Gatik Notches Key Milestone In Industry-First Third-Party Safety Audit

Forbes

14-04-2025

In an industry first for driverless deployment, Gatik announced today that it has successfully closed two major pillars of its Safety Assessment Framework. Founded in 2017, Gatik is the dominant player in autonomous middle-mile logistics.
Both the Safety Case Evaluation and Functional Safety phases of Gatik's comprehensive Safety Assessment Framework were independently validated by TÜV SÜD, marking a significant milestone on the company's path to safely launching Freight-Only commercial operations this year ('Freight-Only' is Gatik's term for driverless operations, i.e. only cargo is being moved, not humans).
Gatik's announcement that their Safety Case and Functional Safety processes meet the requirements of a globally respected safety organization is a first for the autonomous driving industry.
For instance, Aurora has partnered with safety organizations including TÜV SÜD only in an advisory role, and Waymo has worked with Swiss Re to compare their on-road performance with relevant safety data. These and other autonomous vehicle deployers have chosen to apply their own internal validation process. This is in stark contrast to the level of rigor and transparency with which Gatik has approached the validation of its safety case, actively choosing to seek an independent audit of its entire safety ecosystem.
Arguments are made among safety experts as to 'how safe is safe enough?' in determining whether an autonomous vehicle is ready for deployment. Government agencies are in the game as well, particularly in Europe. So far, there is no broadly accepted 'right way.' There could be several legitimate approaches to safety validation.
With today's announcement Gatik has made a compelling argument for the need for a comprehensive, independent audit, at the same time demonstrating significant progress in approaching Freight-Only deployment at scale.
TÜV SÜD, a globally recognized independent testing, inspection, and certification organization with extensive experience in autonomous system safety assurance, provided independent, third-party validation that Gatik's rigorous approach to the development of a comprehensive Safety Case and Functional Safety met the requirements of TÜV SÜD's Autonomous Vehicle Conformity Framework (AVCF). The AVCF is a globally recognized process for evaluating autonomous vehicle safety across development, testing and deployment domains. Gatik announced their partnership with TÜV SÜD last fall.
While self-certification has become the accepted standard for safety in the AV industry, Gatik's Safety Assessment Framework enables traceability and transparency to all claims of safety that are made, by virtue of an independent assessment (see image above). TÜV SÜD's AVCF involves an end-to-end review of Gatik's Functional Safety portfolios, including the following key elements: Operational Design Domain, Item Definition, Testing, Hazard Analysis and Risk Assessment, Coverage/Safety Analysis and Safety Culture. Importantly, these items and all others related to safety trace to a comprehensive Safety Case allowing for appropriate oversight of the entire system. TÜV SÜD concluded that Gatik's approach demonstrated substantial rigor and compliance with its internal requirements under the AVCF.
'We strongly believe that the future of autonomous vehicles will be defined by those who prioritize safety above all else,' said Gautam Narang, CEO of Gatik. 'This independently validated audit of our Safety Case and Functional Safety ecosystem represents a radical departure from the self-certified safety audits that have become the industry norm. By engaging TÜV SÜD to provide this validation from an external vantage point, Gatik is setting a new benchmark for the industry – one that puts safety and transparency at the forefront of the autonomous vehicle revolution.'
'From the beginning, Gatik's approach to safety has been defined by an uncompromising commitment to the highest standards, both internal and external,' said Dr. Adam Campbell, Gatik's Head of Safety. 'The independent validation that we have pursued at Gatik meets the level of transparency that policymakers, first responders, business partners, and everyday drivers expect and deserve. TÜV SÜD's assessment represents a tremendous vote of confidence in our approaches to scaling safety in our Safety Assessment Framework, serving as the foundation for our launch of Freight-Only commercial operations at scale this year.'
Gatik's Safety Assessment Framework encompasses over 700 identified safety portfolios to address key pillars of AV safety: organizational safety culture, engineering quality (functional, behavioral and operational safety of the self-driving system), cyber security, vehicle safety, and Safety Case conformity to UL4600 and other industry standards. As part of the company's commitment to transparency and accountability across all aspects of their approach to safe testing and deployment, Gatik will soon be publicly sharing further information on progress made towards completion of the Safety Assessment Framework prior to deployment of Freight-Only operations.
Gatik provides its customers with autonomous transportation-as-a-service (ATaaS), enabling more frequent deliveries and future-proofing the supply chain for the nation's largest grocers, retailers and e-Commerce companies. The company focuses on short-haul, B2B logistics and in 2021 launched the world's first driverless commercial transportation service with Walmart. Other announced customers include Kroger, Loblaws, and Georgia-Pacific.
Gatik's Freight-Only vehicles are designed to operate in semi-urban and highway settings, i.e. everywhere except dense inner-city environments. A typical operation involves carrying goods from a distribution center to regional retail stores to increase product flow, ensure dedicated capacity, and protect against an acute driver shortage.
Gatik's Class 6-7 autonomous box trucks are commercially deployed in multiple markets including Texas, Arizona, Arkansas, and Ontario. Gatik is partnered with industry leaders including Isuzu Motors, Cummins, Ryder, and Goodyear. The company has offices in Mountain View, Dallas Fort-Worth, Phoenix, and Toronto.
As Gatik shares further information and rolls out Freight-Only operations in multiple regions this year, the external validation approach announced today will be put to the test in extensive real-world driving.
Disclosure: Richard Bishop is an Advisor to and/or an equity holder in the following companies mentioned in this article: Alphabet (Waymo), Aurora, Gatik.