Today, Aurora Innovation, Inc. and U.S. Xpress Enterprises Inc., one of the largest asset-based truckload carriers in the U.S., announced a collaboration to explore the deployment of the Aurora Driver within U.S. Xpress operations. This strategic collaboration is designed to fine-tune Aurora’s autonomous Driver-as-a-Service product, Aurora Horizon, for efficient deployment at commercial scale.
Aurora plans to leverage the intelligence of Variant, U.S. Xpress’s digitally enabled fleet, to identify where autonomous technology can have the greatest impact. The companies plan to identify optimal deployment strategies of Aurora Driver-powered trucks so they’re strategically positioned to address unmet demand and improve operational efficiency and productivity. Aurora and U.S. Xpress also will explore application programming interface (API) integrations into Variant’s platform to enhance dispatching and dynamic routing upon the launch of Aurora Horizon.
Through this collaboration, the companies plan to build a future where goods are transported by both human drivers and autonomous trucks. Aurora and U.S. Xpress have committed to exploring how autonomous technology can create a positive impact on the labor market by investing in programs that provide opportunities for new jobs.
“The future of trucking will involve innovative technology that Aurora is developing, which is why we’re collaborating now to assure we’re first to market with autonomous trucks,” said Eric Fuller, President and CEO of U.S. Xpress. “Professional truck drivers will always have a place with our company, while autonomous trucks will supplement and help provide much-needed capacity to the supply chain.”
“Aurora carefully designs its industry collaborations to enhance the value and maximize the impact our product can deliver for our partners’ businesses,” said Sterling Anderson, Aurora’s Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer. “U.S. Xpress not only shares our commitment to safety, efficiency, and realizing the benefits of technology for good, but has leaned into it in a big way. We’re excited to partner with them to deliver the benefits of this transformative technology for their business, their people, and the people they serve.”
SOURCE: Aurora
