Autonomous shipping company Einride has announced the completion of a public road pilot of its driverless electric vehicle (EV) in Tennessee.
The freight technology provider received approval for US operations of this vehicle type from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) earlier this year.
The company claims to have achieved an industry first by operating a fully autonomous EV without a safety driver on board on US public roads.
The pilot, in partnership with home appliance manufacturer GE Appliances, took place over two weeks as the vehicle supported workflows and the transportation of goods between GE Appliances’ manufacturing facility and warehouse.
“The completion of this pilot is a momentous step in the operations of autonomous heavy duty road freight in the U.S.,” said Robert Falck, CEO and founder at Einride.
“This shows how Einride’s new type of vehicle, one that has reshaped the future of shipping, is here today and unlocking real industry change.”
The road pilot was reportedly completed in close partnership with state and county officials and GE Appliances staff.
What’s more, Einride also partnered with Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson, which provided a private connectivity network to support connected vehicle functions and to enable a remote operator to monitor the vehicle.
“In order to lead, you have to think ahead and think differently,” said Harry Chase, senior director of central materials for GE Appliances.
“Working with Einride on this pilot on public roads in Tennessee helped us better envision and understand what we need to do differently to be at the forefront of autonomous and EV implementation.
“At GE Appliances, we believe you need to continuously experiment with new technology in order to learn.”
Einride claims to operate one of the largest EV fleets in Europe and the US. Its partnership with GE Appliances – which is focused on the deployment of both autonomous and electric vehicles – dates back to October 2021.
