May 5, 2025
The Aurora Driver has already sent deliveries between Dallas and Houston without a human driver
A self-driving commercial trucking service has launched and sent deliveries between two Texas locales.
Aurora Innovation, Inc. has announced that it has debuted the Aurora Driver, which has completed over 1,200 miles without using a human driver. The service has recently made customer deliveries between Dallas and Houston.
“We founded Aurora to deliver the benefits of self-driving technology safely, quickly, and broadly. Now, we are the first company to successfully and safely operate a commercial driverless trucking service on public roads,” said Chris Urmson, CEO and co-founder of Aurora, in a written statement. “Riding in the back seat for our inaugural trip was an honor of a lifetime – the Aurora Driver performed perfectly, and it’s a moment I’ll never forget.
“Our commitment to building a transformative technology, earning trust, and assembling a strong ecosystem of customers and partners have made this pivotal milestone possible.”
The Aurora Driver is the first company to operate a commercial self-driving service with heavy-duty trucks on public roads. The company plans to expand the service to El Paso, Texas, and Phoenix, Arizona, by the end of the year.
The vehicle is equipped with a computer and sensors that can see beyond the length of four football fields. The Aurora Driver has been tested for over four years with supervised pilot hauls. It delivered over 10,000 customer loads while traveling across three million autonomous miles. The features that make it safe for the road include predicting red light runners, avoiding collisions, and identifying people in the dark hundreds of yards away.
The Aurora uses Verifiable AI to assist in keeping the roads safe.
“When Uber Freight and Aurora came together more than four years ago, we set out to transform the future of logistics—and today, that future is here,” said Lior Ron, founder and CEO of Uber Freight. “Moving autonomous commercial freight without anyone behind the wheel is a historic step forward in our mission to build a smarter and more efficient supply chain, and one we’re proud to lead alongside Aurora.”
CNN has reported that several companies using autonomous trucking or driving have often tested the technology in states like Texas and California. There haven’t been many that lasted, but California-based Gatik does short-haul deliveries for Fortune 500 retailers like Walmart. Another California tech firm, Kodiak Robotics, also uses autonomous driving for customers across the South, but they come equipped with safety drivers.
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