How far are smart heavy trucks from the logistics industry? The answer may be much more than you think! At present, it is the bidding season for logistics vehicle procurement, and many logistics companies have begun to take the proportion of smart heavy trucks as a new procurement requirement in the bidding for heavy trucks, and even many relevant persons in charge of logistics companies have come to Changyang Chuanggu in Yangpu District, Shanghai, to consult and exchange ideas with Inceptio Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Inceptio Technology").
Founder and CEO of Inceptio Technology, Zheren Ma
Recently, Inceptio Trucks, which is equipped with a number of commercial vehicle brands and models, officially exceeded 100 million kilometers in safe operation, which is another major new breakthrough since the safe operation reached 50 million kilometers in August last year. From 50 million kilometers to 100 million kilometers, it took only half a year, which not only means that the commercial use of smart heavy trucks has shifted from quantitative to qualitative changes, but also means that the commercial use of smart heavy trucks is quietly accelerating.
The commercial value has been identified
CLPMA (China Logistics & Purchasing): What is the significance of Inceptio Trucks' 100 million km commercial operation of NOA for the company and the industry? Does it mean that smart heavy trucks are on the eve of an outbreak?
Ma Zheren (Founder & CEO of Inceptio Technology): Achieving 100 million kilometers of commercial operation means that the company has more abundant data sources and data assets, and of course, it also means that this new technology is truly accepted and used by customers. For 100 million kilometers, in addition to this number, it is more important to look at the mass behind it.
At present, smart heavy trucks may have reached a moment before the outbreak, which can also be said to be a growth inflection point. This can also be seen from the market feedback, at present, it is the bidding season for the procurement of logistics vehicles, many logistics companies began to require the proportion of intelligent heavy trucks in this year's heavy truck bidding, and many of the heads of logistics companies came to us for exchange and cooperation.
CLPMA: Inceptio Trucks NOA has achieved 100 million kilometers of commercial operation, which is undoubtedly far ahead of the industry, and it only took more than half a year to operate from 50 million kilometers to 100 million kilometers. What did Inceptio do right?
Ma Zheren: In other words, in the past, logistics users had to manage oil, people, and safety, but now as long as the proportion of autonomous driving is increased, safety can be improved, and cost reduction, efficiency improvement and income increase can be achieved.
Up to now, the safe operation mileage of Inceptio smart heavy trucks of 100 million kilometers shows that its safety risks can be reduced by 70%~73%. Driving safety is no trivial matter, which is of course generally valued by logistics users, especially those who have experienced a major accident in the past three years, and their willingness to buy and use is stronger.
Let's start with the savings in labor costs. For example, a leading express delivery company has realized 500~1200 kilometers from dual driving to single driving through the commercial use of intelligent heavy trucks, which directly reduces the labor cost of a single vehicle by 40%~50%. At the same time, logistics users in the process of using intelligent heavy trucks independent innovation, including 1300 km ~ 2500 km or even longer mileage of the traditional double driving line set up post relay points, thereby realizing the whole process of safe single driving, while the driver ratio from the previous three heads of 6 ~ 8 drivers to three heads of 5 drivers. This not only greatly reduces labor costs, but also improves the satisfaction of driver scheduling, and even after changing to territorial recruitment, the frequency of drivers being able to go home has also increased, improving the quality of life of drivers.
After the use of smart heavy trucks, on the one hand, the reduction of the proportion of drivers will alleviate this problem; On the other hand, the reduction of safety risks, as well as the greatly improved driving experience and comfort, will also make it easier to recruit drivers, and the problem is expected to be solved.
Let's talk about energy savings. After a contract logistics company put into use smart heavy trucks in batches in the trunk transportation of about 1,500 kilometers one-way, the fuel consumption per 100 kilometers was reduced by 3~5 liters compared with the traditional manual driving fuel consumption, the human-vehicle ratio of some lines was reduced from 2 to 1, and the TCO per kilometer was reduced by 7%~15%. Moreover, because of the excellent safety performance and labor-saving and comfortable driving experience of smart heavy trucks, the vehicle attendance rate has been significantly improved, and the average monthly operating mileage of a single vehicle has also increased by 10%.
In addition, there are also logistics users who have increased their income by operating smart heavy trucks. The reason is that some small and medium-sized logistics companies have reduced the labor intensity of drivers after using smart heavy trucks, so that the driver's operating mileage has increased from five or six hundred kilometers per day to seven or eight hundred kilometers in the past, and the income has been increased accordingly. Among them, the average monthly safe mileage of some individual drivers has increased by 10%~20%, and the monthly net income has increased by 2,500 yuan ~ 5,500 yuan.
CLPMA: You introduced that the use of Inceptio smart heavy trucks can achieve safety, cost reduction, efficiency improvement and income increase, so how much will its cost increase? Logistics users are also very sensitive to procurement costs.
Ma Zheren: At present, the purchase cost of using Inceptio smart heavy trucks must have increased to a certain extent, but after our calculation, we found that the increased car purchase cost can basically be earned back in 12~18 months.
From quantitative change to qualitative change
CLPMA: If the 50 million km safe operation mileage of Inceptio Truck's NOA in August last year is regarded as a quantitative change, then today's achievement of 100 million km means that the commercial use of smart heavy trucks has undergone a qualitative change, or a qualitative leap, can it be understood in this way? Why?
Ma Zheren: From quantitative change to qualitative change, it can be understood in this way. From 50 million kilometers to 100 million kilometers, why did it take only half a year?
When it exceeded 50 million kilometers last year, the operation was basically focused on the field of express delivery. The R&D cycle of smart heavy trucks is particularly long, the company has been "burning money" for research and development in the first three years since its establishment, and by the end of 2021, the first L3 heavy truck cooperated with the head OEM factory has achieved mass production, and the focus is on serving the express delivery enterprises at the top of the pyramid of the logistics industry during the period of reaching 50 million kilometers. This is a very long-term, rigorous verification process that demonstrates the safety, reliability and sustainability of our smart heavy-duty trucks.
According to incomplete statistics, Inceptio has more than 160 corporate customers (excluding individual drivers) of Inceptio smart heavy trucks, among which the top express customers cover Zhongtong, Yuantong, Shentong, Debang, Jingdong, SF, Yunda, Junyi, etc., and more customers in more subdivisions include LTL special lines, contract logistics, large carriers, small and micro fleets and individual drivers, etc., and the industries they serve involve cold chain, auto parts, tobacco and alcohol, FMCG, clothing and other industries. In addition, Inceptio Smart Heavy Truck's customers include world-renowned shippers such as Budweiser China and Nestle.
CLPMA: What is the development trend of the smart heavy truck market? What stage are you currently in? How is the market trending this year?
Ma Zheren: At present, we have exceeded 100 million miles of operating mileage, and a total of 1,864 drivers are involved in driving, and all drivers are generally reluctant to drive back to traditional heavy trucks after driving smart heavy trucks, so this is irreversible.
At present, we have jointly developed with several leading OEMs and mass-produced smart heavy trucks, including Dongfeng Tianlong flagship, Sinotruk Huanghe, Foton Auman, Liuqi Chenglong and other hot-selling models, including 4×2 products for express delivery and 6×4 products for LTL. In terms of the participation of OEMs, it has been quite sufficient, but some may have had models long ago, and some have only started to have models this year.
At present, it is in the "bidding season" of trucks, although many users have put forward requirements for the proportion of smart heavy trucks, but the overall proportion is still very small, so it can be said that the market has not really started, it is still in the early stage, but the critical point of rapid growth should come soon. For example, express delivery companies have been widely used and demonstrated and began to purchase in bulk, and a number of benchmark customers have begun to emerge in the fields of LTL and contract logistics. This means that today's situation of smart heavy trucks may be equivalent to the development stage of intelligent passenger cars three or four years ago, and the growth rate will be faster later.
CLPMA: Behind the far ahead and qualitative leap, does Inceptio also have technological advantages at work?
Ma Zheren: Each of us is looking forward to the arrival of the unmanned driving era, but industry peers have always had two routes, one is gradual development, and the other is to directly realize L4 unmanned driving in one step. In contrast, Inceptio Technology has opted for a gradual technological route.
At the same time, Inceptio Technology also maintains a relatively leading position in several aspects of technology, or has a deep accumulation. In terms of the core technology of autonomous driving, we have achieved full-stack self-development, and have a full set of complete core technologies. First, it includes all core algorithms for perception, planning, and control; The second is a full set of software, and the algorithm becomes software, which itself is another level; The third is to include the on-board computing platform, and the core domain control hardware on the car is self-developed, and it has been determined to develop its own domain control at the beginning of its establishment in 2018, which is the only one in the truck. This brings an integrated, software and hardware system, and then extends up, forward, the iterative efficiency will be higher, the system performance will be better, and the cost will be easier to optimize.
For example, based on the fact that the truck has a longer braking distance, it realizes long-distance perception; Another example is excellent fuel-saving technology, as well as more efficient, accurate and durable vehicle control technology. These technologies are also among the best in the world. Among them, in terms of vehicle control technology, the truck is long and heavy, and the lateral control accuracy requirements are particularly sensitive. Our lateral control accuracy is between 5~7 cm, which belongs to the highest level in the industry. In addition, whether the vehicle controller is braking or steering, the frequent use of the actuator will accelerate the wear and tear and affect the product life, and our control technology is to take the best balance through a large amount of operational data to achieve effective protection of the controller life.
In addition, I personally pay more attention to details and pursue the ultimate, and the company's corporate culture is honesty, limit, and results.
Continue to make efforts to "win" the future
CLPMA: Looking to the future, how can Inceptio Technology further develop its technological efforts?
Ma Zheren: In the future, understand user needs and business scenarios, and transform them into technical needs; In terms of both system and tool development, a system should be able to adapt to more models; to ensure that each new generation of technology can be "caught and used" when it appears.
Sensing technologies such as BEVs have been tested and will be launched soon. In terms of technology trends, we will always adopt the most advanced technology in the industry under this system. The essence of autonomous driving is artificial intelligence, and what is needed is data assets. One of our core strategies is to build on the strengths of our data assets to create a more efficient and leading data-driven R&D system.
Just like ChatGPT, autonomous driving requires a lot of data to optimize algorithms. Where does the data come from? Once again, the value of 100 million kilometers of commercial operation is revealed, representing the richest data sources and data assets in the industry. The data generated by these users represents the most extensive and real real world. This is a very rare advantage, and it is both a business advantage and an advantage for us in AI algorithms.
Next, we will first further improve the product, and further consolidate and expand the data advantage through user value, including more cooperative models. Secondly, around the above advantages, the data closed loop is realized, which is equivalent to a data-driven R&D system. In the process of actual operation of the vehicle, the data is found efficiently and accurately, and then it is processed in the cloud. Even after it is transferred to the cloud, there is a process of analyzing and mining data, and the value of data can be continuously amplified in the future. Thirdly, any generation of algorithms relies on data to train it successfully, and we use data training and development to do the most mature and efficient in the autonomous driving of commercial vehicles.
CLPMA: At the historical inflection point of the development of smart heavy trucks created by the company, in the face of the high probability of the upcoming outbreak, what are the key tasks of Inceptio Technology in the next step?
Ma Zheren: We are also discussing internally what to do next. In the future, Inceptio Technology; to meet customer preferences and various business scenarios; In accordance with the laws of business,; In addition, Inceptio Technology is committed to making its products more generalizable and cost-effective, so that no matter how the weather, roads, traffic and other scenarios change, they must respond safely and smoothly, and we still have a lot of room for improvement in this regard.