Traton, a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group had previously planned to invest USD 140 million in TuSimple.
This cooperation combines a global OEM manufacturer and an autonomous driving technology company as TuSimple edges closer to becoming the world's first self-driving truck stock. Traton and TuSimple have launched a research and development plan to use Scania trucks to operate the first autonomous driving hub route between Södertälje and Jönköping in Sweden. As part of the cooperation between the two parties, the Chinese autonomous truck manufacturer will receive a strategic investment from Traton.
Matthias Gründler, CEO of Traton Group, said: "The global cooperation with TuSimple in the future is another step for the group to strive for its global ambitions. Providing customers with more valuable innovative future technologies is the core of our development strategy."
"Our cooperation with Traton Group will promote the acceleration of autonomous driving technology into new international markets. We look forward to the upcoming global cooperation between us," said Lu Cheng, President of TuSimple. "Transtop Group has a good reputation and the strategic investment from the firm is strong evidence of their confidence in our company's technologies and solutions."
The R&D personnel of Traton Group and TuSimple are working closely to develop an autonomous driving system for trucks. Under specified driving conditions, these trucks can achieve fully automated driving without manual intervention and can be applied to all markets. The use of self-driving trucks will provide customers with huge advantages in long-distance freight, and improve safety and efficiency while reducing fuel consumption and operating costs.