Courtesy of WalmartBeginning in 2021, Gatik's "autonomous box trucks" will begin fulfilling customer orders without safety drivers, driving products between a dark store and a Walmart Neighborhood Market in Bentonville, Arkansas.
According to Walmart, the Gatik pilot has logged 70,000 operational miles "in autonomous mode" with a safety driver behind the wheel to monitor deliveries since its launch in 2019Walmart's expansion of initial tests will see Gatik's "multi-temperature Autonomous Box Trucks" operate that same two-mile route without a driver starting next year.
The original pilot in Bentonville, Arkansas, also the retail giant's headquarters, involved Gatik's vehicles moving orders between the aforementioned Walmart Neighborhood Market location and a "dark store" two miles away. Walmart dark stores contain merchandise, but are not open to the public.