Aurora, U.S. Xpress Collaborate on Autonomous Trucking

February 14, 2022

Pittsburgh-based Aurora Innovation and U.S. Xpress Enterprises have announced a collaboration to deploy the Aurora Driver system with U.S. Xpress operations. The collaboration is designed to fine-tune Aurora’s autonomous driver-as-a-service product, Aurora Horizon, for efficient deployment at commercial scale.

Aurora said it 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 two companies said they plan to identify optimal deployment strategies for Aurora Driver-powered trucks so they can be strategically positioned to address unmet demand. The companies will also develop application programming interface (API) integrations into Variant’s platform to enhance dispatching and dynamic routing upon the launch of Aurora Horizon.

“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 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, the co-founder and chief product officer at Aurora. “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.”

For more details on Aurora’s Horizon offering, visit its website here.