How RIVN is pushing software boundaries on the way to 2026

Rivian car industry RIVN has updated its software for its customers to improve the overall driving experience. It will expand Rivian’s driving capabilities and meet key customer requests. The latest software update 2025.46 includes some of the new features announced at the AI ​​and Autonomy event on December 11, 2025.

The company announced “Universal Hands-Free,” expanding hands-free driving coverage from 135,000 miles to more than 5.5 million miles of roadways in the United States and Canada. This feature allows drivers to drive hands-free on any road with clearly marked lanes. However, it does not function at low speeds or at traffic lights and stop signs, because it is not yet a fully autonomous system.

Rivian’s autonomy feature includes three driving styles – ‘Mild’, ‘Medium’ and ‘Strong’ – that determine how the car behaves on the road.

The mild mode provides a relaxed style with more spacing and more gradual lane changes.

Medium mode delivers a balanced style to manage and accelerate engagements with traffic flow.

Spicy mode offers a more dynamic style with closer spacing and faster steering during lane changes.

The company has announced another major software called “Digital Key,” which will allow users to add their Gen 2 car key to their digital wallet on iPhone, Apple Watch, Google Pixel and Samsung devices. The key uses technology from the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC), allowing the vehicle to support the latest digital standards and allowing the function to be extended to future models such as the R2 and R3.

Driver Display View is another feature introduced for both Gen 1 and Gen 2 drivers. Gen 2 drivers can now switch between the Autonomy view, which shows surrounding lanes and vehicles, and the Maps and Navigation view on the driver display. Gen 1 drivers, meanwhile, can switch between the Driver Assistance view, which shows vehicles and objects ahead, and the Maps & Navigation view. Drivers can also switch between screens by pressing the right thumbwheel on the steering wheel. For example, they can switch music on one screen while following navigation instructions on another screen.

Kick Turn and RAD Tuner features are rolling out exclusively to Gen 2 Quad-Motor vehicles. The kickturn function allows the user to steer on tight roads while driving at speeds below 15 mph.

Overall, Rivian’s growing software stack points a path to higher-margin differentiation, allowing the company to compete not only in vehicles, but also in long-term ownership experience.

General engines GM is proud of its autonomous strategy and the development of its next-generation software-defined vehicle platform, OnStar and Super Cruise. The company believes the platform will be transformative and allow each vehicle’s software layer to evolve independently of the hardware-defined physical layer. The vehicles will become smarter, more capable and more personalized over time, which will be beneficial to customers. The platform, on the other hand, will be more stable and last longer.