Waabi
By Sherlene Hiu
Now with the coming of AI being more prevalent in today’s products, services, and in human beings, it is no matter that this sort of intelligence will prevail in automobiles. The spotlight now shows an interesting way of utilizing AI, and it is driverless trucks. Though this sort of AI service is not new to the public with the creation of driverless Uber from Waymo and Lyft, along with Tesla having the autonomous function for their cars, it explores through variety, introducing more AI-induced services in transportation.
Waabi is a Canadian startup, aiming to share a goal with those willing to share–using Gen AI for self-driving cars. To start with long haul trucks, Waabi shares that they want to make solutions to driving by operating AI in the long run. However, first, they set off with the first product–Waabi Driver, to align with its truck solution.
Waabi Driver
In early spring, it was announced that the Waabi Driver would have NVIDIA’s DRIVE Thor as its car computer, an AV processor that will ensure transportation safety with CPU and GPU enhancements for an overall good vehicle system and experience. It does not stop there as Waabi also states that Waabi Driver will have a trainable system that will learn data, go through development, and make decisions efficiently when on the road. When it comes to the future, Waabi Driver may provide what others want, which is to expand the freedom of autonomy.
Objectives
Waabi plans to raise $200M in their investment for their autonomous trucks, along with the rise of known investors, such as NVIDIA and G2 Venture Partners, in order to carry their finances toward 2025. New capital involved with Waabi’s operations and team will grow in Canada and US while working with Uber to launch a trucking terminal in Texas. Their main goal is to ensure that the AI system implemented in the trucks can automate human reasoning and be able to advance it in the past three years. It has also been referred from Waabi that its AI aligns well with active data training, road testing simulator, and verification. CEO, Raquel Urtasun, stated that there is still potential for more, with AI and its ability to deliver safe, autonomous solutions to the world
Conclusion
As rising concerns about safety and the potential risks of autonomous technology are instilled, Waabi believes and will harness AI and automation to enhance the security and safety of their trucks. The company has been seen to aim and lead into automated driving technology, balancing efficiency with safety. Committed to continuous improvement in truck automation solutions and feedback from those eager to explore their services, many investors and tech enthusiasts are excited to see what Waabi offers to the trucking industry.
References:
Introducing the WAABI driver. Waabi. (2024a, March 29). https://waabi.ai/introducing-the-waabi-driver/
Marks, N. (2024, July 8). In it for the Long Haul: Waabi pioneers Generative AI to unleash fully driverless autonomous trucking. NVIDIA Blog. https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/waabi-autonomous-trucking/
WAABI raises $200M USD to launch fully driverless trucks in 2025. Waabi. (2024, June 18). https://waabi.ai/waabi-series-b-announcement/