Aurora’s next-generation hardware is being integrated with multiple platforms, including the International LT Series, which is slated for driverless deployment without an observer in Q2 2026. [Image: Aurora]
Aurora Innovation—which already operates commercial self-driving truck runs on I-45 between Dallas and Houston—has launched a second driverless route from Fort Worth to El Paso. The Pittsburgh-based company’s second North Texas “lane” is rolling out as the company surpasses 100,000 driverless miles on public roads, amid plans to deploy its next-gen hardware on “hundreds” of additional autonomous trucks in 2026.
Aurora (Nasdaq: AUR) is launching the 600-mile Fort Worth-El Paso route six months after it inaugurated fully driverless commercial trucking runs between Dallas and Houston—without a single human on board. (The company later put an “observer” back behind the wheel at the request of PACCAR, its OEM truck partner, and an observer will also be “far back from the wheel” on the Fort Worth-El Paso PACCAR truck-based runs. But the trucks are still “driverless,” a spokesperson confirmed, since they are being 100% guided by the company’s next-gen, autonomous Aurora Driver system, which is fully responsible for all driving tasks.)
Customers on the El Paso route include Hirschbach Motor Lines, an early adopter of the Aurora Driver, Russell Transport, and others. With five driverless trucks now regularly delivering customer freight in Texas, Aurora says it “continues to maintain its perfect driverless on-time and safety record.”
Looking forward into 2026, Aurora says its next-gen hardware is being integrated into multiple truck platforms, including the Volvo VNL and International LT Series Class 8 vehicles (formerly Navistar). Those “hundreds” of new self-driving trucks will be deployed without an observer in the cab, a spokesperson noted.
“Six months out from launch, we’re achieving more industry-firsts, expanding quickly, and paving the way to deploy hundreds of trucks next year,” Aurora Co-Founder and CEO Chris Urmson said in a statement. “Expanding to El Paso, notching over 100,000 driverless miles, and integrating our new hardware with multiple truck platforms extends our strong lead.”
Fort Worth to El Paso is a long, tiresome haul
Aurora says the long, flat, often featureless Fort Worth-El Paso route is ideal for its driverless trucks, since staffing challenges and the difficulty of completing the 10-hour haul in a single day “make the route daunting for carriers.”
As opposed to human truck drivers, who have to make mandated stops for rest on long hauls, the Aurora Driver enables “reliable, around-the-clock operations,” the company said.
Next-gen hardware unveiled, with more on the way
Aurora has also unveiled new, next-gen hardware for its autonomous trucks. Manufactured by Fabrinet, the tech is designed to reduce overall cost by half while boosting performance and durability. Features include a new generation of FirstLight Lidar, which can detect objects 1,000 meters away—twice the distance of the current generation. And to help enable all-weather operation, enhanced sensor cleaning allows the Aurora Driver to operate reliably in harsher weather conditions, the company said. Additionally, the new hardware aims to deliver increased reliability—it’s “built to last over a million miles.”
That next-gen hardware precedes the “highly-scalable” hardware being jointly developed with AUMOVIO (formerly Continental), which is slated for production in 2027 and is expected to enable the deployment of “tens of thousands of trucks,” Aurora said.
Nils Jaeger, president of Volvo Autonomous Solutions, said the integration of Aurora’s next-generation hardware with the Volvo VNL Autonomous on the pilot line of Volvo’s New River Valley facility “marks an industry-first partnership and highlights the meaningful progress we are making together.”
“By manufacturing trucks purpose-built for autonomy,” Jaeger added, “we’re moving beyond prototypes and creating scalable solutions that are ready to meet the demands of a modern supply chain.”
Aurora said PACCAR continues to test its autonomy-enabled truck platform at its facilities. Aurora then plans to integrate the platform with the highly-scalable hardware being co-developed with AUMOVIO.
Testing new fleet on a closed test track
Auroa called adding the International LT Series vehicles “key to providing customers with greater driverless capacity in 2026.” The company said it has successfully begun testing the new fleet at its closed test track. Upon completion of a closed safety case for these trucks, Aurora plans to haul freight without a partner-requested observer in Q2 2026—and “already has customer interest” for this capacity.
“As an early adopter, we embrace the opportunity to help define the future of freight technology,” Richard Stocking, president & CEO of Hirschbach Motor Lines, said in a statement. “Integrating an additional fleet strengthens our driverless capacity—a vital advancement in ensuring we meet customer demand and deliver operational excellence.”
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