Gatik, an autonomous truck developer for middle-mile delivery, deployed fully autonomous trucks without a safety driver in Canada in partnership with food and pharmacy retailer, Loblaw. This marks the first fully autonomous truck deployment in Canada.

As per the deal, Gatik will haul selected grocery orders for Loblaw’s PC Express service locations in Greater Toronto Area.

However, a driver will still be present on standby in the passenger seat to take control if needed.

Gatik and Loblaw have been partners since 2020 and have conducted 150,000 autonomous deliveries, with a safety driver on board. Reportedly, the duo has maintained a 100% safety record on those deliveries.

Analyst QuickTake: Canada will now become the second market where Gatik conducts fully autonomous trucking operations. The company began fully driverless operations in the US in late 2021 , hauling goods in Arkansas on behalf of Walmart.  Peer startup TuSimple also commenced fully autonomous truck pilots in the US, while  Aurora Innovation, Embark Technology, and Einride are also progressing with their plans to begin driverless operations in the coming years.