The Road to Autonomy

Sam Abidi, Chief Commercial Officer, Embark Trucks joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss Embark’s asset-light approach to autonomous trucking. The conversation begins with Sam discussing how Embark as a pre-revenue company is approaching commercialization. We expect to scale operations by way of our carriers who will haul goods for the shippers that we work with, and we expect to work with Tier 1’s and OEMs to deliver that. – Sam AbidiTo deliver on this model, Embark has a partnership with Knight-Swift where Knight-Swift will own and operate the autonomous trucks running Embark’s Universal Interface. We set out on a rather large effort to develop a standardized set of sensors and compute with flexible mounts and communication interfaces, so that our AV system could go from one OEM to another. – Sam AbidiEach truck running the Embark Universal Interface will have a very similar user interface and experience across multiple OEMs which makes the system scalable. Embark’s system will allow carriers to add more capacity due to hours of service regulations which increases the amount of time it takes for a load to reach its final destination. With the U.S. inflation rate currently at 8.3%, a 40-year high and a driver shortage which is only growing, Grayson and Sam discuss why autonomous trucking is not being embraced as a tool to help reduce inflation by stabilizing the supply chain. It’s a complicated story, you got to have a second order understanding of how supply chains work, you got to understand hours of service, you got to understand relay networks and hub networks, to really recognize how autonomy unlocks e-commerce and two-day delivery, and everyone’s desire for cheap goods. – Sam AbidiWhen autonomous trucking is fully embraced by regulators, politicians and the public, the U.S. economy will benefit from job creation and lower inflation. For autonomous trucking to truly scale, partnerships are key. Embark has a partnership with Alterra for autonomous trucking terminals. At those depots, Ryder will be providing on-site services that are required to properly operate an autonomous trucking operation. From an infrastructure standpoint there are minor upgrades that have to be made to begin autonomous trucking operations, which will allow Embark to scale their terminal networks with partners.With the average price of diesel in the U.S. being $5.52 a gallon, Embark is beginning to look at alternative forms of fuel.We look forward to a platform that can run on electric or hydrogen for the distances that make sense for autonomy. – Sam AbidiWrapping up the conversation, Sam shares his thoughts on the current state of the autonomous trucking industry. Recorded on Tuesday, May 24, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Scott Case, Co-Founder & CEO of Recurrent joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss using data to understand the true health of electric vehicle batteries.The conversation begins with Grayson asking Scott about the BloombergNEF 2040 electric vehicle forecast. I think every forecast made by everyone is wrong and too low. – Scott CaseWith over 9,000 vehicles currently on the Recurrent platform and the market for electric vehicle sales projected to grow globally 17.25% annually into 2040, Recurrent is preparing for the rapid growth of their platform. The Recurrent platform is gathering insights on how electric vehicle batteries perform in different climates, whether it’s a cold or hot weather region. Exposure to extreme heat over time will break down the battery, it will wear it out more quickly. – Scott CaseOn the other hand, exposure to extreme cold will not wear about the battery more quickly. With the wear on the battery, electric vehicles sold and driven in these environments could have a positive or negative impact on the resell value of the vehicle depending on the conditions. Grayson asks Scott from an economic standpoint if the health of the battery will be the determining factor when it comes to the price of an electric vehicle.It’s not yet, but it is going to be. – Scott CaseThis raises the question of what happens when electric vehicles come out of rental car fleets and are sold as used vehicles. How will they be properly priced? Will the pricing be based on the odometer reading or the health of the battery? Grayson and Scott discuss the possible ways the vehicles could be priced and whether a battery swap will be needed prior to selling the used electric vehicle.With the majority of Recurrent’s data coming from individual EV owners and the United States currently dealing with record high gas prices of $4.58 a gallon, Grayson asks Scott if he is seeing consumers switching from gas cars to electric cars due the high gas prices.High gas prices haven’t factored into that at all. Not yet, they are going to. – Scott CaseMaking reference to data to validate his point, Scott points to data from the Argonne National Laboratory.With J.P. Morgan projecting the national average price to hit $6 per gallon by the end of the summer, the transition to electric vehicles could accelerate. However, there could be an issue⁠ charging those newly bought electric vehicles as the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, the regulatory body that oversees grid stability is publicly stating that power supplies in the much of the United States and Canada will be stretched. If the grid issues persist, the adoption of EVs could be slowed. Wrapping up the conversation, Scott discusses how he sees the used EV market growing and evolving over the next decade.Recorded on Friday, May 20, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Gavin Jackson, CEO of Oxbotica joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss how the Oxbotica platform is enabling universal autonomy. The conversation begins with Gavin discussing why he came on as CEO of Oxbotica in December 2021. I feel that the autonomy space still is in the very very early stages of being quite a transformative technology, and almost a generational shift in how people and goods will move forever. It’s attractive to me to be so early in such a movement. It’s attractive to me, because I think that the impact that this sort of technology can have on the world will be profound. – Gavin JacksonWith Gavin’s background at Amazon and Microsoft, he is positioning the company to become a platform. As a universal platform we are able to compose solutions for different verticals, different vehicle types and different domains. With the very same Oxbotica driver platform, you are able to drive big heavy 600 ton trucks in a mine, or 40 ton trucks on a hub-to-hub on a highway or urban densely populated old fashioned victorian London street for goods delivery or indeed for passengers. – Gavin JacksonThe platform approach allows Oxbotica to develop solutions that are both convenient for riders and friendly to the environment through the reduction in carbon emissions. Being based in the UK, Gavin shares his thoughts on the UK market as it relates to autonomous vehicles.All of the infrastructure that exists in the UK is there for excellence. – Gavin JacksonAs Oxbotica scales, the company has global ambitions. In Germany at BP’s Lingen refinery, Oxbotica trialed an autonomous vehicle at the refinery as part of BP’s technical due diligence prior investing in the company. Deploying an autonomous vehicle at a refinery requires trust and transparency. This is exactly what Oxbotica did and they thrived at it, as it lead to an investment by BP which was a clear validation of their approach.With the proven success of operating at a BP refinery, the company is looking to expand their business in the Oil & Gas market as they prepare to scale their industrial autonomy platform.We think that autonomy is going to change the game. – Gavin JacksonOxbotica’s industrial autonomy platform is also being deployed in the mining industry through a partnership with Wenco, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi Construction Machinery. By using autonomous vehicles in mines, global miners are able to reduce carbon emissions due to the lack of idling and in some cases, the electrification of heavy-duty mining vehicles. From autonomous shuttles to autonomous cars to heavy duty mining trucks, Oxbotica is taking a platform approach to autonomy. The diversity of vehicle type is really attractive to us, because it really ignites what we are here to do, which is universal autonomy. One unified platform to drive all of these vehicles. – Gavin JacksonWrapping up the conversation, Gavin shares his vision for the future of Oxbotica.Recorded on Tuesday, May 10, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wouter Witvoet, CEO, EVT Group, joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss electrifying the iconic MOKE and reinvigorating a brand that was built around lifestyles and experiences. The conversation begins with Wouter discussing how as the largest shareholder of MOKE International, he is planning on reinvigorating the iconic MOKE brand. What we are effectively doing at EV Technology Group with the MOKE brand is that we take a lot of this excitement that exists around this brand, a lot of the following that is there and just creating an electric version of this that is effectively suitable for today’s age which is very much an electric age. – Wouter WitvoetAs car brands around the world begin the process of electrifying their iconic vehicles, some brands are taking this as an opportunity to redesign the vehicle, instead of focusing on the heritage of the brand. MOKE International has made the decision to lean into the future by electrifying, all the while respecting the heritage and the design of the iconic vehicle.When a brand electrifies a vehicle:It always has to start where the brand left off. – Wouter WitvoetBy taking this approach, the MOKE brand is building upon its heritage and the famous photos of Bridget Bardot driving the vehicle around Saint-Tropez. As the 2022 Season begins in Saint-Tropez, EVT will be integrating the MOKE experience into the overall Saint-Tropez experience through partnerships with villa rental operators and concierge services.In Saint-Tropez, you are coming here for an experience. You are not coming here because you need to be in Saint-Tropez. In the same logic you drive a MOKE because you want to drive a MOKE, not because it is necessarily the best car to go from A to B. It’s about an experience. – Wouter WitvoetThe new electric MOKE will be introduced as a subscription plan for €650 a month Saint-Tropez Season Pass and three year subscription service options. Looking to the future and enhancing the subscription service, there is a possibly that EVT will introduce a MOKE subscription plan that travels with you around the world.It’s about just having access to an EV wherever you go. – Wouter WitvoetExpanding the brand from a vehicle to a lifestyle, EVT will be introducing Casa MOKE this summer in Saint-Tropez. If Casa MOKE proves to be successful, the concept will be exported to iconic locations around the world and localized to the environment. If you have a MOKE, then something must be good in your life. – Wouter WitvoetAs EVT looks to expand the MOKE brand into new markets, the brand will introduce region specific MOKE experiences. Our thesis is that if you are talking about a luxury brand, you are talking about experiences. You need to launch a car on the market with a certain activity that is locally for that market. – Wouter WitvoetWrapping up the conversation, Wouter discusses EVT’s strategy as the company expands their brand portfolio. Recorded on Tuesday, May 3, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Vivian Sun, Chief Commercial Officer, Waabi, joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss Waabi World and a simulation-first approach to autonomous trucking. The conversation begins with Vivian sharing her thoughts on when consolidation comes to the autonomous trucking industry. While consolidation is on the horizon, Waabi (which was founded in June 2021) is taking a different path to developing and scaling autonomous trucks. Autonomy is a marathon. – Vivian SunTheir approach to autonomy using a simulation-first approach is one that could completely change the end-to-end development process of autonomous trucks. As Waabi prepares to scale, Vivian shares some of the lessons that she learned earlier in her career and how Waabi can avoid those situations. It is really important that we have a scalable, adaptable technology. – Vivian SunA simulation-first approach to autonomy is allowing Waabi to operate a leaner corporate structure with less overhead as they develop the technology. From an economic standpoint, with the Federal Reserve raising rates as well as the European Central Bank, operating an autonomous trucking with a lean overhead will become a completive advantage as credit markets tighten.There are huge advantages of a more cost efficient way of developing self-driving technology. – Vivian SunThe key technology enabling this approach to autonomy is Waabi World, a high fidelity driving simulator. Inside of Waabi World, weather elements such as rain, fog, wind, ice and snow can be simulated to create real-world driving scenarios. These scenarios, combined with real-world traffic data, will help to develop a confident and safe Waabi Driver. While the Waabi Driver is being developed in simulation, professional truck drivers are playing a key role in the system ⁠— the Waabi Driver is learning from million plus miler drivers. We want to create a new paradigm to solve autonomy. – Vivian SunWrapping up the conversation, Vivian discusses Waabi’s partnership strategy and the company’s plans for commercialization. Recorded on Tuesday, April 19, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Craig Harper, Chief Sustainability Officer and Executive Vice President, J.B. Hunt Transport Service joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss decarbonizing the supply chain. The conversation begins with Craig discussing the reason why he stepped into the role of Chief Sustainability Officer in late 2020. When he began to develop J.B. Hunt’s sustainability plan he started by understanding how J.B. Hunt is perceived in the marketplace and by rating agencies. It’s been a good progress, steps to go through looking at those different rating agencies seeing how they each interpret different segments of the business and where we need to improve. – Craig HarperOn Monday, April 4, 2022 J.B. Hunt launched their CLEAN Transport Program to help customers reduce the carbon footprint of their supply chain. Intermodal is a great offering that we have, provides significant benefit to our customer, to citizens across the globe with a 60% reduction on the amount of carbon that it takes to move the same load from point-to-point all the way by truck versus what it takes to move intermodal. But even when you get that 60% reduction, you still have some residual carbon. And it’s like what are we going to do with this? This is where carbon offsets come in, and what that does it allows a customer to purchase offsets that fund an activity that reduces carbon and make their transport carbon neutral. – Craig HarperWhile we wait for electric trucks to scale, intermodal offers an opportunity for shippers to reduce their carbon emissions by 60% today.As an organization we said publicly we feel like there is somewhere between 7 to 11 million more loads that could be converted to intermodal. – Craig HarperAnother way to reduce carbon emissions is renewable diesel. In 2020, 51% of all of the fuel J.B. Hunt purchased was a bio-blended diesel product. Today, the company’s total weighted average of fuel from renewable sources is 8%. More and more renewable diesel is coming online each and every day, that is going to be great for the industry. – Craig HarperJ.B. Hunt has a culture of innovation. From embracing renewable diesel to entering into a market study with Waymo to pilot autonomous trucks, J.B. Hunt continues to look forward towards the future. Prior to entering into a market study agreement, Craig visited the Waymo team in Chandler, AZ and took a ride in Waymo’s fully autonomous vehicle. The trip was a culmination of a trusted relationship. As it relates the deployment of autonomous trucks, Craig shared the following insight:We believe that the technology will indeed pull certain types of freight on certain lanes and we are excited to play a part in it. – Craig HarperEven as autonomous trucks scale, skilled professional drivers will continue to play a significant role in the future of the trucking industry. Wrapping up the conversation, Craig and Grayson discussed the infrastructure that is needed to scale electric heavy-duty trucks.Recorded on Monday, April 4, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Rachad Youssef, Chief Product Officer, BrightDrop joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss decarbonizing last mile delivery.The conversation begins with Rachad discussing why January 2021 was the right time to launch BrightDrop.January 2021 was a great opportunity to announce what BrightDrop was going to do, because it was a real date in terms of our ability to deliver. – Rachad YoussefWith delivery traffic projected to grow 78% by 2030 and the global commitment to decarbonization, BrightDrop created the right product at the right time. One year after announcing the BrightDrop vans, their customers vans are out in the field currently delivering goods to homes and business in the LA region. The first vans were delivered to FedEx in December 2021, less than one year after launching the company.It took 14 months to put a vehicle on the road. During that time you have to incorporate a tremendous amount of learnings from studies in the field as well as the ability to find a vehicle platform that can accommodate those needs, and truly tailor it for the use case. – Rachad YoussefBrightDrop vans are utilizing GM’s Ultium battery platform providing range of 250 miles on a single charge. As the Ultium battery platform becomes more dense, those new longer range batteries will find their way into the vans. The ability for us to incorporate new chemistries and new technologies with regards to the battery itself is a commitment from BrightDrop from Day 1. – Rachad YoussefBrightDrop is focused on fully integrating software and hardware together to deliver an experience for the delivery driver that is easier than today’s traditional vans. An example of this commitment is the Trace vehicle concept which is integrated into the van’s design. The Trace vehicle allows delivery drivers to move goods quicker and easier. It’s really about ease of doing business. It’s really about showing our customers that we get it and that we are with them through their deployments. – Rachad YoussefOne of those customers is Walmart. Walmart is using both the Zevo 400 and Zevo 600 vans as part of their decarbonization strategy for delivery. The decarbonization of last mile delivery using electric vans is only going to accelerate as more companies adopt and implement an ESG strategy.Wrapping up the conversation, Rachad discusses how his time at Zoox influenced how he approaches design.Good design for me in this space comes with purpose. In other words, you are really looking for elegant ways to bring simplicity to complex situations. – Rachad YoussefRecorded on Tuesday, April 12, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Dean Foreman, Chief Economist, American Petroleum Institute (API) joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss the current state of the oil and gas markets.The conversation begins with Dean discussing the the unprecedented move by the Biden Administration to release 1 million barrels of oil per day for 180 days from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and the global demand for oil.The U.S. Energy Administration estimated coming into this year, in December that we were at a global deficit of more than 3 million barrels per day. That’s with global demand outstripping or exceeding the supply or production level globally for oil. – Dean ForemanFurther putting this into perspective, in February 2022, the U.S. petroleum demand was 21.6 million barrels per day. The highest level of demand since August 2005. A portion of the demand is being driven by freight shipping partly as a result of the increase in online shopping. Another factor driving petroleum demand is COVID-19 tests as they are made from plastic. The molecules for the tests made of plastic start as oil and natural gas. In February 2022 more then 7 million barrels of oil out of the 21.6 million barrels of U.S. petroleum demand, about a 3rd were used to create petrochemical from a refining process that directly correlates with the global increase in demand for COVID-19 tests, which are made of plastic. Out of the 21.6 million barrels of U.S. petroleum demand, 4.3 million barrels a day were distillates (diesel). Between plastics and the increase in online shopping, almost 50% of U.S. petroleum demand (February 2022) was driven by consumer behavior. With petroleum demand increasing, the Keystone XL pipeline could help fill the demand. Dean shares what economic impact it would have on the market if the pipeline came online and heavy crude starting flowing from Western Canada to the United States. Expanding upon this conversation, Grayson and Dean discuss the current state of the U.S. economy and what the potential economic outlook looks like as the Federal Reserve begins to taper. As the economy goes, so does demand. – Dean ForemanDiving back into the oil markets, Grayson highlights the price of U.S. New York Harbor Jet Fuel which has risen 83% in the last 30 days to $744.32 a barrel (as of April 5, 2022). The price increase is a local issue, due to the lack of regional refining and the fact that jet fuel in the New York region has to be imported. From a global perspective, the global demand for oil was 100 million barrels per day in Q1 2022. The demand for oil is outpacing market supply by 3.2 million barrels per day.Demand is continuing to outstrip supply. – Dean ForemanGlobal Oil & Gas drilling activity is down 38% compared with February 2019. With a slowdown in drilling and a growing global demand for oil, Dean discusses the market from an economic standpoint. From a global perspective you got to have 4 to 6 million barrels per day of new oil just to sustain the production level this year. – Dean ForemanThe growth is only going to continue as according to the International Energy Agency, 46% of the world’s energy will be produced by oil and natural gas. Wrapping up the conversation, Dean shares his thoughts on the future of energy.Recorded on Friday, April 8, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mike Plasencia, Group Director, RyderVentures & New Product Strategy at Ryder System, Inc. joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss how Ryder creates value through services for customers and partners. The conversation begins with Mike discussing how Ryder became the central nervous system for autonomous trucking. Ryder noticed the trend of autonomy early and embraced the trend by investing and preparing the company for the future. The company has an 89 year history dating back to 1933 of being forward-thinking and innovative in ways it approaches business opportunities. As technology has continued to bring efficiency to the market, it has also brought challenges. That’s the name of our game and so over the next 50 years as technology continues to develop and business models change, we want to be that partner that customers can outsource to. We may look very different in the next 50 years, but ultimately our core task of solving difficult problems for our customers is still going to be our mantra. – Mike PlasenciaAs Ryder builds out their autonomous trucking portfolio, the company has partnered with Embark, TuSimple, Waymo and Gatik to assist them with scaling their autonomous operations. Mike goes onto discusses why Ryder is focused on partnering with autonomous trucking companies and not building out their own solution. You will never see us building the truck, you will never see us coding the driver. – Mike PlasenciaWhile Ryder might not build the truck or code the driver, they will however invest in the technology. As part of Gatik’s Series B round, RyderVentures invested in the company. It’s not just autonomy that RyderVentures is investing in, the fund is looking into investing opportunity in asset sharing, ecommerce, warehouse automation, big data and next generation vehicles. We try to be on the forefront of every new technology related to vehicles for our customers. – Mike PlasenciaRyder’s core advantage is that the company can provide services that unlock value for their customers and partners. Ryder’s partnership with Waymo is focused on being the company’s maintenance partner. [Waymo] can focus on being what they are really good at as a technology company, and we can focus on what we are really good at, maintaining vehicles. – Mike PlasenciaRyder is clearly focused on the providing value to the autonomous trucking ecosystem as on the company’s Q3 2021 earnings call, Mr. Robert Sanchez, Chairman & CEO of Ryder highlighted the company’s strategic alliances with several autonomous trucking companies. As the logistics industry grows with the introduction of new technologies, Grayson asks Mike how he sees the future of logistics evolving as more autonomous trucks come online. Optimization starts to take a big front-row seat. – Mike PlasenciaWrapping up the conversation, Mike discusses the data-driven study that Ryder commissioned in partnership with Georgia Tech and what they learned.Recorded on Tuesday, March 29, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Brett Fabbri, Head of Law Enforcement Policy and Highway Safety, Kodiak Robotics joined Grayson Brulte on The Road To Autonomy Podcast to discuss how law enforcement interacts with autonomous trucks.The conversation begins with Brett discussing his 30-year career in law enforcement and how a ride-along with his cousin led to a career in law enforcement.At that time I was hooked. This is great. This is a very rewarding career. – Brett FabbriLaw enforcement plays a key role in the local community from interacting with business owners and residents of the community to keeping the community safe while simultaneously building trust with the community.Community engagement is the entire key to everything that law enforcement does. We are kind of guardians of the community. – Brett FabbriThe California Highway Patrol covers 186,000 miles. With the coverage map being so vast, engaging with the local community could be challenging, but that is not the case for the CHP. Brett explains how the California Highway Patrol interacts with the local community through area offices that function similar to local police stations.During his time at the California Highway Patrol, Brett served as the Special Services Commander for Northern California where he oversaw the commercial enforcement unit and the motor carrier safety unit for all of Northern California. It was in this role, that Brett was first introduced to autonomous vehicles.From the California Highway Patrol to autonomous trucks, Grayson asks Brett what he saw in the market when he decided to retire from law enforcement and join Kodiak Robotics. Brett saw the opportunity to build upon law enforcement’s mission of saving lives.In the end, this has the potential to save lives. In my law enforcement career that is where it all starts – saving lives and now it continues on with Kodiak. – Brett FabbriAs Kodiak prepares to scale, the company has to build trust and credibility in the industry, the local communities and the law enforcement community where Kodiak operates. Maintaining trust is key and Brett explains how Kodiak maintain that trust using his 30-year experience in community building.Everyday in local communities there are thousands of trucks being inspected for safety with 20% of those trucks failing inspection, creating a potential hazard on the nation’s roadways. This is a hazard that autonomous trucks will be able to solve.We are taking all the emotion out of driving. – Brett FabbriWith autonomous trucks on the verge of scaling nationwide, Grayson asks Brett what his peers in law enforcement think about autonomous trucks.They have a lot of good questions. They want to know about traffic stops, collisions and how inspections processes are going to work. – Brett FabbriWith lots of questions, it is important to have an open line of communication with law enforcement to ensure there are no surprises and those officers know which companies are operating autonomous trucks in their jurisdiction.Officers need to know how to pull over an autonomous truck with no safety driver on-board. This process has to be documented by the autonomous trucking company and shared with local law enforcement where the trucks are operating.Then there is the question of what happens if the autonomous truck is involved in a crash.If one of our vehicles is involved in an accident, that Kodiak truck will notify the operations center that will notify law enforcement that there has been a collision. That Kodiak truck will be programed to move to the right shoulder or to a safe location, unless it becomes disabled because of the collision. – Brett FabbriThe amount of data the trucks gather from LiDAR, cameras and sensors will assist law enforcement when they investigate the incident. This is one of the positives that will come out of a potential crash.To achieve all of these positives, a Law Enforcement Interaction Plan has to be developed, implemented and shared with law enforcement.We are working with law enforcement as we develop the plan, because we want to make it a collaborative effort and we want it to be successful. We want it to be comprehensive. – Brett FabbriWrapping up the conversation, Brett discusses what has to be done from a law enforcement perspective as Kodiak scales to multiple states.Recorded on Tuesday, March 22, 2022--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™. The company has two businesses: The Road to Autonomy Indices, with Standard and Poor’s Dow Jones Indices as the custom calculation agent; Media, which includes The Road to Autonomy and Autonomy Economy podcasts as well as This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.