Uber Freight and Volvo Autonomous Solutions herald new strategic partnership

With an eye on a multi-phase commercial and technology partnership to deploy Volvo Autonomous Solutions’ (V.A.S.) autonomous transport solution on the its network, Chicago-based Uber Freight said this week it will be one of Volvo’s first customers to pilot its hub-to-hub autonomous offering, in which Volvo will provide autonomous freight capacity to Uber Freight shippers on select routes, starting in Texas.

The companies said that this strategic partnership will leverage Uber Freight’s expansive network and the V.A.S. autonomous transport service offering, with shippers able to leverage “more efficient means” in order to move freight and take advantage of the value of autonomous trucks to help what they called strained supply chains.

What’s more, the companies noted that looking ahead they see this collaboration providing an environment in which autonomous and manually-driven trucks collectively move goods in a safe and efficient manner through a hub-to-hub model, with autonomous trucks focused on long-haul transport and manually-driven trucks focused on completing local operations. They also noted that this model will reduce “the burden of increasing demand for freight” and let drivers transition over to short-haul jobs in closer proximity to their homes.

“The V.A.S. and Uber Freight partnership is an exciting one,” says Nils Jaeger, President of Volvo Autonomous Solutions, in a statement. “By integrating our autonomous transport solution with Uber Freight’s expansive network, we are offering shippers the possibility to move goods more efficiently while addressing some of the biggest challenges of the industry—transit times, empty miles and a shortage of drivers.” 

As for what drove the need for this partnership, Olivia Hu, Head of Autonomous at Uber Freight, told LM that autonomous trucks have the potential to increase efficiency, safety, sustainability, and improve the overall quality of life for drivers on the road.

“This recent announcement with V.A.S. is the first time we are announcing a partnership with an autonomous capacity provider,” said Hu. “With its expansive nationwide network of shippers and carriers, Uber Freight is uniquely positioned to lead in the safe, responsible deployment of this emerging technology and reimagine the movement of goods on our supply chains.” 

When asked if Uber Freight and V.A.S. had a previous relationship, Hu explained that V.A.S. is a new entity and business unit under the Volvo Group organization that started in January 2020. And she added that Uber Freight has been working with Volvo Group and VAS on a number of key initiatives.

Addressing shipper benefits from this pilot, Hu said that as the pilot rolls out, shippers will gain access to autonomous capacity on select routes, starting in Texas.

“We plan to continue to expand the selection of autonomous fleets on our platform with whom shippers can directly choose to book transportation within the next few years,” she said. “Autonomous capacity will be a new mode of transportation that we offer our customers. Autonomous fleets will play a key role in our network to provide this transportation and leaders like Volvo Autonomous Solutions are paving the way. We will continue to make progress towards a fully autonomous launch and lay the foundation to scale this partnership as the autonomous capacity offered by VAS grows on our platform.”