Rivian Automotive and AT&T have signed an agreement through which the telecoms company will purchase the OEM’s EVs for its fleet.
Enabled through a pilot program aimed at reducing carbon emissions, AT&T will look to add the Rivian Commercial Van and R1 vehicles to its fleet in early 2024. After this time, the company will begin evaluating how Rivian’s vehicles will help it improve safety, reduce costs and cut its carbon footprint as it works towards it commitment to be carbon neutral by 2035. More broadly, AT&T’s strategy to achieve carbon neutrality includes optimizing routes, switching to hybrid and EVs and reducing the overall size of the fleet. AT&T is also deploying AI to make its fleet more efficient.
Through the partnership, AT&T will likewise become the exclusive provider of connectivity to all Rivian EVs in the U.S. and Canada, offering the automaker’s customers a safer, more intelligent, and more connected driving experience. Rivian leverages AT&T’s connectivity technology to enable its OTA update capability, which allows its vehicles to consistently be enhanced with new features that work to enhance the overall vehicle experiences.
The Rivian Commercial Van at the center of the partnership has been designed to prioritize safety, sustainability, and cost. In terms of safety, its key features include automatic emergency braking, collision warnings and 360-degree visibility. The vehicles run Rivian’s in-house software stack which, itself, underpins the fleet management system – improving efficiency and lowering the cost of ownership.