Autonomous vehicle company Locomation announced it entered into a new strategic partnership agreement with Chicago-based professional services firm Aon to develop a risk management plan for autonomous trucking.
According to Locomation, the completed plan will allow the Pittsburgh-based AV company to then work with insurance carriers to assess risks in autonomous technology and to better align with insurance industry best practices.
“We are confident that Aon’s experience will enhance Locomation’s corporate development and strategic plan and will also highlight the benefits of our approach to the insurance community, trucking companies, shippers, and truck drivers themselves,” said Cetin Mericli, CEO and co-founder of Locomation, in a press release.
Locomation also hopes that having such a plan will reduce its customers' operating costs via lower insurance rates for carriers, shippers, truck manufacturers and others using its autonomous truck technology.
“We’re pleased to work with Locomation to learn how this technology functions in the real world and what it means for safety and insurance coverage,” said Michael Stankard, managing director for Aon’s automotive practice, in a press release. “Autonomy is going to be part of the future of the trucking industry, and human-guided convoys have the potential to reduce risk and open new opportunities for the entire industry.”
Locomotion employs around 70 workers out of its 40,000-square-foot Lawrenceville headquarters in Robotics Row, which it moved into at the end of July 2021. Founded three years ago, the company now touts having raised $50 million in funding from investors to date.
