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Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

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491–500 of 670 posts

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#491
post #413

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Auto insurers don't face a "catastrophic liability" bankrupting scenario like home insurers might in the case of a natural disaster or fire. This changes with self-driving. Push a buggy update and potentially all the same model cars could crash on the same day. This is not a threat model regular car insurers need to deal with since it'll never happen that all of their customers decide to drive drunk the same day, b…

Far be it from me to tell automakers how to roll out software but I would expect them to have relatively slow and gradual rollouts, segmented by region and environment (e.g., Phoenix might be first while downtown London might be last).

Tesla certainly does it this way today. This is also the norm for IoT that I'm aware of. Nobody wants fleet-wide flag days anyway.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#492
post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your eyes will be fine (assuming that we are talking about automotive LiDAR specifically). Automotive LiDAR is designed to meet Class-1 laser eye-safety standard, which means "safe under normal conditions." It isn't some subjective/marketing thing, it is an official laser safety classification that is very regulated. However, if you try to break that "normal conditions" rule by pressing your eyeball directly against…

I looked this up for a laser-based projector, Class 2 is "blink reflex should protect you" and "don't be a doofus and stare into it for a long time". Look up the classifications on the google and you'll see other things like "don't look into the rays with a set of binoculars" and stuff. Class 1 is pretty darned safe, but if you're continually bathed by 50 passing cars an hour while walking on a sidewalk... pitch it t…

I have a Class 1 Makita (green) laser level, wide strong beam, excellent tool for landscaping. I accidentally looked into it from a 10 cm distance. It did not leave permanent damage, but for a few days I had the dot burned on my retina. And yes, I almost immediately closed my eye - within a few hundred ms's.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#493

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Auto insurers don't face a "catastrophic liability" bankrupting scenario like home insurers might in the case of a natural disaster or fire.

A bad hail storm comes close. Hail damage can total a car.

This is why insurance companies pay cloud seeders to move thunderstorms and reduce the probability of massive hail claims.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#494
Any company adding fancy hardware (beyond good cameras and inference chips) to achieve self driving is on the wrong track at this point. Software is what will win this game.

Of course, Waymo has achieved good results with A LOT of fancy hardware. But it's hard to see how they stand a chance against Cybercab mass production (probably behind schedule, but eventually).

I think Rivian has the best-looking line of EVs out there. Maybe they will be able to come from behind in self-driving tech. But this big reveal is not that promising, IMO.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#495
post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

CarPlay and affordability. I was totally smitten last year with the R1S during a test drive. I'm not a car person but felt that spark people must feel when they obsess over their vehicles. But it wasn't pushing-six-figures smitten, which is where you're at when you get a new one with customizations.

>afforadbility This 1000%. Electric cars are supposed to be simple. Give me something in a shape of a Civic, with the engine replaced with a motor and a battery good for 150 miles, and sell it for $10-12k new. Don't even need an entertainment cluster, give me a place to put a tablet or a phone and just have a bluetooth speaker. Instead, we are getting these boutique, expensive vehicles packed full of tech, but in the…

Sounds like you want a Nissan Leaf? They exist.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#496
post #285
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which honestly is crazy to me. I have a Rivian, and to say the software is disappointing would be an understatement. There are heisenbugs galore; some examples: * Doors refuse to open * Lose the ability to control media playback using any controls * Any button in the UI just opens and closes the windows Granted, I'm a server side/backend engineer mostly, and I don't know much about writing software/firmware for a ver…

I own a Rivian too, and previously owned a Tesla. While I too have my gripes about the UX on the Rivian, it still beats the cr*p out of a Tesla.

Just curious in what ways, since you've actually owned both. I've only had Teslas, but I like the looks of Rivians.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#497
post #477

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd rather the other cars around me are attentive, polite and robotic. It's better than people looking at their phones.

Maybe if the tech gets better, but right now these systems do not handle unusual or unexpected events well and are basically just a glorified cruise control, yet are marketed as autonomy and encourage people to stop paying attention.

I mean Waymo et al.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#498
post #363

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's ethnic food?

If you're in America, it's Italian/Greek/Chinese/Vietnamese/Thai/Japanese/Ethiopian/Moroccan/Brazilian/Indian food. Etc.

So basically any non-diner non-fastfood.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#499

Any company adding fancy hardware (beyond good cameras and inference chips) to achieve self driving is on the wrong track at this point. Software is what will win this game. Of course, Waymo has achieved good results with A LOT of fancy hardware. But it's hard to see how they stand a chance against Cybercab mass production (probably behind schedule, but eventually). I think Rivian has the best-looking line of EVs out…

An alternate take here:

The "fancy" hardware is going to get dirt cheap, and in a game where you're asking your customer to trust you with their lives, reliability is going to win. Combine that with time to market, and Tesla feels like a pretty clear "risky bet" at best... Maybe they make it work, but they have to do it before the other companies make lidar cheap, and prices have fallen dramatically over the past 10 years, for much better hardware.

Re: Rivian Unveils Custom Silicon, R2 Lidar Roadmap, and Universal Hands Free

#500
post #413

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Auto insurers don't face a "catastrophic liability" bankrupting scenario like home insurers might in the case of a natural disaster or fire. This changes with self-driving. Push a buggy update and potentially all the same model cars could crash on the same day. This is not a threat model regular car insurers need to deal with since it'll never happen that all of their customers decide to drive drunk the same day, b…

Far be it from me to tell automakers how to roll out software but I would expect them to have relatively slow and gradual rollouts, segmented by region and environment (e.g., Phoenix might be first while downtown London might be last).

That process itself could still break. (Unlikely though it may be)
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