Rivian’s Vertical Integration Bet, Wayve’s Nissan Win & Uber’s Autonomy Narrative

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Rivian’s bold vertical integration bet as the EV maker announced plans to build their own chips and lidar sensors, effectively moving away from NVIDIA.

Is the introduction of “Autonomy+”, a new software subscription priced to undercut competitors a risky distraction or a necessary move as the company works toward profitability? As Rivian looks inward, Wayve signed a major win, signing a definitive agreement to scale with Nissan in North America and Japan beginning in 2027.

Then there is Uber. Who does Uber want to be when autonomy grows up, and who will their partners ultimately be and what those relationships will look like in the long term? Currently, Uber’s autonomy narrative faces challenges, as the company appears to be playing defense while getting front-run by partners Waymo in the U.S. and Momenta in Abu Dhabi. 

Closing out the show, Grayson and Walt discuss the growing world of international autonomy on the weekly Foreign Autonomy Desk segment, covering updates from Bolt, Stellantis, and Caterpillar.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Rivian’s Autonomy Ambitions 

13:11 Licensing Autonomous Driving Stacks

17:29 Wayve’s Approach to Autonomy 

21:07 Tesla’s Safety Attendant Out in Austin Plans

23:35 Waymo’s Blitz Scaling 

27:37 Waymo’s Growing OOH Ad Business 

32:32 Uber’s Autonomy Narrative 

37:57 Serve Robotics 2,000 Robot Delivery Milestone

39:30 Tensor Auto / Zero Partnership 

42:13 Aurora’s Permian Basin Expansion 

44:47 Foreign Autonomy Desk 

52:16 Next Week

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