Oxa closes third US autonomous vehicle deployment

Just over a year since the autonomous vehicle (AV) software developer changed its name from Oxbotica and enlisted Google Cloud to accelerate the global take-up of its platform, Oxa has announced the third commercial deployment of its Oxa Driver service in the US.

The deployment is being carried out in collaboration with autonomous shared mobility firm Beep, and will see Oxa Driver installed on Beep’s autonomous shuttles operated in a pilot programme for the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) servicing Rossmoor Walnut Creek, a 55-plus active senior community in California.

Named Presto, the autonomous shuttle service is CCTA’s first pilot leveraging Oxa Driver and Oxa’s first West Coast project with Beep.

The autonomous shuttles can carry up to seven seated and secured passengers, and will operate Monday to Friday from 7am to 5pm with a trained safety attendant on board. 

The electric, autonomous shuttles will operate on a predetermined route in the Rossmoor community, running Oxa Driver with Beep managing the planning, deployment and operation of the autonomous mobility network.

As part of this deployment, Oxa also deployed its MetaDriver product, a virtual testing and training suite that uses generative artificial intelligence, digital twins and simulation to accelerate machine learning and testing of self-driving technology before and during real-world use.

It generates a bank of synthetic scenes and virtual scenarios, including rare and unusual edge cases – such as foggy days that hinder visibility, or objects appearing from behind moving vehicles – that are difficult, costly and time-consuming to recreate in conventional testing. It also assures the safe and efficient deployment of AV technology in live operations.

Oxa CEO Gavin Jackson said: “As we continue to expand our presence in the US, deploying our autonomous software products in different locations and environments is key as we work towards our goal of universal autonomy.

“The Rossmoor community has a population of over 9,000 residents, and is a perfect location for us to continue to evolve our autonomous vehicle software while collaborating with Beep to provide a private service connecting Rossmoor residents to key amenities and locations throughout their community,” he said.

“Safety is always our priority at Oxa, and using Oxa MetaDriver and Oxa Driver together provides multiple layers of safety for the vehicle, attendant and passengers. Virtual simulation enables verification and validation to be over 1,000 times faster than real-world miles and allows us to robustly test in advance of deployments, without putting humans at risk.”

The Rossmoor launch follows Oxa’s previous participation in Beep’s deployments in the US at Lake Nona in Orlando and Florida State College at Jacksonville. Additional deployments are planned in both the US and UK before the end of the year.