AURORA IS ACQUIRING UBER’S SELF-DRIVING UNIT, ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, ACCELERATING DEVELOPMENT OF THE AURORA DRIVER
>> Through a strategic partnership with Uber, Aurora paves a path for delivering the Aurora Driver broadly
At Aurora, we are driven by our mission to deliver the benefits of self-driving technology, and guided by our values, including focus, setting outrageous goals, and creating a culture where we win together. This focus means having clarity about where we need to go and flexibility in how we get there. Today, we're announcing that we are acquiring Uber’s self-driving unit, Advanced Technologies Group (ATG). ATG's team and technology will accelerate our mission and the delivery of our first product safely, quickly, and broadly.
“By adding the people and technology of Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group to the incredible group we’ve already assembled at Aurora, we’re shifting the landscape of the automated vehicle space,” said Chris Urmson, co-founder and CEO of Aurora. “With the addition of ATG, Aurora will have an incredibly strong team and technology, a clear path to several markets, and the resources to deliver. Simply put, Aurora will be the company best positioned to deliver the self-driving products necessary to make transportation and logistics safer, more accessible, and less expensive.”
The team at ATG brings expertise, passion, and determination to delivering self-driving vehicles safely to the road. ATG, like Aurora, has been heads down, focused on building. While their advances in software, hardware, product design, and more have flown under the radar, they have made tremendous headway on many fronts. They are committed to rigorous testing and have built a strong safety culture. With their technical prowess in both research and practical applications, ATG will strengthen and accelerate the first Aurora Driver applications for heavy-duty trucks while allowing us to continue and accelerate our work on light-vehicle products.
In addition to acquiring ATG, we are also announcing a strategic partnership with Uber that connects our technology to the world’s leading ride-hailing platform and strengthens our position to deliver the Aurora Driver broadly. While autonomous trucking is where we will deliver our product first, our relationship with Uber puts us in the unique position to be a leading player in both autonomous trucking and passenger mobility. In support of Aurora’s partnership with Uber, Uber is investing $400 million in Aurora and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is joining our Board.
“Few technologies hold as much promise to improve people’s lives with safe, accessible, and environmentally friendly transportation as self-driving vehicles. For the last five years, our phenomenal team at ATG has been at the forefront of this effort—and in joining forces with Aurora, they are now in pole position to deliver on that promise even faster,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber CEO. “I’m looking forward to working with Chris, and to bringing the Aurora Driver to the Uber network in the years ahead.”
At Aurora we focus on fueling our progress through developing foundational technology, hiring amazing people, and building valuable relationships and partnerships. Today marks an exciting moment for Aurora, the people of ATG, and the future of self-driving technology. The momentum and power of our combined team creates a unique opportunity to realize our mission, and build the technology and products the world needs to make transportation and logistics safer and more accessible.
Finally, and most importantly, welcome to the team, ATG! We’re proud to have you with us.
Aurora
Aurora, founded in 2017 by the leading experts in self-driving, is delivering the benefits of self-driving technology safely, quickly, and broadly. The company is building the Aurora Driver, a platform that brings together software, hardware and data services to operate passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles, and heavy-duty trucks across a range of applications. Aurora is backed by Amazon and Sequoia, among others, and tests its vehicles in the Bay Area, Pittsburgh, and Dallas. The company has offices in those three cities and in Bozeman, Montana.
