The self-driving technology firm unveiled its fourth-generation autonomous heavy truck and plans to take its Robotruck business into Europe and the Middle East.
By Stone Jin
Pony.ai (PONY.US) (2026.HK) and GAC Commercial Vehicle unveiled their jointly developed L4 autonomous heavy truck at the IAA Transportation show in Hanover on Sept. 14, marking the global debut of the latest Robotruck model.
Based on GAC Commercial Vehicle’s T9 battery-electric heavy truck, the vehicle is scheduled to enter mass production this year. It will initially be deployed in trunk-line freight, dedicated-route logistics and port transportation, as Pony.ai accelerates the commercialization of autonomous freight services.
Lower costs, redundant systems
The T9 autonomous truck is equipped with Pony.ai’s fourth-generation L4 autonomous driving system and GAC Commercial Vehicle’s ’s fully redundant drive-by-wire chassis.
Six critical systems — steering, braking, communications, power, computing and sensing — use redundant architectures designed to ensure the vehicle can operate safely in a range of conditions.
The vehicle also uses a production-grade autonomous driving package comprising nine lidar sensors, three millimeter-wave radars and 13 cameras. Together, they provide 360-degree sensing around the vehicle.
Its domain controller is the same generation used in Pony.ai’s seventh-generation Robotaxi system. The bill of materials for the autonomous driving package has been cut by 70% from the previous generation, while transportation costs per ton-kilometer are expected to fall by 30%.
Energy consumption is also lower. Pony.ai said its energy-saving algorithms, combined with the T9’s electric powertrain and low 0.4Cd drag coefficient, will reduce energy use by 10% compared with conventional trucks.
He Xing, general manager of Pony.ai’s truck division, said the partnership with GAC Commercial Vehicle would accelerate the mass production and commercial deployment of autonomous trucks, adding that the companies planned to take their vehicles to markets around the world.
Du Peiyuan, chief operating officer of GAC Commercial Vehicle and CEO of its MONTX brand, said the partnership would support the commercial vehicle industry’s transition toward new-energy and intelligent vehicles while expanding into global markets.
From Robotaxi to Robotruck
The T9 launch marks an expansion of the partnership between Pony.ai and GAC Commercial Vehicle’s parent company GAC Group (601238.SH) beyond Robotaxi services into autonomous trucking.
The companies signed a strategic cooperation agreement on April 16, and completed testing, validation and production preparations for the T9 in just five months. Pony.ai said the pace reflected its experience in autonomous-driving system design and vehicle production, alongside GAC Commercial Vehicle’s automotive engineering and manufacturing capabilities.
The companies plan to combine GAC Commercial Vehicle’s vehicle manufacturing and supply-chain capabilities with Pony.ai’s autonomous-driving technology and operating experience. They aim to establish production capacity for thousands of vehicles and accelerate commercial deployment of the T9.
The partners also intend to market the jointly developed autonomous trucks internationally, positioning the vehicles as a Chinese autonomous freight solution for global logistics operators.
Europe and Middle East next
At IAA Transportation, Pony..ai also announced its global strategy for Robotruck for the first time, saying it plans to enter the European and Middle Eastern markets within the next two years.
The company is pursuing a dual-track domestic and overseas expansion strategy. Its Robotaxi business has already begun international expansion, while in China it is focused on Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen before extending its commercial model to other major cities.
Overseas, Pony.ai has focused on markets including the Middle East, Europe and East Asia, with Robotaxi operating partnerships established in Dubai, Singapore and Croatia.
The company said Robotruck would follow the same internationalization path, using Europe’s commercial vehicle industry and supply chain as a platform for wider expansion.
Pony.ai is developing autonomous trucking applications across trunk-line and dedicated-route logistics, ports and urban distribution. It said continued advances in autonomous-driving technology and expansion into different operating environments would help reduce logistics costs and improve transport safety.
Source:
IPO Early Insights
