Algo AI, Ford and VW Group-backed self-driving vehicle developer revealed this week an ecosystem of products and services designed to support commercial delivery and robo-taxis operations.
A product list that includes fleet management software, data analytics, high-definition mapping, and cloud-based communication tools goes far beyond self-driving systems to enable vehicles to navigate city streets without the need for a human driver. increase.
Taken together, they send a message to businesses. Argo is ready to start your business.
Argo’s product line is broad and designed for robo-taxis and last- and middle-mile delivery services. And while Argo didn’t name exactly which companies it’s targeting or has contracts with, the company says it’s interested in the consumer goods and healthcare industries.
“These systems need to be built in such a way that they can plug in and solve what an enterprise needs,” Brett Browning, CTO and VP of Product Development at Argo, said in a recent interview. I’m here. “And as much as technology is cool, for most business owners, technology is a means to an end. Whatever your business need, how do you solve it?”
It’s no secret that Argo, a startup founded in 2016 by Bryan Salesky and Pete Rander, develops and tests self-driving systems.
The company’s self-driving Ford Fusion vehicle, and now the Ford Escape Hybrid, can be seen testing on public roads in its headquarters in Austin, Detroit Miami, Palo Alto and Pittsburgh. In the EU, Argo is using the all-electric Volkswagen ID Buzz for its test programs in Hamburg and Munich. Argo is also running several pilot programs in Austin, Miami and Pittsburgh with Lyft, Walmart and 412 Food Rescue.
What has been less clear so far is exactly what other mouthwatering carrots they offer to convert these pilots into long-term customers or attract new ones.
As you can imagine, Argo’s core product is an autonomous driving system that combines software and hardware. This includes proprietary lidar sensors, high resolution maps, and a backend cloud-based tool called Hub that supports AV in the field. they will be back
Hub, a collection of APIs and web tools, allows fleet operators or companies to run a checklist to ensure everything is working before their AV is deployed on public roads.you can do that too Send real-time updates to your vehicle about road changes, or provide remote guidance and troubleshooting when your AV needs assistance.
“On the service operations side, we have a lot of existing tools that let us know if a tire needs to be replaced,” says Browning. “But what about the more complex things going on inside the self-driving system?” Do they have something to plug into it? How do you know that sometimes these vehicles need to be adjusted?
Image credit: Algo AI
Argo also develops other tools, such as operations and fleet management software, apparently aimed at delivery services.
Whether a company uses all or some of them, the gateway to all these products is a tool the company has named Argo Connect. It is a collection of application programming interfaces (or APIs) that companies can add to their existing operational software. For example, Lyft may connect Connect to its ride-hailing app, allowing you to choose when and where you want your self-driving car to be dispatched on its network. Alternatively, restaurant suppliers can add Connect to their existing software to dispatch driverless delivery vehicles as needed.
These products and services are designed to work together. However, Browning says there are some à la carte options, depending on the needs of the company.
Demo until commercialization
In the early days of AV development, from 2013 to 2018, when startups were popping up like mushrooms after the rain, much of the energy proved that vehicles could avoid obstacles and drive themselves well on closed courses. It was directed to and later published. road.
These face-to-face or video streaming AV demos were common. All the back-end elements necessary to make self-driving systems attractive to e-commerce, logistics, retailers, or ride-hailing companies were rarely, if ever, mentioned.
The landscape is changing as the few companies that have survived and even grown through the consolidation period look at ways to profit from autonomous vehicle technology. With more than 2,000 employees, Argo (and several other AV companies of similar size) can only survive under the formidable pre-revenue (or collaboration revenue) category. Also, Argo has commercial partnerships with his Lyft and Walmart, but they get revenue from the service.
The company’s unveiling of its product line shows its big ambitions to reach a wider audience beyond the two big name backers of Ford and Volkswagen.
Some customers may require the entire product suite. All of which are now used in his 150 vehicles at Argo. Others may not need a particular tool, argues Browning.For example, Ford and Volkswagen may not need his tools for vehicle maintenance, but they may need data. he added.
“At some point, there may be companies that want Argo to actually perform operations similar to what we do with their development fleets today,” he said. “And it’s been very nice. We were able to go and do it. The point is to be flexible about them.”
