Aurora’s driverless trucks can now travel farther distances faster than human drivers

Aurora’s self-driving trucks can now travel nonstop on a 1,000-mile route between Fort Worth and Phoenix — exceeding what a human driver can legally accomplish.

The distance, and the time it takes to travel it, offers up positive financial implications for Aurora — and any other company hoping to commercialize self-driving semitrucks.

It takes Aurora about 15 hours to carry freight in its driverless trucks on the 1,000-mile journey, according to the company. Human truck drivers take much longer to complete the same distance due to federal regulations that limit how long they can be behind the wheel. For instance, truck drivers must stop for a 30-minute break after eight hours and can operate a semitruck for a maximum of 11 hours at a time, according to federal regulations. Once drivers hit that threshold, they cannot get behind the wheel for another 10 hours. 

“This represents more than a technological achievement,” Aurora co-founder and CEO Chris Urmson said during the company’s earnings call Wednesday afternoon. “It is the dawn of a superhuman future for freight.”

It also offers compelling economics to its customers, which includes Uber Freight, Werner, FedEx, and Schneider. The company said that eventually it can cut transit times nearly in half, a stat that has won over companies like Hirschbach, an early customer on the Fort Worth-to-Phoenix route. 

Aurora said in a letter to shareholders that it is poised to expand across the Sun Belt of the United States. Today, the company operates driverless trucks — some with a human observer still in the cab — on routes between Dallas and Houston, Fort Worth and El Paso, El Paso and Phoenix, Fort Worth and Phoenix, and Laredo and Dallas.

The expansion has helped Aurora transition from a developer of autonomous trucks to a commercial operator who is earning money on its driverless routes. 

Aurora has brought in revenue since April 2025 when it first deployed driverless, heavy-duty trucks for commercial use on public roads. Aurora reported $1 million in the fourth quarter and $3 million for the year, according to a report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company’s CFO, David Maday, said total year adjusted revenue, which includes money earned through pilot programs early last year, was $4 million.

That’s a tiny figure, especially when compared to its expenses. Aurora reported a net income loss of $816 million in 2025, up 9% from the year before as it focuses on scaling its operations. Still, it shows measurable progress from 2024, when it didn’t recognize any revenue.

Revenue is projected to continue as the company adds more trucks and driverless routes to its network. Today, the company has 30 trucks in the fleet, 10 of which are operating driverlessly. That fleet is expected to grow to more than 200 trucks by the end of the year. Urmson said the company’s trucks have racked up 250,000 driverless miles as of January 2026 with a perfect safety record.

In the second quarter, Aurora plans to deploy a fleet of driverless International Motors LT trucks, which will not have a human observer on board. Aurora’s driverless operations that use Paccar trucks currently have a human safety observer in the cab as requested by the truck manufacturer.

Urmson took a bullish view of Aurora’s future, buoyed by advancements in its self-driving software, an impending second-generation hardware kit that will lower costs, and expansion of its driverless routes. The expansion of its driverless trucking routes has been propelled by a new software release, its fourth since launching commercial service in April 2025.

The first release validated initial driverless operations between Dallas and Houston, the second validated operations at night, and the third validated El Paso, according to Aurora. The company said this latest software release will give its self-driving system the capabilities to navigate the diverse geography and climate of the southern United States.

“Just as the last two years brought robotaxis into the mainstream, we expect 2026 to mark the inflection point where the market recognizes that self-driving trucks have arrived and are quickly becoming a permanent fixture in our transportation landscape,” Urmson said on the company’s earnings call. “If you’re in the Sun Belt in 2026, you won’t just read about the Aurora driver. You’ll see it every day.”

Aurora currently operates driverless routes through Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, and has future driverless operations planned for Nevada, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, the company said.