As essential as issues like touchscreens and software program are to the fashionable automotive expertise, we seldom cease to ask why the whole lot appears so ugly.
Your common automobile’s touchscreen and menus probably have all of the performance of a Palm Pre, with the aesthetic enchantment and creative worth of a Fort Price outlet mall. Their menus and controls usually really feel haphazardly designed and look totally forgettable. That is true even after greater than a decade of in-car display screen dominance and a future we’re continually informed is centered round over-the-air updates and smartphone-like tech options.
So when Rivian got down to utterly overhaul its in-car software program expertise, its designers declared that issues don’t must be this manner.
The electrical startup’s newest infotainment setup options cel-shaded depictions of its vehicles and SUVs, offset by animated depictions of various landscapes, vivid colours, velocity strains such as you’d discover in a Japanese manga comedian and tons of “Easter eggs” within the backgrounds. New updates even give the software program “costumes” impressed by basic TV reveals and films like Again to the Future and Knight Rider.
After I requested Rivian’s Chief Design Officer Jeff Hammoud why his staff went this route, one phrase got here up time and again: “Optimism.”
“We felt it was a chance to have somewhat little bit of enjoyable and create a persona across the automobile,” Hammoud mentioned in a latest interview. Greater than that, he mentioned, the brand new software program interfaces replicate a philosophy inside Rivian. “We wish all of it to look inviting,” Hammoud mentioned. “Our autos have a pleasant look and that’s a part of our model… that optimism round what we’re attempting to do by means of electrification and defending the world for our youngsters.”
Picture by: InsideEVs
2025 Rivian R1S and R1T Graphics
Rivian’s new interface language went stay this summer season on the closely up to date 2025 R1S and R1T fashions and by way of software program updates to earlier automobiles. They provide house owners an animated illustration of their car that spins and transforms as they alter issues like trip peak settings and the varied driving modes.
On one other automobile, switching to sport mode may imply a brand new set of gauges on the central show or shifting the menus to a pink colour scheme. However on an R1S or R1T, a cartoon depiction of the automobile zooms onto what appears like a race observe as its glowing taillights fade right into a red-and-white background. As a substitute of pop-ups to substantiate you’re in “Snow Mode” or some off-road setting, Rivian gives a shift to an enthralling winter panorama or the car perched atop a rocky mountain. Clouds, windmills and birds transfer about within the backgrounds and all of those visuals tackle a distinct character at night time as nicely.
Picture by: InsideEVs
2025 Rivian R1S and R1T Graphics
None of that is important for a automobile to perform correctly, after all, and it’s extremely unlikely that these animated graphics shall be a make-or-break promoting level. However they add a ton of one thing intangible—character—to Rivian’s automobiles, and so they flip one thing that was once an afterthought at greatest into one thing you really stay up for utilizing. And Hammoud mentioned {that a} ton of effort went into devising how this ecosystem ought to feel and look.
“We used this concept of manga-style [or] Studio Ghibli movies, these actually optimistic films the place you’re feeling such as you’re in one other world, and actually taking that into a mode the place we may create the completely different worlds of the drive modes,” Hammoud mentioned. He’s after all referring to the famed Japanese animated classics from Hayao Miyazaki and different creators like Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Supply Service and, most not too long ago, The Boy and the Heron. All of these are landmark animated movies launched to worldwide acclaim. However Hammoud mentioned additionally they share the overall vibe Rivian goes for as of late.
Picture by: InsideEVs
2025 Rivian R1S and R1T Graphics
“You have a look at one thing like Akira, versus Studio Ghibli,” he mentioned, referring to the Nineteen Eighties comedian and landmark animated movie a couple of dystopian future. The latter is “somewhat bit extra optimistic and on the pleasant facet of that. We wish to talk energy and dynamism with the car, however we nonetheless wished to have this type of, ‘sitting down Sunday morning watching cartoons together with your children’ vibe with it as nicely.”
That stands in stark distinction with one other eye-catching electrical car designed that has a distinctly apocalyptic power: laborious angles, allegedly bulletproof stainless-steel, a “Bioweapon Protection Mode.” Whereas Hammoud didn’t point out it by title, he made clear that he, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe and their design groups didn’t share the identical philosophy.
Picture by: InsideEVs
2025 Rivian R1S and R1T Graphics
“Once you have a look at vehicles, their faces are very aggressive, very indignant, just like the entrance ends may eat young children,” Hammoud mentioned. “Purposely, we’re like, ‘All proper, nicely, we do not want a giant grill.’ We wish it to look inviting. Have a look at our headlight shapes. Our autos have a pleasant look.”
A lot of this was afforded by the ability of the Unreal Engine, a 3D graphics software program system made well-known in video video games that’s now making its method to the automotive world. This allowed Rivian’s artists and designers to “scale” all these new photographs simply with out having to attract every one individually.
“It was actually necessary to us that no matter automobile you may have, it’s the fitting set of wheels and it is the fitting colour [on the screen], in order that means we’re is definitely consultant of your car,” Hammoud mentioned. “If we needed to create, which is what we did up to now, a picture for each single [Rivian color or option], that’s 1000’s and 1000’s of photographs.”
With the Unreal Engine, Hammoud mentioned, “You place within the specs of the car, like if it is a Forest Inexperienced automobile with 22s, you simply put that into the code, and growth, it is rendered and it updates.”
Picture by: InsideEVs
2025 Rivian R1S and R1T Graphics
Rivian isn’t alone in attempting so as to add a extra distinctive look and character to its software program expertise in addition to its exterior designs. Mini not too long ago added a cartoon canine to its infotainment methods as an AI-powered digital assistant, and a number of other Chinese language automakers are taking related approaches. And as with these automobiles, Rivian’s strategy goes past mere visuals; these capabilities signify new methods for drivers to work together with their automobiles and management their options within the software-driven car period.
So does it work? Primarily based on a latest check of a 2025 Rivian R1S, I feel the reply is usually sure. It’s pretty straightforward to seek out the capabilities you need and the massive, vivid shows signify novel methods of presenting data to the driving force. That’s essential since Rivian famously—or maybe infamously—eschews most bodily buttons and Apple CarPlay in its EVs. It additionally goals to do extra with voice controls, though it has a methods to go there to match many opponents.
However this strategy to software program does present what Rivian’s product of, and why a conventional conglomerate just like the Volkswagen Group sees such worth in what the corporate does. That 2025 R1S bought higher whereas I had it, receiving an over-the-air software program replace that improved the power and effectivity gauges (and put them consistent with the remainder of the automobile’s new creative language) whereas correcting some points with the stereo and including the Halloween-themed visuals.
And till Rivian can get the upcoming R2, R3 and R3X fashions on the highway, it’s bought extra in retailer for its present automobiles each by means of software program updates and extra tweaks—although Hammoud was cagey about what precisely is coming subsequent.
“We’ve some new updates which are coming subsequent yr on R1 that I am excited to share, some particular editions,” Hammoud mentioned. “I am going to go away it at that.”
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