Rivian has announced an "Autonomy Early Access Program" for its point-to-point driving feature, available only to invited US owners of R1 Gen 2 and R2 vehicles who pay for Autonomy+. The company says the feature will launch to this group in late 2026, with broader expansion not expected until 2027.
Eligibility is stricter than a typical beta. Invitations go to owners with an active paid subscription (trials excluded), heavy use of Autonomy features, and a clean recent safety record. Rivian rechecks eligibility every 30 days and can revoke access. Participants must sign an NDA, use the preview features weekly, log issues, complete monthly surveys, and enable data collection including location and camera data. They are not paid.
The timeline has slipped from earlier promises. In January 2025, CEO RJ Scaringe said an "eyes-free" system would launch in 2026; now eyes-off driving is targeted for 2027, and the hands-off point-to-point feature arrives late 2026 only as a limited beta. Rivian also plans third-generation autonomy hardware with its in-house RAP1 chip by year's end, but the early access program runs on existing vehicles.