Thoughts on Software Defined Vehicle (SDV) – A Forever Fresh Idea?
One of the key benefits of software-defined vehicles (SDVs) is over-the-air (OTA) updates, i.e., the ability to upgrade existing features or add new functions. The proponents rightfully promote SDVs as vehicles that keep getting better and remain fresh long after the initial purchase. Rivian’s latest software update, dubbed RivianOS 2, is a case in point. The update, initially developed for the new R2 SUV, enables a refreshed infotainment system with new features and a redesigned interface. The company is now making the same available to owners of the existing R1S SUV and R1T pickup, without having to wait for the next generation of R1 vehicles.
However, it is important to remember that an SDV is not a ‘forever fresh’ vehicle. Any OTA update is limited by its compute capacity and, despite the hype, is unlikely to continue beyond a handful of years. Tesla, for instance, could not enable its enhanced FSD (designed for HW4 or 4th-generation hardware) in vehicles with 3rd-generation hardware or HW 3, despite its promise to previous customers. In Rivian’s case too, the R1 owners, with older hardware, will miss some bells and whistles that can only be processed by the new superfast chip in the R2 system.
The Traditional OEMs Vs. New NEVs
The traditional or legacy OEMs are, however, slow in this game of softwarization of their portfolio and rapid OTS updates to the fleet. Rvian CEO RJ Scaringe, in an interview at ACT Expo earlier in the year, identified Tesla as the only other peer in the rarefied sphere of true software-defined vehicles.
His comment summarized the slow progress of legacy OEMS. “𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥, 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘙𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘛𝘦𝘴𝘭𝘢, 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘰𝘧𝘵𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴”……
In a videocast that I participated in on the sidelines of CES2026, Las Vegas, in January 2026 along with Wipro Engineering and SDVerse, we discussed the difficulties of transition of the mainstream OEMs (outside of Rivian & Tesla), their slow pace of softwarization (with the legacy of hundreds of ECUs, as cited by RJ), the challenges, and our thoughts to accelerate the pace of softwarization. See the video to get a sense of our full discussion –