The Advanced Clean Transportation Expo, which has just wrapped up in California, was the site of a grand unveiling in autonomous trucking technology.
Hyundai and Plus collaboratively revealed a project on autonomous hydrogen-powered fuel cell trucks, pairing Hyundai’s hydrogen-powered XCIENT Fuel Cell truck with Plus’s AI-based autonomous driving software, SuperDrive.
In a concept video revealed at the expo, Hyundai and Plus outline a practical framework for deploying autonomous hydrogen fuel cell trucks along high-utilisation hub-to-hub routes.
“Hyundai Motor believes in a sustainable future powered by advanced fuel cell technologies”, says Jim Park, senior vice president of commercial vehicle and hydrogen business development at Hyundai Motor North America.
“We hope to continue our partnership with Plus to add autonomous driving capabilities to XCIENT Fuel Cell trucks in the future and provide our fleet operator customers with additional solutions that improve road safety and freight efficiency.
“The concept shared today shows why we value this partnership and the vision for what autonomous hydrogen fuel cell trucks can deliver.”
Their joined approach will see initial deployment of these trucks across major American freight corridors with the hope to stimulate demand for hydrogen refuelling stations.
“Autonomous hydrogen fuel cell trucks are a transformative step forward in sustainable freight,” adds David Liu, CEO and co-founder of Plus.
“By combining self-driving and zero-tailpipe emission technologies, we are laying the groundwork for a cleaner, more efficient transportation system that meets the demands of today and the needs of tomorrow.
“We are excited to showcase a concept for the sustainable future we expect to create with innovation-driven partners like Hyundai Motor.”
Hyundai Motor is already operating 30 XCIENT Fuel Cell trucks at the Ports of Oakland and Richmond through the NorCAL ZERO Project – the largest hydrogen truck deployment in North America.
Since September 2023, these trucks have logged nearly 450,000 miles in zero-tailpipe emission freight transport, including container hauling.
In Georgia, 21 XCIENT trucks support logistics at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America under the HTWO Logistics initiative with GLOVIS America.
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