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Isuzu Motors Limited and Gatik AI, Inc. have announced a significant partnership to enhance the development of the North American autonomous driving business. Isuzu’s investment of $30 million in Gatik underscores a commitment to advancing Level 4 autonomous driving technology, aiming for commercial deployment by 2027.
Key Highlights
- Investment: Isuzu commits $30 million to Gatik.
- Objective: Develop Level 4 autonomous commercial vehicles by 2027.
- Focus: Middle-mile autonomous driving logistics.
- New Developments: Design and development of a safety-focused redundant chassis.
- Deployment: Gatik’s autonomous trucks already operate in Texas, Arkansas, and Ontario.
- Industry Impact: Address driver shortages and increasing delivery demands in North America.
Isuzu’s mid-term business plan, “ISUZU Transformation – Growth to 2030 (IX),” announced in April 2024, sets the foundation for this strategic move. The plan emphasizes three new business pillars: autonomous driving solutions, connected services, and carbon-neutral solutions. As part of this initiative, Isuzu has partnered with Gatik to launch a Level 4 autonomous commercial vehicle business by 2027. This collaboration focuses on middle mile logistics, a crucial segment for B2B deliveries.
Gatik, renowned for providing autonomous middle mile logistics services in North America, leverages Class 3-7 autonomous driving trucks to ensure safe and efficient deliveries. The company’s autonomous trucks are currently operational in Texas, Arkansas, and Ontario, catering to large enterprises with its middle mile B2B logistics solutions. Notably, in 2021, Gatik successfully completed fully driverless commercial middle mile deliveries, setting a benchmark in the industry.
Through this partnership, Isuzu aims to integrate its market-leading position in the LCF segment in the United States and Canada with Gatik’s advanced autonomous technology. This integration is poised to address critical industry challenges, including driver shortages and the growing demand for deliveries. The collaboration will also focus on the joint design and development of a new chassis with enhanced safety performance, compatible with autonomous driving systems, and targeted for mass production in 2027.
Gautam Narang, CEO and co-Founder of Gatik, stated, “In 2021, Gatik launched the world’s first fully driverless commercial transportation service with a Fortune 500 retailer, and we are thrilled to be once again achieving an industry-first milestone by working with our partner Isuzu towards mass production of SAE Level 4 autonomous trucks. This partnership, coupled with Isuzu’s investment in Gatik, signals the company’s confidence in our technology and our world-class team, and we’re excited to bring autonomous transportation to the market at significant scale in the coming years.”
Hiroshi Sato, executive officer of Isuzu, added, “As part of our April 2024 mid-term business plan announcement, we are committed to establishing three pillars of new business for the future: autonomous driving solutions, connected services, and carbon neutral solutions. As part of our efforts to develop autonomous driving solutions, we’re delighted to be expanding our relationship with Gatik to be operation ready in 2027.”
This partnership between Isuzu and Gatik highlights a shared vision of pioneering middle mile autonomous driving in North America, promising to deliver innovative transportation solutions that benefit society.
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