Rivian's founder and CEO, RJ Scaringe, said the carmaker's vehicles will one day be able to run AI agents made by other companies, such as Anthropic. He spoke on stage at TechCrunch Disrupt and said "that's where it becomes magical." Rivian did not say when this would happen, pointing instead to an AI event it is holding in December.
π The Backstory
Rivian already offers an AI assistant that drivers can talk to, and it builds its own in-car software rather than relying on Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. The company has made a system that works out what a driver wants and sends the request to the right part of the car's software. Simple requests run on a computer inside the vehicle; harder ones go to the cloud.
Scaringe warned that agents will not be given control of safety-critical systems such as brakes or steering, and that a lot of behind-the-scenes work is needed with the AI labs. Tesla has already added a chatbot to its cars.
π― Why It Matters
If cars can carry the same AI assistants people already use on phones, the assistant could follow you between devices and become part of daily life. But connecting cars to outside AI raises questions about safety, privacy, and who really controls the software inside a vehicle. Regulators have not yet answered those questions.
Rivian's founder and CEO, RJ Scaringe, said the carmaker's vehicles will one day be able to run AI agents made by other companies, such as Anthropic. He spoke on stage at TechCrunch Disrupt and said "that's where it becomes magical." Rivian did not say when this would happen, pointing instead to an AI event it is holding in December.
Rivian already offers an AI assistant that drivers can talk to, and it builds its own in-car software rather than relying on Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. The company has made a system that works out what a driver wants and sends the request to the right part of the car's software. Simple requests run on a computer inside the vehicle; harder ones go to the cloud.
Scaringe warned that agents will not be given control of safety-critical systems such as brakes or steering, and that a lot of behind-the-scenes work is needed with the AI labs. Tesla has already added a chatbot to its cars.
If cars can carry the same AI assistants people already use on phones, the assistant could follow you between devices and become part of daily life. But connecting cars to outside AI raises questions about safety, privacy, and who really controls the software inside a vehicle. Regulators have not yet answered those questions.