Gatik And Cummins Partner For Powertrain Optimization

Gatik announced today that it will collaborate with CumminsCMI
Inc. to facilitate the integration of Gatik’s automated driving system with Cummins’ advanced powertrain solution in Gatik’s fleet of medium-duty trucks.

Under the collaboration, Cummins will utilize its suite of advanced software features to integrate its powertrain solution to enable engine drive-by-wire for Gatik’s industry-first medium-duty Isuzu FTR truck fleet with the Cummins B6.7 engine. Gatik states that the integration of their commercial-grade automated driving technology with Cummins’ powertrain “increases functional safety and enhances reliability of the autonomous system, while improving fuel efficiency and offering superior Class 3-6 vehicle performance on Gatik’s short-haul, B2B delivery routes.”

Gatik has single-handedly created the North American market for autonomy in middle mile logistics, starting with the launch of the world’s first (to my knowledge) fully driverless commercial delivery service with WalmartWMT
in 2021. Gatik’s Walmart fleet operates in Arkansas and Louisiana. Commercial growth is happening rapidly for Gatik; recently, the company announced Georgia-Pacific and KBX as new customers for deployments in the Dallas area, and they have been operating Canada’s first autonomous transportation fleet for Loblaw in Ontario since the beginning of 2021.

“As we commercialize our product offerings at scale across North America, ensuring that we integrate our technology with the world’s leading Tier 1 companies is critical to meeting intensifying demand for our solution safely and quickly,” said Arjun Narang, CTO and co-founder, Gatik. “Cummins’ technological leadership in developing the world’s leading powertrains for over 100 years, and deep commitment to developing customer-centric solutions for the future of logistics mean the tangible benefits of our work together will be felt immediately across our customer base.”

Gatik is backed by Koch Disruptive Technologies, Wittington Ventures, Innovation Endeavors, and others.

Cummins engines are pervasive in the trucking industry, available as factory options from all truck manufacturers. “Cummins is excited to integrate its powertrain solution with Gatik’s automated driving system,” said Michael Taylor, General Manager Global Powertrain Integration, Cummins Inc. “Cummins powers nearly every type of application globally, so integrating our powertrain with automated driving systems like Gatik’s will allow our customers to choose the newest technologies to meet their needs.”

Platform Agnosticism

Being able to integrate across the many industry platforms is absolutely essential to scaling up.

Gatik notes that their collaboration with Cummins represents a key component of their platform-agnostic commercialization strategy, enabling Gatik to integrate its automated driving system with multiple OEMs, and across a range of vehicle platforms powered by Cummins.

In the past year, Gatik announced a partnership with Isuzu to implement OEM-grade redundancies for medium-duty trucks, collaboration with GoodyearGT
to equip its fleet with tire intelligence technology to improve stopping distances and monitor tire pressure in real time for enhanced safety, and a strategic partnership with Ryder to leverage Ryder’s national leasing, servicing and fleet maintenance expertise.

For its part, Cummins aims to collaborate broadly across the automated vehicles space. The company has also announced partnerships with Plus and Locomation.

Strong Partners Lead To Great Customers

There are partners and there are customers. Partnerships with Cummins and the other vehicle industry players mentioned above are key in moving from “a truck that drives itself” to a highly robust and efficient commercial product, capable of addressing intensifying customer demand across the retail, eCommerce, and distribution sectors. This industry is on the cusp of commercial autonomy at scale, which delivers substantial cost savings in freight movement and addresses some of the most pressing needs across today’s supply chain. Gatik is in this club, and several other developers – for the over the road market – are close behind.

Disclosure

I am an Advisor to Gatik and Plus.