TuSimple, Navistar scrap deal to develop self-driving trucks
An AV truck is parked at a TuSimple facility at AllianceTexas, a 27,000 acre business complex boasting some of the country’s largest freight operations, in Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. May 18, 2022. Picture taken May 18, 2022. REUTERS/Cooper Neill/File Photo
TuSimple Holdings Inc and Navistar have ended a deal to co-develop self-driving trucks, the companies announced on Monday.
In 2020, Illinois-based Navistar bought a minority stake in TuSimple and announced a deal to co-develop heavy-duty self-driving trucks by 2024, as the autonomous driving technology space boomed with investor attention.
The trucks would have operated at Level 4 autonomy - where vehicles can operate without a driver under set conditions.
TuSimple also received nearly 7,000 orders for the self-driving trucks from companies including DHL Supply Chain, Schneider and U.S. Xpress.
San Diego, California-based TuSimple, which in October said it plans to focus on initial commercialization of its trucks in 2023, did not specify reasons for ending the deal.
