Driverless big rigs may soon be cruising down a particular highway in Texas. Axios writes that, later this month, driverless trucks plan to unleash themselves upon a 200-mile stretch of Interstate 45 between Dallas and Houston. Aurora Innovation, a Pittsburgh firm founded in 2017, has developed a truck, outfitted with sensors and specialized software, that can allegedly operate 24/7, with no breaks and no driver, while transporting large amounts of cargo to and fro across America’s freeway system. Aurora has been testing its vehicles in closed environments, and has also used “virtual testing” of real-world conditions. Aurora calls its AI-fueled software system the “Aurora Driver,” and plans to have its driverless trucks on the road by the end of the month. According to Axios, the new industry will revolve around a business model in which AI vendors lease their automated software to truck manufacturers, who will then sell the vehicles to logistics companies that need driving fleets. If all of this conjures Final Destination type scenarios, the companies behind this technology swear it’s safe (and some data agrees). In fact, one of the advertised benefits of driverless trucks is that they are actually safer than those with someone behind the wheel. “At Aurora, we believe that the benefits of self-driving technology will increase efficiency and mobility, while bringing a reliable driver supply and heightened safety to America’s roads,” the company’s website says. “A safer world where goods never stop moving.” Earlier this month, Aurora released a report that purported to explain how its model of automated big rigs can safely navigate roadways.