If Elon Musk had been correct, we’d all be zooming around in robot taxis by now.
Instead, completely self-driving cars are struggling to get off the starting line, and some investors believe autonomous trucks will be the first to cross the finish line.
Startups building Robo taxis received eight times more investment than companies developing autonomous trucks, buses, and logistical vehicles just a year ago, but the gap has shrunk considerably in 2021.
Trucks working on major highways established delivery routes, or in areas isolated from bikes and pedestrians, such as mines and ports, are increasingly considered as a speedier method to earn returns, thanks to fewer legislative and technological impediments.
According to startup data portal PitchBook, total investment activity for self-driving logistics vehicles increased fivefold to $6.5 billion from $1.3 billion in the same period in 2020.
Some robotaxi companies, such as Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Waymo, are also investing more money in their own autonomous haulage operations, so the numbers may understate the growth.
Robotic Research announced on Thursday that it has received $228 million for the first time from outside investors to grow its autonomous trucks, buses, and logistics vehicles business.
SoftBank’s (9984.T) Vision Fund 2, Enlightenment Capital, and Luminar Technologies (LAZR.O), which develops lidar sensors used in self-driving cars, are among the new investors.
According to Reuters, Robotic Research Chief Executive Alberto Lacaze said the company is “right now” deploying autonomous vehicles at a scale where the business case works for clients.
Robotaxi investment activity, meanwhile, plummeted 22% to $8.4 billion from $10.8 billion during the same period, according to PitchBook data gathered.
“They don’t have to wait until 2025, unlike Robo taxis where you need to have the cost of all the sensors come down by an order of magnitude,” he said.
