TUCSON, Ariz., April 4 (Reuters) – U.S. self-driving truck companies have a golden opportunity in the form of a nationwide driver shortage, but their robot drivers still are not ready and neither are their biggest potential customers.
The uncertainties surrounding autonomous trucking come at a critical time for the U.S. trucking industry, which faces a record shortage of 80,000 drivers as demand for online shopping and rapid delivery times is straining supply chains.
Private investors, who have so far poured nearly $9 billion into U.S. AV trucking companies according to data from Pitchbook, are hoping that self-driving trucks eventually catch on. Among the companies developing the technology are TuSimple Holdings Inc (TSP.O), Aurora Innovation Inc (AUR.O), Embark Technology Inc (EMBK.O) and Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Waymo.
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