Japan's Isuzu Motors Collaborates with US Autonomous Driving Service Company Gatik

Development of Autonomous Delivery Service Using Trucks in North America

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] Japanese Isuzu Motors' North American division is partnering with American autonomous driving startup Gatik to launch an autonomous delivery service using trucks, major foreign media reported on the 5th (local time).

Gatik is currently developing a service that delivers goods from warehouses to stores using autonomous trucks for Canadian retailer Loblaw Companies and Walmart stores in Arkansas and Louisiana, USA.

Gatik's co-founder and CEO Gautam Narang revealed that Gatik and Walmart plan to test a fully unmanned delivery service in Arkansas by the end of this year. He added that they have applied for the unmanned delivery service test in Arkansas and expect approval around December this year.

CEO Narang stated that Gatik's business model is not to sell technology to automobile companies but to provide services while retaining the technology.

Recently, with the expansion of contactless services due to COVID-19, companies developing autonomous driving services like Gatik are attracting attention from investors.

Gatik has raised $30 million in investment so far. Pontinalis Partners, a venture capital run by Bill Ford, chairman of Ford Motor Company, is one of Gatik's early investors. Gatik currently provides services using the Ford Transit.

Isuzu will provide Gatik with N-Series trucks and support the technical aspects.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.