Episode 354 | Autonomy Markets: Rivian’s Vertical Integration Bet, Wayve’s Nissan Win & Uber’s Autonomy Narrative

This Week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Rivian’s bold vertical integration bet as the EV maker announced plans to build their own chips and lidar sensors, effectively moving away from NVIDIA.Is the introduction of “Autonomy+”, a new software subscription priced to undercut competitors a risky distraction or a necessary move as the company works toward profitability? As Rivian looks inward, Wayve signed a major win, signing a definitive agreement to scale with Nissan in North America and Japan beginning in 2027.Then there is Uber. Who does Uber want to be when autonomy grows up, and who will their partners ultimately be and what those relationships will look like in the long term? Currently, Uber’s autonomy narrative faces challenges, as the company appears to be playing defense while getting front-run by partners Waymo in the U.S. and Momenta in Abu Dhabi. Closing out the show, Grayson and Walt discuss the growing world of international autonomy on the weekly Foreign Autonomy Desk segment, covering updates from Bolt, Stellantis, and Caterpillar.Episode Chapters0:00 Rivian’s Autonomy Ambitions 13:11 Licensing Autonomous Driving Stacks17:29 Wayve’s Approach to Autonomy 21:07 Tesla’s Safety Attendant Out in Austin Plans23:35 Waymo’s Blitz Scaling 27:37 Waymo’s Growing OOH Ad Business 32:32 Uber’s Autonomy Narrative 37:57 Serve Robotics 2,000 Robot Delivery Milestone39:30 Tensor Auto / Zero Partnership 42:13 Aurora’s Permian Basin Expansion 44:47 Foreign Autonomy Desk 52:16 Next Week Recorded on Friday, December 12, 2025--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.