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Global trucking demand is on the rise with the consistent increase in capacity, need for faster transfer influenced by economic developments, new business ventures, and changing buying patterns. However, the trucking industry in general is plagued by concerns like driver shortage, vehicle price increases, fuel price volatility, road safety, and performance limitations amidst rapidly transformative freight handling, stocking, and distribution practices as well as infrastructure changes. Trucking, however, has remained conventional in general. Digitalization and the advent of technology have helped identify gaps and harness efficiency to the best.

Autonomous trucks are viewed as the next logical leap to overcome existing bottlenecks and to keep pace with the rapidly evolving ecosystem. The COVID-19 pandemic has underlined the need for autonomous trucks and their effectiveness during emergencies. With this pandemic, the industry faces issues such as driver shortage and severe commodity demand triggered by panic shopping. Autonomous vehicles (AVs) offer a solution to both the aforementioned with the capability of driving longer hours and safely. Logistics and shipping operators have been provided with a strong case to include self-driving trucks in their fleet as the means of a response action plan in the event of unforeseen emergencies.

Unlike humans with the limitation of operating hours, systems can operate trucks 24x7 effectively, increasing commodity flow within the freight value system. Perception and visual systems can acts as additional eyes to the driver, while analytics and predictive algorithms enhance attentiveness, thus helping the driver traverse through unforeseen events. Cost effectiveness of autonomous trucks will aid fleet operators achieve faster return on investment (RoI) and help address freight supply pressure.