Uber veers into trucking business

Technology company Uber (which now functions a lot like a transportation company) launched the Uber Freight recently.

The 18-wheeler truck is now in operation and shippers to give their email addresses to Uber, and links for media to contact the company for their packages to be delivered to their destination.

Read also: ‘Hawk Eye’ security app will keep track of emergencies, wanted persons

Its first autonomous truck delivered a load of cargo last week which turned out to be a load of beer, and the vehicle was operated by Uber’s self-driving division Otto (almost certainly a groan-worthy play on “autonomous”).

The truck departed Fort Collins, Colorado and drove 120 miles south to Colorado Springs on I-25, the main artery that connects the two cities through Denver and links much of the mountain west.

“It’s like a train on software rails,” said Anthony Levandowski, co-founder of Otto. “When you see a vehicle with nobody in it, you know it’s very unlikely to get in a collision.”

 

 

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