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Aurora Innovation , the autonomous vehicle technology company aiming to set up a “ driverless ” ego - driving hand truck business by the goal of 2024 , place off lashings of workers this calendar month , fit in to origin familiar with the action . The Pittsburgh - based fellowship , which also has facilities in California , Colorado , Texas and Montana , has since corroborate that about 3 % of its workforce was place off in the beginning of the twelvemonth , following an organisational review .
Aurora employed about 1,800 workers as of the end of 2023 , according to the company .
“ As we move toward commercial launching , we recently reviewed the total organization to guarantee we are work as efficaciously as potential and with the velocity need to accomplish our challenging end , ” according to an emailed statement attributed to Aurora ’s senior vice president of mass Cristopher Barrett . “ Through this process , a special number of role were excrete which bear upon 3 percent of our full work force . During the recent market uncertainty , we have been incredibly thoughtful in our resourcing for minimise such actions . We are thankful for the contribution of these somebody and are abide them through this conversion . ”
The layoffs come in as Aurora presses ahead with plans to deploy a fleet of self - driving trucks that can navigate U.S. highways without a human driver behind the wheel . The company has said it expects to launch up to 20 driverless Class 8 truck by the end of 2024 . Initially , these driverless trucks — meaning no human behind the wheel — will carry freight between Dallas and Houston , a path the troupe has been using for examination .
Aurora is also working with automotive provider Continental on amore than $ 300 million projectto mass grow self-governing vehicle computer hardware for commercial ego - driving trucks . Aurora latterly wrapped up the first stage of the labor , which allows Continental to figure out on developing paradigm ahead of its plan to begin output in 2027 .
Developing autonomous fomite applied science that is safe enough for public route has proven to be an expensive endeavor that has result to legion inauguration shutting down or being acquired . That wave of consolidation plain off in 2020 and stay , thanks to economical headwinds , well into 2023 .
Aurora , whichwas founded in 2017by alumni of Tesla , Uber and Waymo , took the way of life to public securities industry in a command to raise the Washington needed to commercialize the frontier tech . Aurora became a publicly trade company in 2021after mergingwith a extra aim acquisition company launch by LinkedIn co - father and investor Reid Hoffman , Zynga founder Mark Pincus and managing cooperator Michael Thompson .
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Aurora has emerged as one of the last remaining companies focus on commercializing self - driving big rigs . Kodiak Robotics , which is in private held ; Torc Robotics ; and Sweden ’s Einride are also working on self - driving truck . Still , it has n’t always been the smoothest of roads , as the mellow cost of employ engineers to develop the applied science combine with economic headwinds has chipped away at capital .
In 2022 , aleaked memosent by Aurora CEO and carbon monoxide - founder Chris Urmson presented a belt of monetary value - slip and hard cash - generating options to its plug-in , ranging from a hire frost and birl out asset to a little uppercase raise , going secret and even betray itself to in high spirits - profile technical school companies Apple and Microsoft .
The company assured investors it hadenough moneyto get to mid-2024 , and while some cost reductions were made , real stand-in total in July 2023 when it fill in acapital wage hike of $ 820 millionfrom a public and coincidental private oblation of its stock .
The caller said at the time that the broth cut-rate sale would avail fund it through commercial-grade launching at the end of 2024 and “ well into 2025 . ” Aurora ingeminate its fiscal position in its third - quarter 2023 earnings report card and say it expect its total liquidity of $ 1.5 billion to endorse its be after commercial-grade launch and fund operations into the 2nd half of 2025 .
