Oxbotica and Applied EV are set to collaborate on a fully autonomous, multi-purpose electric vehicle capable of being deployed in a wide range of environments for a variety of commercial applications.
The project will see Oxbotica integrate its AV software with Applied EV’s programmable and configurable EV platform to deliver a fully driverless vehicle capable of meeting the demands of commercial autonomy.
Industrial logistics and goods delivery will be the first industries targeted for deployment, with continued growth expected in further industries as the number of vehicles scaled.
The go-to-market strategy for Oxbotica and Applied EV is to focus on markets that have immediate economic business cases, and a mature regulatory environment to enable deployment at scale.
The Applied EV platform, Blanc Robot, is modular and fully flexible, designed to operate as a fully autonomous vehicle and configurable for specific applications, such as logistics or industrial. Applied EV offers the Blanc Robot with an all-wheel-drive system, in either an off-road or on-road specification. Battery size is matched to the duty and charge cycles, with total efficiency up to 10 miles/kWh. This versatility is a perfect match for Oxbotica’s Universal Autonomy software platform.
“Working in collaboration with Applied EV to provide the market with an autonomy solution comprising both hardware and software with the highest safety standards is a singular and unifying goal,” said Paul Newman, founder and CTO of Oxbotica. “We have an ambitious deployment goal over the coming years, driven by an extraordinary market appetite for a world-class product.”
Julian Broadbent, founder and CEO of AppliedEV, added, “Oxbotica and AEV both see an opportunity in the market to come together with a unique offering of strong commercial outcomes as early as 12 months. The real value of automated vehicles is to operate without the presence of a driver with high levels of safety. There are not many instances where you will find full autonomous vehicles in the market doing a real job, with real economics. Removing the driver and passengers reduces the risk and creates new levels of value and service.”
Ocado Group, which announced in April that it was investing in and collaborating with Oxbotica to develop an autonomous integrated mobility solution for its e-grocery business, also welcomed the news. “We are really excited and supportive of this collaboration between Oxbotica and Applied EV as we see it as an important step on our journey to developing advanced autonomous mobility solutions for the Ocado Smart Platform,” said Alex Harvey, chief of advanced technology of Ocado Technology.