Rivian Banks on Lidar, While Tesla Pretends Lasers Are Just a Crutch
KEY POINTS
- •Rivian’s VP of autonomy, James Philbin, explained lidar prices have dramatically decreased over the past decade.
- •The R2 SUV will launch without lidar in early 2026 priced around $45,000, with a lidar-equipped version arriving later that year.
- •Rivian diverges from Tesla’s camera-only approach and plans to develop an in-house chip for fully autonomous driving.
Rivian’s autonomy overlord, James Philbin—formerly riding shotgun with Waymo and Zoox—declared that sticking lidar in their upcoming R2 SUV is a 'no-brainer,' now that the once 'your-kidney-would-be-cheaper' sensor dropped from five figures in the 2000s to a ‘few hundred bucks.’ Set for an R2 debut in early 2026 staring at $45,000, Rivian plans a lidar-luxe edition by late 2026 to flex fully autonomous street cred. Meanwhile, Tesla’s Elon Musk still calls lidar a pricey ‘crutch,’ probably while confidently ignoring lasers like that weird uncle at a tech family reunion. Meanwhile, Rivian’s self-driving chip is cooking in-house, because apparently outsourcing isn’t as cool for laser-powered cars.
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Rivian's betting on pricey laser sensors while Tesla insists cameras only, because why have extra eyes when you can just wing it?
The R2 will soon come with lidar because apparently a $45K car can now afford something other than hope and Tesla’s blind optimism.
Elon Musk calls lidar a crutch, but Rivian’s using it to train AI while Tesla's AI is still figuring out turn signals.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 12/14/2025 | Author: Lloyd Lee
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