In autonomous and self-driving vehicle news are Applied Intuition, Torc, Edge Case, Kodiak Robotics, NXP, Honda, Helm.ai, WeRide, Bosch, Nuro and Waymo.
In this Article
Applied Intuition Autonomy Stack for Passenger Vehicles
Applied Intuition, Inc., a leader in vehicle intelligence, has introduced its new Self-Driving System (SDS) for Automotive, bringing its end-to-end (E2E) white box autonomy stack to passenger cars. Designed for automakers, the system provides a high-performance and cost-effective pathway from advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) at the L2++ level to future L3 and L4 autonomy. Unlike black box offerings, SDS gives OEMs full transparency and customization options, allowing them to integrate brand-specific driving experiences while ensuring safety validation and compliance.
The platform integrates perception, planning, and control into a unified architecture capable of human-like driving performance in complex urban settings. It leverages recent breakthroughs in AI and E2E architectures to deliver scalable autonomy while still meeting the baseline safety requirements for features like emergency braking, parking, and highway pilot. Its hardware- and sensor-agnostic design enables flexibility, while its affordability comes from using mass-market sensors and compute solutions.
Applied Intuition’s track record in trucking, mining, and defense autonomy underscores the system’s reliability and adaptability. With SDS for Automotive, the company is equipping OEMs to compete globally by accelerating safe deployment, continuous feature upgrades, and long-term autonomy readiness. This launch positions Applied Intuition as a key partner in the industry’s transition toward intelligent mobility.
Torc & Edge Case afety of Autonomous Long-Haul Trucks
Torc, a leader in self-driving Class 8 trucks, has partnered with Edge Case to enhance the safety framework for its driverless trucking program. The collaboration will align Torc’s Driverless Safety Case with industry best practices, including AVSC guidance and the Open Autonomy Safety Case framework. Edge Case will independently evaluate Torc’s safety evidence, providing detailed assessments with engineering, safety, and operations teams. This partnership supports Torc’s commitment to rigorous safety standards and its goal to launch fully autonomous trucks in the U.S. by 2027.
Kodiak Robotics Integrates NXP Tech
Kodiak Robotics has partnered with NXP Semiconductors to integrate NXP’s automotive processors and in-vehicle networking interfaces into its autonomous truck platform, enhancing the performance, robustness, and reliability of its self-driving system. The integration centers on the Kodiak Actuation Control Engine (ACE), an independent computer managing vehicle actuation and enabling safe fallback maneuvers if critical systems fail. NXP’s S32G3 processor, S32K3 microcontrollers, VR5510 PMIC, and PF53 regulator support real-time performance, safety monitoring, and power management, achieving ISO 26262 ASIL-D safety standards. This collaboration strengthens Kodiak’s ability to deliver scalable, safety-critical computing for driverless freight, now operating on customer-owned and -operated semi-trucks in real-world routes.
Honda Partners with Helm.ai for AVs
Helm.ai has signed a multi-year joint development agreement with Honda Motor Co. to accelerate the automaker’s next-generation autonomous driving technologies, including its Navigate on Autopilot (NOA) system. The collaboration focuses on Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) for production vehicles, leveraging Helm.ai’s full-stack real-time AI software, large-scale autolabeling, and generative simulation foundation models to enhance highway and urban autonomy.
Honda’s NOA platform, built on end-to-end AI architecture, will assist with acceleration, steering, and navigation across all road types, with mass production targeted after 2027. The partnership aims to deliver scalable, safe, and cost-effective autonomous solutions, advancing Honda’s goal of achieving zero traffic collision fatalities globally.
WeRide Unveils WePilot AiDrive Developed with Bosch
WeRide (Nasdaq: WRD), a global leader in autonomous driving, has introduced WePilot AiDrive, a next-generation Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) developed in partnership with Bosch. This new solution replaces the traditional two-stage process—sensing followed by decision-making—with a one-stage architecture that allows vehicles to simultaneously perceive and respond, much like an experienced human driver. The result is faster reactions, optimized routes, and improved fault tolerance across a variety of driving conditions.
WePilot AiDrive has already completed its core function validation and is scheduled for mass production and deployment in 2025. Designed to handle challenging road scenarios—such as lane changes in heavy traffic, unprotected turns, and detours around unplanned construction—it supports both pure vision and multi-sensor fusion setups. The system also employs model distillation to scale computing power from high-performance platforms to mid- and low-power configurations, while its modular Level 2 functions simplify integration for automakers.
Leveraging extensive driving data, WePilot AiDrive continuously refines its performance to address edge cases and long-tail scenarios, ensuring that “the more you drive, the better it drives.” With this launch, WeRide is positioning itself to deliver human-like autonomy with robust safety and adaptability, marking a significant step toward more efficient, intelligent, and widely accessible assisted driving technologies worldwide.
Nuro Secures $203M Series E Funding
Nuro, Inc., a pioneer in autonomous driving, has closed a $203 million Series E funding round, elevating its valuation to $6 billion. The round includes new backing from Uber, Icehouse Ventures, Kindred Ventures, NVIDIA, and Pledge Ventures, along with returning investor Baillie Gifford. Combined with an initial $106 million tranche announced in April 2025, this latest investment strengthens Nuro’s financial position to expand its AI-first autonomous technology and deepen its commercial partnerships across ride-hailing, fleet, and personal vehicle markets.
The funding supports Nuro’s ongoing initiatives, including its recently announced partnership with Lucid and Uber to launch a next-generation robotaxi service targeting 20,000+ vehicles across global markets, beginning in a major U.S. city next year. NVIDIA, now both a collaborator and investor, provides its DRIVE AGX Thor platform for Nuro’s latest compute module, while Nuro leverages NVIDIA GPUs for large-scale AI model training and data processing.
With over $2.3 billion raised to date and nearly a decade of autonomous driving development, Nuro remains among the few companies to have deployed self-driving vehicles at city scale without safety drivers. The new funding will accelerate commercialization of the Nuro Driver™ system, bringing scalable, safe, and cost-effective autonomy to a broad range of transportation applications worldwide.
Waymo Gets Green Light for AV Testing in NYC
Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving subsidiary, has received its first permit from the New York City Department of Transportation to begin testing autonomous vehicles in Manhattan and Downtown Brooklyn. The program, which will run through late September and may be extended, marks the city’s first official autonomous vehicle testing effort.
The company will deploy up to eight vehicles, each required under state law to have a driver behind the wheel. Mayor Eric Adams said the initiative reflects New York’s commitment to embracing technology while prioritizing safety, calling it “the first step in moving our city further into the 21st century.”
Waymo has been expanding its robotaxi footprint nationwide, with operations in Austin, San Francisco, and upcoming launches in Atlanta, Miami, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. The company reported surpassing 10 million robotaxi trips in May and previously tested vehicles for data collection in New York in 2021. Under the new permit, Waymo must share data with the DOT and coordinate closely with law enforcement and emergency services.