TuSimple expands self-driving trucks to Europe with Traton partnership

Autonomous truck startup TuSimple today announced a strategic agreement with the Traton Group, a Munch, Germany-based Volkswagen Group subsidiary. As a part of it, TuSimple plans to launch a development program to operate an autonomous hub-to-hub route between Södertälje to Jönköping in Sweden using Scania trucks manufactured by Traton. As for Traton, the company says it has taken a minority stake in TuSimple and will work with the startup to develop driverless systems for Traton-branded trucks, with the goal of testing self-driving truck fleets on roads throughout Sweden, Germany, and other European countries. Some experts predict the coronavirus outbreak will hasten the adoption of autonomous delivery solutions like TuSimple's. A study published by CarGurus found that 39% of people won't use manually driven ride-sharing services post-pandemic for fear of insufficient sanitation.