Swedish technology company Einride has initiated Europe’s first commercial daily autonomous freight operations, partnering with online pharmacy retailer Apotea to transport goods between warehouses in Morgongåva, located approximately 1.5 hours from Stockholm.
The autonomous heavy-duty vehicle will operate without an onboard driver, running on a route adjacent to a public road with the necessary permit. This marks Einride’s second commercial autonomous daily operation, following its initial deployment in the United States.
Henrik Green, General Manager for Einride Autonomous Technologies, commented on the milestone: “Our autonomous technology facilitated by machine learning allows for higher utilization and efficient, safe freight. Adding our first autonomous route at Apotea’s site, and the first daily autonomous operations in Europe, allows us to showcase how the Einride ecosystem can optimize entire logistics flows.”
Since beginning operations in 2022, Einride has driven nearly 800,000 electric kilometres, reportedly saving 917,000kg of co2 emissions. The current operation involves shipping the final wave of holiday gifts from Apotea’s warehouse using autonomous technology.
Pär Svärdson, founder and CEO of Apotea, emphasised the strategic importance of the partnership: “We always put our customers first and regard autonomy as a crucial part of keeping our promise of affordable prices and fast, free-of-charge deliveries today and tomorrow. We are proud to partner with Einride – global frontrunners in autonomous technology – to bring Europe its first autonomous freight operations in daily commercial use.”
The Einride platform utilises a comprehensive system of radars, lidars, and cameras, coordinated through machine learning to enable autonomous navigation. While the system operates independently, remote operators remain available to monitor and assist if necessary.
The deployment represents a significant step in Einride’s autonomous capacity-as-a-service offering, which includes site selection, network analysis, and comprehensive operational support.
