Overview
- Baird raised its rating to Outperform and lifted its price target to $25 from $14, citing the mid‑2026 R2 debut and Rivian’s autonomy roadmap as key catalysts, as Needham and Goldman Sachs also increased targets after AI & Autonomy Day.
- Rivian began rolling out a “universal hands‑free” update that allows hands‑off driving across roughly 3.5 million miles of U.S. and Canadian roads, with limits that include no response to traffic lights or stop signs and operation only where lane lines are visible.
- The company detailed an Autonomy+ subscription launching next year priced at a $2,500 one‑time fee or about $50 per month to monetize semi‑autonomous features.
- Rivian outlined an in‑house 1,600 sparse TOPS inference chip and a new autonomy computer planned to ship on R2 vehicles by the end of 2026, with LiDAR integration slated for future models.
- CEO RJ Scaringe reaffirmed that R2 production is targeted for the first half of 2026 at the Normal, Illinois plant with saleable units in that window, positioning a roughly $45,000 model for mass‑market entry.