In the U.S., women had only just barely gotten the right to vote before there was any sort of concerted effort or discussion at all to develop an organized, logical highway system. Then 35 years later it took a war-hardened West Point graduate, who happened to have been elected president of the U.S., to recognize the importance of an infrastructure for everyone.
“Powered by Ike“ is a great rally cry, a reminder of the fact that it was General Eisenhower (a.k.a., Ike) in the mid-1950s who brought the continental U.S. from bumpy, barely roads to smooth on-highway ones that would connect people and places. And now the commercial vehicle industry, in particular logistics companies Ryder, DHL, and NFI, are officially part of the rally, committed to the efficiency, and safety, of SAE Level 4 automated long-haul transportation. As part of the multi-year Powered by Ike program, fleets have already collectively reserved the first 1000 Class 8 tractors powered by Ike’s technology.
Instead of scaling up its own fleet of trucks, Ike—founded in 2018 by former product and engineering teams from Google, Apple, and Uber—is putting its technology directly into the hands of existing fleet operators through a software subscription model.
A Yale University study in 2019 that analyzed Ike’s handoff model concluded that automation could create 140,000 new local truck driving jobs by 2030.
Leading up to the launch of a commercial solution, Ike and its fleet customers will be collaborating in several areas to provide feedback, perform testing, and prepare to launch and scale up operations.
“We are focused on building technology that will help make trucking safer and more productive,” said Alden Woodrow, CEO and Cofounder of Ike. “We want to put all our effort behind systems engineering, computer vision, and validation.
Fleet customers will buy vehicles from truck OEMs with Ike’s system of hardware and software already installed and pay Ike an annual fee. Trucks using Ike’s technology will be capable of operating in automated driving mode on designated freight routes. Ike plans for the subscription to include various support services, such as integration into digital tools to dispatch and manage the automated trucks, maintenance of new equipment, roadside support, and access for the physical handoff of freight to truckers.
“We are at the forefront of identifying new technology and fleet advancements while acting as an extended research and development arm for our customers,” said Karen Jones, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Ryder. “Working with an automation technology leader such as Ike is a continuation of this journey.”
Ike operates a fleet of prototype vehicles from its facility in San Francisco, including Class 8 tractors outfitted with its technology, as well as a Toyota Prius used for mapping and data collection.
