Iveco, together with PlusAI, will carry out level 4 autonomous driving tests between Madrid and Zaragoza with its heavy trucks

The Italian truck manufacturer Iveco and the US company PlusAI, specialised in autonomous driving solutions for heavy vehicles, have announced an ambitious pilot project in Spain. The initiative involves the Aragonese logistics company Sesé and is backed by the Government of Aragón.

The artificial intelligence-based system SuperDrive, developed by PlusAI, enables heavy trucks to be driven without a human driver on most occasions. This is a development that will completely change road freight transport once its reliability has been proven.

The company, headquartered in Santa Clara (California), operates in Silicon Valley and in the German city of Munich, the latter through its collaboration with Traton, the subsidiary of Volkswagen that groups heavy truck brands such as MAN and Scania. PlusAI is currently in the process of going public through a merger with the SPAC Churchill Capital Corp IX.

More details about this project

The agreement with Iveco for this project provides for the development and testing of two Iveco S-Way heavy trucks equipped with the Superdrive Level 4 autonomous driving system. It is important to note, however, that although Level 4 allows operation without human intervention under specific conditions, throughout the testing period, which will extend over several years, a safety operator will remain on board as an additional precautionary measure.

The tests will begin this same year, 2026, and will be carried out on real Sesé freight corridors, mainly on the route of just over 300 km linking the Spanish capital with Zaragoza, in the autonomous community of Aragón. To underline the importance of this project, it is enough to say that this will be the first time heavy trucks equipped with a Level 4 autonomous driving system are tested on the road in southern Europe.

“PlusAI’s technology can dramatically improve road safety and redefine freight transport worldwide. We are proud to expand our collaboration with Iveco to include Level 4 operations in Germany and Spain and, together with Sesé, to demonstrate how it contributes to greater efficiency, safety and sustainability in the sector, strengthening European supply chains.”