Autonomous driving software specialist Plus has announced a long-term partnership with several commercial fleet developers under the Traton Group, including MAN, Scania, and Navistar, to deploy Level 4 autonomous trucks globally. Public road testing is already underway on two continents.
Plus is a global provider of autonomous driving solutions headquartered in Silicon Valley alongside operations in both Europe and Australia. The company specializes in next-generation safety systems, automation like PlusDrive, and its Level 4 driverless technology SuperDrive.
The startup’s proprietary autonomous tech has garnered interest from several commercial vehicle developers, including partnerships with Bosch, IVECO, Nikola, and Luminar, to name a few. Additional partners include multiple brands under the umbrella of commercial vehicle manufacturer Traton Group, like MAN, Navistar, and Scania.
Today, Plus announced an extended partnership with those brands to develop and deploy Level 4 autonomous trucks globally; testing is already underway.
Plus is testing Level 4 autonomous trucks in US and Europe
Plus shared details of its new multi-year Level 4 autonomous truck deployment via press release this morning, stating its new partners will use their existing autonomous-ready base vehicles to be implemented with Plus’ SuperDrive driverless software and hub-to-hub operations. Plus co-founder and COO Shawn Kerrigan spoke about the partnership:
Plus is thrilled to have our industry leading autonomous driving software be chosen for the Traton Group’s impressive portfolio of storied and trusted global commercial vehicle brands across Scania, MAN, and Navistar. Together we will accelerate the global commercialization of Level 4 autonomous trucks and bring to market safer and more sustainable transportation solutions. By expanding our autonomous hub-to-hub program, we are taking a leading position in providing autonomous solutions to our customers.
Plus followed by stating that Traton Group trucks have already been equipped with its Level 4 autonomous technology and are already being tested on public roads in Europe and the US (with a safety monitor present onboard).
The public road testing stems from a joint development between Traton Group and Plus that has been in the works for the past year, including tests in busy freight corridors around Texas. Following today’s expanded partnership, Plus says the Traton Group brands will pilot commercial operations of Level 4 autonomous trucks through 2024.
From there, the partners intend to begin series production and globally deploy the commercial vehicles at scale. Those expansions will continue incrementally along “strategic US corridors,” as well as testing between Södertälje and Nyköping in Sweden for the European routes. Plus states that European fleet customers should also see pilot operations begin sometime in 2024.