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Jose Castillo Founder and Editor
Rivian Rivian R2 Rivian R1T Rivian R1S
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Jose Castillo is the founder and editor of RivianTrackr, an independent publication he started to cover Rivian from an owner's point of view. He has followed the company since early in its consumer history and has owned and leased several Rivians over the years, including multiple R1T and R1S vehicles. Today he drives an R1S and an R2 in Florida and uses Universal Hands-Free for his daily driving.

Most of his coverage comes from firsthand access rather than press releases. He was at the R2 First Drive in Park City for hands-on time with the production R2 and RivianOS 2.0, and he reported from SXSW when Rivian revealed the full R2 lineup. He has spoken directly with Rivian leaders like Wassym Bensaid and James Philbin about where the company is taking its software and autonomy work.

Before RivianTrackr, Jose worked at Apple as a software developer, which is part of why he follows Rivian's software and autonomy side as closely as he does. He has also helped more than 400 people order their own Rivians through the site. The whole thing stays independent, written by an owner for other owners.

Rivian Autonomy+ Co-Steer

Rivian Autonomy+ One-Time Payment Is Worth It Before the Price Goes Up

Autonomy+ is easy to dismiss right now. The feature set is light, the big capabilities aren't here yet, and $50 a month is a tough sell for hands-free lane centering. But the $2,500 one-time payment is a different conversation. You're not paying for what Autonomy+ is today. You're locking in at today's price for everything it becomes, point-to-point driving, eyes-off capability, and eventually personal Level 4 autonomy, all tied to your VIN and yours for the life of the truck. Tesla just killed their one-time FSD purchase option entirely and confirmed the $99 monthly price is only going up from here. Rivian is still offering you a way out of that subscription trap. It might not be open forever.

Rivian x Coachella 2026

The Rivian R2 Is Heading to Coachella 2026

Rivian is heading back to Coachella both weekends of the festival, April 10-12 and 17-19, and this time they're bringing the R2 along. If you're going and have been curious about the car, this is a pretty easy way to see it in person before deliveries even start.

ABRP EV Comparison Tool

ABRP Relaunches With Fresh Design and New EV Tools

A Better Route Planner relaunched its website this week with a fresh look and a new EV Comparison tool that lets you stack up to three EVs side by side. Rivian acquired ABRP back in June 2023, and the platform keeps getting better.