ElectraMeccanica (NASDAQ:SOLO) Vehicles Corp has announced a non-binding partnership agreement with Faction Technology Inc to demonstrate a pilot deployment of Faction's driverless and remote vehicle operation technology on its SOLO EV (electric vehicle) platform.
The Canadian electric car company said Faction plans to utilize the SOLO EVs to test its autonomous driving technology as it relates to micro-logistics and ride-on-demand. A test pilot program is currently underway with customers in both the food delivery and vehicle on-demand verticals in which the light electric vehicle is right-sized for delivery and shared mobility, it added.
Under the memorandum of understanding, ElectraMeccanica (NASDAQ:SOLO) and Faction will work on a best-efforts basis to expand the partnership towards the pilot deployment of a driverless demonstration fleet of up to 24 SOLO EVs over the next 12 months. To date, three SOLO EVs have been delivered to Faction.
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"Faction was one of our first customers to receive a SOLO EV for its development fleet, and this partnership represents the next step in our ongoing collaboration," ElectraMeccanica (NASDAQ:SOLO) CEO Kevin Pavlov said in a statement.
”We believe Faction's technology is essential in the evolution towards full autonomous driving, enabling vehicles to deliver cargo through a combination of autonomy and a remote worker using teleoperations to assist.”
Powered by the patent-pending DriveLink Platform, ElectraMeccanica said Faction is focused on autonomous driving artificial intelligence (AI) that is supported by teleoperation. The AI is task-designed with specific patterning to know when a vehicle needs help from the operator.
Post-coronavirus (COVID-19), the company said food delivery and shared-ride services remain in high demand in the US. However, the nation continues to face driver and chip shortages, which is forcing businesses in these industries to increase costs. It said Faction's technology embedded in the already competitive price point of the SOLO EV will allow consumers to pay a lower cost for these services per mile.
"We have been impressed with our SOLO EVs and this partnership will help to further expand the future of urban mobility,” Faction founder and CEO Ain McKendrick said.
“The SOLO EV is an excellent candidate for Faction's mission to right-size urban delivery and transportation, well suited for our unique approach to combine driverless technology with lightweight vehicle systems. We are excited to move toward implementing our driverless and remote vehicle operation technology into several SOLO EVs in the coming months so that we can begin real-world testing and data collection.”
Faction Technology, Inc. is a Silicon Valley startup that develops driverless solutions based on light electric vehicles.
ElectraMeccanica is developing the innovative, all-electric SOLO, a single passenger vehicle, as well as the Tofino, a high-performance two-seater electric roadster sports car.
The SOLO is a three-wheeled single-passenger car that boasts a top range of 100 miles and speeds of 82 miles per hour on a 17.3-kilowatt-hour battery pack.
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