Nuro unveils larger autonomous cargo vehicle

Autonomous vehicle maker Nuro has unveiled its third-generation electric autonomous delivery vehicle.

Nuro’s third-generation vehicle is designed to carry more goods, with twice the cargo volume of the company’s second generation vehicle.

It will also have modular inserts to customize storage and new temperature-controlled compartments to keep goods warm or cool.

Nuro is also announcing it will use 100 percent renewable energy for all vehicle charging and facilities for the first time starting this month.

Since Nuro vehicles never carry people, safety is focused on the outside environment. The new vehicle will have an external air bag to improve safety for pedestrians. A multi-modal sensing suite, including cameras, radars, lidar and thermal cameras, will create a redundant 360-degree view of the world to keep track of its surroundings.

“Five years ago, we set out to build an autonomous vehicle and delivery service designed to run errands, giving people back valuable time. Through our strategic partnerships with Domino’s, FedEx, Kroger, 7-Eleven and more, we are doing just that—improving road safety, sustainability and overall access to goods delivery,” said Dave Ferguson, Nuro co-founder and president.

“With the introduction of our new flagship model and the ground-breaking of our new production facility – one of the industry’s first end-of-line manufacturing facilities in America – we are excited about the opportunity to fulfill our vision of improving everyday life through autonomous delivery at scale.”

Partnership with BYD

The new model will be produced in partnership with BYD North America and completed at Nuro’s new US$40 million end-of-line manufacturing facility and closed-course test track in southern Nevada. BYD North America will assemble globally sourced hardware components for the vehicle platforms; Nuro will complete the final steps of manufacturing and make the autonomous vehicles ready for deployment. The facilities have the capacity to manufacture and test tens of thousands of delivery vehicles a year.

Nuro’s southern Nevada facilities are expected to be fully operational this year. Construction on the manufacturing facility officially kicked off in November 2021.

Additionally, Nuro’s strategic partnerships with industry leaders have continued to expand. In 2021 alone, the company announced a multi-year commitment with FedEx, introduced Chipotle as an investor partner, piloted delivery with Domino’s in Houston and with 7-Eleven in Mountain View. Kroger has also committed to use the third-gen Nuro EV.

Nuro closed a $600 million funding round in Q4 2021.