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Rivian Software Chief Wassym Bensaid Talks VW Deal and RV Tech on Decoder
Rivian’s software chief Wassym Bensaid went on Decoder with Nilay Patel, and it’s the clearest look yet at what the Volkswagen deal actually is.
As co-CEO of the joint venture everyone calls RV Tech, he’s running the operating system and electrical architecture for basically every future EV across Volkswagen Group, from Audi to Scout. So VW didn’t buy into a truck company so much as Rivian’s software brain.
A lot of it circles the culture question, and whether a future Rivian still feels different from a future Audi running the same bones underneath. Good timing too, with R2 about to land as the first car on this architecture.
Worth a watch below.
Headline from the Verge:
Rivian’s software chief thinks you don’t need CarPlay or buttons
Wassym Bensaid on why AI-powered voice control should be the future interface of car software.
I think Rivian is very much on the wrong side of this. CarPlay aside, I have less than no interest in talking to my car’s AI-powered voice control let alone one that works as poorly as Rivian’s newest voice assistant. Give me knobs and buttons.
Ferrari has the best buttons I’ve seen on an EV.
He’s wrong
“Everyone, kids, please be quiet I need to lower the fan speed.”