Waymo is making Dallas the hub for testing its robotic semi-trucks. WaymoWaymo, the leading U.S. self-driving vehicle company, is expanding its robot truck program by moving into Texas with a new depot in Dallas that will serve as the hub for road-testing its fleet of 18-wheelers. Waymo tells Forbes its semis roll into Dallas this week and the Silicon Valley-based company plans to hire licensed local truckers to assist with highway evaluations as safety drivers. Mapping of roads in Texas and New Mexico with the high-definition cameras and sensors on Waymo’s autonomous minivans was completed in March ahead of plans to start truck tests in April, before the Covid-19 pandemic delayed things. Making Texas the center of Waymo’s trucking operations makes sense given how big the industry is there, employing one in 16 Texans, according to state data.

Source: Forbes August 25, 2020 10:52 UTC