https://techcrunch.com/2021/12/29/tusimple-completes-its-first-driverless-autonomous-truck-run-on-public-roads/

Autonomous trucking startup TuSimple has completed its first autonomous truck run on open public roads without a human in the vehicle, according to the company. TuSimple’s Autonomous Driving System (ADS) navigated 100% of the 80-mile run along surface streets and highways between a railyard in Tuscon, Arizona and a distribution center in Phoenix, which took place with no human intervention, marking a milestone for the company that aims to scale its technology into purpose-built trucks by 2024, says president and CEO Cheng Lu.

TuSimple’s one-hour and 20-minute drive along the I-10, which is a major freight route that runs from Los Angeles, California to Jacksonville, Florida, fits naturally into the company’s future commercial operations, in part because it has parking facilities set up in Tuscon, Lu said. While the truck did carry pre-loaded cargo, the focus of the pilot run was technological, rather than commercial. Over the last one and a half years, the company has performed 1,800 runs to the tune of 150,000 miles on this stretch of highway, and plans to continue testing its driver-out program into 2022.