Self-driving trucks just shifted into high gear. Two leaders in autonomous tech, Continental and Aurora, unveiled plans to start mass-producing driverless big rigs within the next few years.
The companies announced they’ve finalized the design for an autonomous trucking system they aim to start churning out in 2027. This is a huge milestone in their partnership to make self-driving semis a scalable reality.
The system centers around Aurora’s self-driving platform, called the Aurora Driver. It’s like the brains of the robot truck. Continental, experts in automotive manufacturing, will ensure the tech can be built reliably at scale.
The Aurora Driver will be engineered for 1 million miles of service in the real world. Redundant systems will act as a backup if anything fails. Extensive testing starting in 2024 will put the trucks through their paces in all conditions.
Continental said teaming up with Aurora positions them uniquely to mass produce the self-driving hardware. For Aurora, finalizing the design gets them one step closer to commercially viable robot trucks.
The goal is to get driverless rigs hauling freight in the late 2020s. Thousands could be integrated on US roads, transforming goods transport. But they emphasize the tech will only roll out when proven safe.
For now, test trucks with safety drivers will start driverless operations by end of 2024. Then in 2027, full commercial production begins.
It’s an exciting milestone in the drive towards automated trucking. The companies are on the road map to make self-driving semis a scalable reality, not just a prototype. Of course, there are still roadblocks to navigate. But the Aurora Driver could steer the industry into a driverless future sooner than we think.
