Sounds like an organic food company... actually an autonomous truck startup. San Diego-based TuSimple is planning to go public, targeting an $8B valuation. TuSimple's autonomous trucks have already hit American roads for testing (with human supervision). It wants investors to know it has a lot more on its TuDo list:
- TuSimple is developing Level 4 (aka: highly automated) self-driving semi trucks with Navistar, slated to enter production in 2024.
- It launched a self-driving freight network partnership with UPS, which is also one of its investors (ETA: live by 2024).
A truckload... There’s a lot of innovation happening in trucking. Two key themes for the truck fleets of the future: electric and self-driving. On the electric side: Tesla, Nikola, and Volvo are a few companies working on electric semi trucks. On the autonomous side: TuSimple, Mercedes-owner Daimler, Google's Waymo, and Volvo are covering self-driving semis. The global truck freight market is worth $4T, and there's a big opportunity for disruptors:
- Electric Pros: EV companies have the power of the Green Rush (and green policies) behind them. Plus, a recent study shows electric semis will soon compete economically with diesel trucks.
- Autonomous Pros: Self-driving truck companies say they'll cut labor costs, reduce accidents, and increase efficiency for long-haul trips. Think: fewer exhausted drivers... and fewer Amazon drivers peeing in bottles.
- But: 3.5M+ people work as truck drivers in the US, and wide-scale automation could significantly cut jobs.
Trucks are the backbone of the online economy... The growth of ecommerce, plus trends like next-day shipping, are boosting demand for trucking (and trucking innovation). But plenty of challenges remain. On the electric side, there's the issue of charging times and #RangeAnxiety. On the autonomous side, there's the risk that these new technologies won't gain acceptance from the public or regulators. There's also the chance that these developing technologies won't work. Even TuSimple notes these as some of its biggests risks ahead.