You may have seen this story making the rounds: Tesla drivers in China are buying $30 plastic doll heads and mounting them near the cabin camera to fool the driver monitoring system. One guy reportedly drove 30 minutes on the highway — one hand in a bag of sunflower seeds, the other holding a phone — while a fake Dwayne Johnson head convinced the car everything was fine. It's a funny image. It's also a perfect example of what happens when technology outpaces the policies meant to govern it — and in commercial fleets, that gap is wider than most operators realize.

Fleet operators seeking to electrify their operations with a reliable, purpose-built vehicle now have a compelling new option: the Rivian Commercial Van (RCV). With Amazon exclusivity officially ending in November 2023, Rivian has opened orders to the public, bringing its innovative electric commercial van to fleets of all sizes starting February 2025, with deliveries beginning this month.