EV News Daily - Technology and Business of EVs May 19, 2026

BRIEFLY: Rivian, Used EVs, Green Tech & more | 17 May 2026

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Car

Rivian R2

The Rivian R2 is an all-electric Rivian vehicle meant to be more affordable than their earlier models. Here they’re talking about the performance version and what it’s claimed to deliver for power, range, and acceleration.

Term

0-60

“0-60” measures how fast a car can go from 0 to 60 miles per hour. Lower time usually means quicker acceleration.

Term

AI-powered voice assistant

An AI voice assistant is a system that understands what you say and lets you control the car by voice. Here, it’s used for things like navigation, music, and climate settings.

Term

firmware

Firmware is the built-in software that controls parts of the car. When it gets updated, the car can gain new features without replacing physical parts.

Brand

Amazon's Alexa

Amazon’s Alexa is a cloud-connected voice assistant platform used in many consumer devices and some vehicles. Here, the host says Rivian replaced Alexa with its own AI voice assistant experience for existing R1 owners.

Term

Connect Plus subscription

A “Connect Plus subscription” is a paid service tier that unlocks connected features in the vehicle. In this segment, the host ties it to the voice assistant’s functionality and ongoing service access.

Term

processes voice on device

“Processes voice on device” means the car’s system interprets your speech locally rather than sending everything to a remote cloud server. This can reduce delay (latency) and can improve privacy because less audio data needs to leave the vehicle.

Concept

used EVs led the UK-UKR market for price growth

The host is saying that used electric cars are getting more expensive faster than other fuel types in the UK. They think it’s because energy costs are rising and more people want EVs.

Concept

bi-directional electric vehicles

Normally, an EV only takes power to charge its battery. Bi-directional charging lets the EV also give power back out—so it can help run other equipment when needed.

Term

level one

Level 1 is the slowest way to charge an EV at home, usually using a regular wall outlet. It can be fine for overnight charging, but it takes longer than faster home chargers.

Term

level two

Level 2 is a faster home EV charging setup than using a regular outlet. It usually involves installing a dedicated charger, so you can recharge more quickly.

Term

utility smart charging programs

Utility smart charging programs coordinate EV charging with the electric grid, often to reduce peak demand or shift charging to cheaper/off-peak times. They may involve incentives or controls through the utility or charging provider.

Topic

Disneyland replacing Autopia petrol cars with EVs

They’re talking about Disneyland switching the Autopia ride cars from gas to electric. It’s a big, visible example of EVs showing up in everyday public places.

LIVE

It's EV News briefly for Sunday, 17th of May, everything EV in less than five minutes.

If you haven't got time for the full show, by the way, Patreon supporters, fund this

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Rivian has opened the R2 Configurator for reservation holders with production already

underway in normal Illinois, and some areas seeing delivery windows are short as one

to six weeks.

Only the R2 performance is currently available, though, and that starts at $57,990.

That does offer you, though, 656 horsepower, 330 miles of range, and 0-60 in 3.6 seconds.

The R2 Premium and R2 Standard follow.

Rivian's rolled out its AI-powered voice assistant to existing R1 owners via firmware, replacing

Amazon's Alexa, and activated by saying, hey, Rivian, all through steering wheel controls,

the system can handle nav, HVAC, media playback, and requires a Connect Plus subscription for

now only in English, and it processes voice on device, avoid sending everything to the

cloud.

That's good for privacy, and it's good for latency.

Used EVs led the UK-UKR market for price growth last month in April for the first time this

year, with prices rising 1.1% a month on month, the strongest increase of any fuel type, higher

fuel costs, and rising demand for EVs drove the surge, with used sales up 33% in March

and April combined compared to the first two months of the year.

Research by Eon found that 93% of 1,000 prospective UK home buyers want some sort of green energy

features like solar panels or EV charging in the next property, with 70% now considering

energy technology a non-negotiable, rising energy costs to the main driver for 52% of

respondents, and Eon's own sales reflect the trend with solar and battery sales up 182%

and heat pump sales up 129% since February this year.

Canada's Grizzly Club has now hit 10,000 members doubling its membership in the last

two months run by United Chargers.

It's a no-fee program which uses Canada's clean fuel credits to fund free home charging.

The hardware, there's lifetime guarantees, there's energy cash back as well.

A German research project called BIDI-L, or BIDI-L, which would be bi-directional electric

vehicles, I suppose, BIDI-L, will test how this is amazing.

Parked EVs at a ferry terminal can be energy storage to charge the electric ferries when

they port.

Led by Osnabrok University and ferry operator Norden Frisia, the trial combines solar panels

existing battery storage and the EVs that are parked there.

Then when the sun comes out it recharges the EV so your car has the same or more energy

as you left it before you hopped on the ferry and when it needs to it can pull energy from

your car to power the ferry in the short term.

Hey, gas guzzlers, try that for a party trick.

Don't think you can do that compared to EVs.

Now the JD Power 2026 EVX home charging study found that rising electricity costs and poor

owner education are reducing satisfaction of home charging, particularly with level one

portable satisfaction.

That's not a bad thing though, shouldn't we be moving people towards level two, permanent

install, stuff like that.

Only 12% of those enrolled in utility smart charging programs in the survey, despite 69%

having awareness of such schemes.

And finally, Disneyland will replace the petrol powered cars in the iconic Autopia ride

since 1955, this thing has been running.

And the original car designer of Autopia, Bob Gerb, is now 94, approves of the change,

in fact he now drives an electric Chevy Bolt himself, and that's briefly.

About this episode

Rivian rolls out updates for the R2 lineup and brings an AI-powered voice assistant to existing R1 owners via firmware, replacing Amazon’s Alexa and processing voice on-device. The discussion then shifts to used EV price growth in the UK and how homebuyers are weighing green energy tech. Bi-directional EVs get attention for ferry energy storage and power transfer, alongside smart-charging awareness versus enrollment. The segment also notes Disneyland’s Autopia ride converting from petrol to EVs.

0-60 AI powered voice assistant Amazon's Alexa bi-directional electric vehicles Connect Plus subscription Disneyland replacing Autopia petrol cars with EVs firmware level one level two processes voice on device

Rivian R2

Original notes

It's EV News Briefly for Sunday 17 May 2026, everything you need to know in less than 5 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.

Patreon supporters fund this show, get the episodes ad free, as soon as they're ready and are part of the EV News Daily Community. You can be like them by clicking here: https://www.patreon.com/EVNewsDaily

RIVIAN OPENS R2 CONFIGURATOR EARLY
Rivian has opened the R2 configurator for reservation holders, with production already underway in Normal, Illinois and some areas seeing delivery windows as short as 1–6 weeks. Only the R2 Performance is currently available at $57,990, offering 656 hp, 330 miles of range, and a 3.6-second 0–60 time, with the R2 Premium and R2 Standard following later in 2026 and 2027 respectively.
RIVIAN ASSISTANT REACHES R1 OWNERS
Rivian has rolled out its AI-powered voice assistant to existing R1T and R1S owners via firmware update 2026.15, replacing Amazon Alexa and activated by saying "Hey, Rivian" or through steering-wheel controls. The system handles navigation, HVAC, and media playback, requires a Connect+ subscription, works only in English, and processes voice recognition on-device to reduce latency.
USED EV PRICES LEAD UK MARKET
Used EVs led the UK used car market for price growth in April 2026 for the first time this year, with prices rising 1.1% month on month — the strongest increase of any fuel type. Higher fuel costs and rising demand for alternative-fuel vehicles drove the surge, with used EV sales volumes up 33% in March and April combined compared to January and February.
GREEN TECH NOW SHAPES HOME BUYING
Research by E.On Next found that 93% of 1,000 prospective UK homebuyers want green energy features such as solar panels and EV charging in their next property, with 70% now considering energy technology non-negotiable. Rising energy costs are the main driver for 52% of respondents, and E.On Next's own sales reflect the trend, with solar and battery sales up 182% and heat pump sales up 129% since February 2026.
GRIZZL-E CLUB HITS 10,000 MEMBERS
Canada's Grizzl-E Club reached 10,000 members on May 14, 2026, doubling its membership in roughly two months since passing 5,000 in March. Run by United Chargers, the no-fee programme uses Clean Fuel Credits to fund free home charging hardware, lifetime warranties, and energy cashback, with members having received CA$300,000 in rewards to date.
GERMAN TRIAL TURNS PARKED EVS INTO FERRY BATTERIES
A German research project called BIDI-EL will test using parked EVs at a North Sea ferry terminal as temporary energy storage to help charge electric ferries when they return to port. Led by Osnabrück University and ferry operator Norden-Frisia, the €164,894-funded trial combines solar panels, existing fixed battery storage, and EV batteries to maximise renewable energy use, running until January 2027.
RISING POWER BILLS HIT EV CHARGING SATISFACTION
The J.D. Power 2026 U.S. EVX Home Charging Study found that rising electricity costs and poor owner education are reducing EV satisfaction, with Level 1 portable charger satisfaction dropping 12 points year-over-year to 569 out of 1,000. Only 12% of owners have enrolled in utility smart charging programmes despite 69% awareness, and just 20% of buyers received home charging guidance from their dealer.
DISNEYLAND AUTOPIA GOES ELECTRIC IN 2027
Disneyland will replace the petrol-powered cars on its iconic Autopia ride with electric vehicles in 2027 as part of Disney's goal to reach net-zero emissions by 2030, following a $56,000 settlement with the California Air Resources Board over emissions violations. Original Autopia car designer Bob Gurr, now 94, confirmed the new electric cars will keep the same dimensions and track layout, with upgraded lighting and sound effects added.

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