autoblog:

“We have a hands-off highway feature that we’re going to be launching here very soon, within the next several weeks,” Scaringe said.

Beyond the upcoming hands-free system, Rivian is working on an even more advanced driver assistance feature that will allow for eyes-off driving on highways by 2026. Scaringe explained that this next evolution will be built upon the new Rivian Autonomy Platform currently found in second-generation R1T and R1S models, which features upgraded computing power and an improved sensor array.

“We have an eyes-off feature that we’re going to be launching for highway functionality in 2026,” Scaringe said, noting that Rivian intends to expand the system’s capabilities beyond highways over time.

Adding hands-free driving to existing models is an odd move from Rivian, given that the company removed driver-facing cameras from its vehicles in 2023. Rivian claimed at the time that other cameras and sensors within the R1 models could make up the deficit, but that was before it started promising hands-off driving. These systems often rely on tracking the driver’s head, to see where they’re looking, which gets a lot harder without a camera to look through. 

Rivian’s existing Highway Assist feature is already geofenced to “select highways,” and the hands-off system promises the same limitations. It’s not yet clear whether the hands-off update will be an upgrade to Highway Assist or its own separate feature within the company’s Driver+ suite. What is clear, though, is that Rivian could use the valuation bump that comes from adding new tech to its cars. The company has always been better at designing and building great vehicles than it has been at selling them, and at such a trepidatious time for the EV industry Rivian certainly could benefit from an influx of tech investor cash.