Waymo has revealed its decision to concentrate its resources on advancing autonomous ride-hailing technologies, delaying the development of its trucking platform.
The company, a subsidiary of Google’s parent company Alphabet, has been collaborating with Daimler Truck North America (DTNA) on the development of the Waymo Via autonomous trucking platform.
In an update, Waymo stated, “Considering the remarkable momentum and significant commercial potential we observe in the ride-hailing sector, we have decided to prioritize our efforts and investments in this area.”
Consequently, they plan to delay the timeline for commercial and operational endeavors in trucking, along with most of the technical developments in that business unit.
“We will maintain our collaboration with our strategic partner, Daimler Truck North America (DTNA), to further enhance the technical development of an autonomous truck platform.
Both companies share a common goal of enhancing road safety and efficiency for fleet customers.
Therefore, we will continue with the investments made to develop a redundant chassis, which will facilitate the implementation of autonomous trucking.
Our commitment to advancing Waymo Driver capabilities, particularly on freeways, will directly contribute to the progress in trucking and support its development endeavors.
Additionally, we eagerly anticipate the continued integration of our autonomous technology with DTNA’s autonomous-ready Freightliner Cascadia platform and exploring the potential of future platforms.”
Despite the shift in focus, the company asserted that it still perceives commercial opportunities for autonomous trucking.
The update highlighted, “We firmly believe in a substantial future commercial opportunity for our trucking solution, as well as other commercial applications of the Waymo Driver.
By prioritizing ride-hailing today, we ensure a robust position for success in the future, encompassing all the business lines we pursue over time, showcasing the extensive capabilities of the Waymo Driver.”
By focusing its efforts and investments on ride-hailing, Waymo decided to delay the timeline for its commercial and operational efforts in trucking, as well as most of the technical development related to the trucking business unit.
This shift in focus allowed the company to concentrate its resources on the area where it saw substantial opportunities for growth and impact.
However, despite the prioritization of ride-hailing, Waymo emphasized that it would continue collaborating with its strategic partner, Daimler Truck North America (DTNA), to advance the technical development of an autonomous truck platform.
Waymo believed that there remained a significant commercial opportunity for their trucking solution alongside other applications of the Waymo Driver technology.
Source : trucknews.com
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