Part 9/17:
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe recently claimed that their autonomous driving approach, integrating multiple modalities—radar, lidar, and cameras—would enable faster and more effective training for their self-driving suite. Rivian’s plan involves deploying lidar with a range of 900 ft (around 300 meters) to supplement camera data, aiming to improve obstacle detection and environmental understanding.
Elon Musk responded with skepticism, highlighting that lidar companies like Luminar have filed for bankruptcy amidst a crowded and challenging market. Musk’s tone suggests confidence that Tesla’s vision-based, sensor-agnostic approach will ultimately prevail over lidar-dependent systems.