Self-driving industry veteran, Kodiak Robotics, has landed in Texas as one of the first self-driving trucking companies operating in the Lonestar state. Kodiak’s Kenworth trucks now make commercial deliveries, traveling the Dallas-to-Houston (and back) route along Interstate 45.
Why Dallas?
Dallas’ key role in the state’s freight economy makes it a prime location. The 276-mile stretch of Interstate 45 that connects Dallas to Houston and Galveston is the most heavily traveled freight corridor in the state, accounting for nearly half of all statewide truck shipping, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.
More than 85,000 vehicles travel I-45 each day in Dallas County. Closer to Houston, the count jumps to 245,000.
“As hard as it is to navigate city streets, autonomous vehicles are much closer to being able to drive on more structured interstate highways, which have no jaywalking pedestrians, no aggressive cyclists, and no runaway pets,” Kodiak said in a blog post announcing the news about self-driving trucks in Dallas.
Kodiak has partnered with a handful of companies to ship freight between the two cities, and the company is planning future routes in the state. It won’t reveal specific companies, but the company said the total number is under five.
Kodiak’s workforce increased to nearly 60 people after it raised $40 million in venture capital funding last year. Its expansion in North Texas includes a new eight-person office south of Dallas in Lancaster.
Kodiak’s Business Footprint
Don Burnette (CEO and co-founder of Kodiak Robotics) was involved with Google’s self-driving car program as well as Otto, which was acquired by Uber.
When Uber shifted away from self-driving trucks last year, Burnette saw an opportunity. He helped create Kodiak Robotics in 2018, with the hope that driverless trucks could serve commercial clients.
Along with Paz Ushel, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist, Kodiak is attempting to commercialize the self-driving truck amid a fierce battle for early leadership among other startups, such as Otto, Embark and TuSimple, and even legacy players, such as Daimler. Kodiak is equipping Kenworth models with aftermarket hardware and software.
Thomas Bamonte, senior program manager for automated vehicles at the North Central Texas Council of Governments, noted that autonomous vehicles will play a vital role in transportation management for growing regions, such as Dallas-Fort Worth.
“As a region adding more than 1 million new residents each decade, it is important to develop a comprehensive strategy for the safe and reliable movement of people and goods,” Bamonte said. “Our policy officials on the Regional Transportation Council have been very forward-thinking in their recognition of technology as part of the answer, which is positioning our region as a leader in the automated vehicle industry.”
As with other autonomous systems, a safety driver is always behind the wheel, and the vehicle only operates in autonomous mode during the “middle mile” on highway routes, the company stated.
It’s Not the End for Truck Drivers
In late June, CFF reported that Starsky Robotics, a trucking company that supports and enables autonomous trucks, has launched a new campaign titled, “The future of driverless trucking is not driverless.”
Read the Starsky Robotics story “The Era Of Truckers Is Gone. Think Again.”
Chief executive and co-founder, Stefan Seltz-Axmacher said, “We are not eliminating drivers’ jobs. Instead, we are removing them from a truck to a safe and comfortable office where they utilize years of their long-haul trucking experience, but drivers remain close to their families and go home between shifts.”
Starsky’s trucks will handle the highway driving all on their own. When the driver grabs the wheel to negotiate the complex surface streets, they won’t climb into the cab to do it. They’ll work in buildings that look like call centers, monitoring 10 to 30 vehicles per hour via video links and using a videogame-controller-like wheel to take control as needed.
Starsky plans to use the most qualified drivers to tele-operate their trucks for the first and last mile of the route. As the freight deliveries ramp up, remote drivers will monitor 10 to 30 trucks per hour.
The remote video cab is comprised of three monitors displaying six real-time camera feeds from the exterior of the truck. A video-game-like steering wheel allows for real-time control.
Self-Driving Trucks Expansion
Self-driving truck companies are a new trend in Texas. The USPS started using TuSimple, a startup valued at $1 billion, to deliver mail between Phoenix and Dallas in May. San Francisco-based Embark started shipping refrigerators from El Paso to Palm Springs, Calif., in October 2018.
Kodiak’s self-driving trucks are poised to revolutionize the freight industry as its technology will make highways safer while reducing the cost of carrying freight and, for longer routes, the time it takes to move goods. Kodiak’s expansion will further Texas’ leadership in logistics and transportation.
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