Self-driving truck company Aurora Innovation Inc. has solidified a long-term partnership with Uber Freight through 2030.
By the end of the year, Strip District-based Aurora expects Uber Freight will be one of its first customers to utilize its technology without a driver behind the wheel of the vehicle. Currently, the company tests its vehicles in Texas with a human behind the wheel to intervene in the event of an emergency. The first route to feature completely driverless trucks is expected to be between Dallas and Houston.
"Uber Freight and Aurora see a tremendous opportunity to democratize autonomous trucks for carriers of all sizes, enabling them to drive more revenue, scale their fleets and strengthen their bottom lines," Uber Freight CEO Lior Ron said in a prepared statement. "We're proud to work alongside the amazing team at Aurora to bring this technology into the hands of carriers and ultimately usher in a new era of logistics."
Aurora and Uber have a lengthy history together. In 2020, Aurora announced it would acquire the Uber Advanced Technologies Group, a joint self-driving vehicle unit co-owned by Toyota, Denso and SoftBank. That same year Aurora hauled its first trailer, a Takis chip truck for Barcel, an Uber Freight customer. This led to the two companies launching a pilot program together, hauling millions of pounds of cargo over the past four years, with 11 million pounds of cargo hauled in 2023.
Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed, but a spokesperson for Aurora said that it would grant Uber Freight the "opportunity to access over one billion driverless miles through 2030."
These disclosed terms provide another glimpse into the long-term plans of Pittsburgh's biggest autonomous vehicle company. The company has provided a vague outline to shareholders of potential expansion, notably potential plans to expand across the Sun Belt in 2026.
"It's exciting and validating that companies like Uber Freight are reserving our long-term capacity for their customers," Aurora President Ossa Fisher said in a prepared statement.
But Aurora's long-term deployment faces some hurdles. Public opinion on self-driving vehicles skews negative, with a poll conducted this year by AAA finding that 66% of Americans are "afraid" of self-driving vehicles. Other autonomous vehicle companies are currently under investigation by the federal government. Aurora CEO Chris Urmson recently wrote about how Aurora's approach to artificial intelligence differs from others in the sector.
Aurora is not Uber's only autonomy partner in the Pittsburgh area. Uber previously selected Boston-based Motional to provide autonomous taxi services, which were recently paused. Motional continues to test vehicles in the Pittsburgh area.
