Aurora Innovation and Hirschbach Motor Lines have announced an expanded strategic partnership that could bring 500 Aurora Driver-powered trucks into Hirschbach’s fleet beginning in 2027. If finalized, the agreement would support a major scale-up of autonomous trucking operations for Hirschbach and create a multi-year revenue stream for Aurora valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
Hirschbach, a refrigerated freight carrier based in Dubuque, Iowa, plans to own the trucks and subscribe to Aurora’s Driver-as-a-Service model. According to Aurora, the model allows customers to maintain ownership and control of the assets while using the Aurora Driver self-driving system.
“The Aurora Driver will provide consistent 24/7 service to our customers, making it an important growth lever for our business,” said Richard Stocking, CEO of Hirschbach Motor Lines. “But autonomy isn’t just a business move — it’s a quality-of-life investment for our people. The Aurora Driver will handle the lengthier, less desirable routes, providing our drivers with greater flexibility. It’s a win-win.”
The companies said the trucks would be deployed across Aurora’s network, with a focus on high-volume routes between customer facilities in the Sun Belt and beyond. Aurora recently transitioned to driverless deliveries to Laredo, Texas, to support one of Hirschbach’s key customers. Hirschbach is also a customer on Aurora’s 1,000-mile Fort Worth-to-Phoenix route, which supports the carrier’s coast-to-coast business.
To date, the Aurora Driver has completed more than 800,000 miles while delivering more than 2,000 loads for Hirschbach. Hirschbach’s million-mile drivers also helped evaluate the Aurora Driver before Aurora launched driverless operations on its inaugural Dallas-to-Houston route.
The planned expansion reflects Hirschbach’s interest in a hybrid freight network, where autonomous trucks handle long-haul routes and traditional drivers focus on shorter hauls. For refrigerated freight operations, that model could help carriers improve asset utilization while giving drivers more predictable work patterns.
“When early adopters see the benefits the Aurora Driver delivers for their business and their drivers, they don’t just stay the course — they scale quickly,” said Aurora co-founder and CEO Chris Urmson.
The agreement remains subject to definitive documentation. Aurora noted that Hirschbach’s intent to purchase 500 trucks is based on current plans and discussions under the non-binding agreement and may not result in binding orders on the expected timeline or at all.
