Vay, a maker of automotive-grade remote driving technology, recently announced a strategic partnership with Kodiak Robotics to incorporate Vay’s remote driving technology into Kodiak’s autonomous tech stack. The partnership, announced on Wednesday, enables Kodiak’s Assisted Autonomy technology to remotely control driverless trucks with a human operator for specific scenarios like low-speed navigation via a human operator.
Assisted Autonomy is part of the broader Kodiak Driver functionality. Through this collaboration, Kodiak has deployed Vay Stations and software tools that enable low-latency communications between the stations and Kodiak Driver-powered vehicles.
“Assisted Autonomy provides the Kodiak Driver with more flexibility to deliver our customers’ freight in a greater range of locations and scenarios,” said Don Burnette, founder and CEO of Kodiak in a press release. “No matter the maturity of an autonomous driving system, there are still scenarios that will benefit from human assistance, if only as a backup.”
Kodiak is using Vay’s technology as part of its Permian Basin autonomous operations in West Texas and Eastern New Mexico, where their driverless trucks are operating. The technology being used in low-speed operations at customer facilities and complex interactions such as interpreting law enforcement hand signals.
“Over the last year, Vay has proven the use cases for remote driving—both in B2C and B2B settings. The strategic partnership with Kodiak will expand the B2B use cases to trucks,” said Thomas von der Ohe, co-founder and CEO of Vay in the release. “We are excited to partner with Kodiak to help make trucking and freight delivery safer and more efficient by marrying the value of human decision-making with autonomous operations.”
Vay’s stations allow for real-time streaming of a near 360-degree view around Kodiak trucks. All Assisted Autonomy drivers hold Commercial Driver’s Licenses and undergo rigorous training. The system employs multiple redundant communications protocols to ensure connectivity with the trucks.
Torc expands with new engineering center in Michigan
Self-driving truck tech maker Torc Robotics announced on Tuesday the establishment of a new engineering center in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The strategic expansion aims to speed up the company’s efforts toward its 2027 commercialization goal while taking advantage of the region’s robust automotive and technology talent pool.
As part of this expansion, Torc collaborated with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation to secure incentives supporting its growth in the state. The company plans significant hiring to enhance its technical capabilities in the region.
“This strategic location is a natural fit for Torc as we continue to advance our autonomous technology,” said Jamie Swaim, chief people officer at Torc in a press release. “Ann Arbor’s proximity to the Detroit automotive industry and a wealth of high-tech talent, combined with the exceptional concentration of high-caliber universities and colleges, makes it an ideal environment for our growth and productization strategy.”
The new 32,000-square-foot facility, in northeast Ann Arbor, will feature multiple collaboration spaces and hardware-in-the-loop labs. The center will host a diverse range of engineering roles, including experts in machine learning, software, hardware, and systems engineering, alongside positions in product engineering and safety.
Torc’s Ann Arbor facility complements its existing operations in Blacksburg, Virginia (headquarters), Austin, Texas, Montreal, Canada, and the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
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