Halo Car, a startup specializing in delivering rental cars to customers’ doors, has introduced driverless operations in Las Vegas.
Unlike autonomous vehicle companies such as Cruise or Waymo, Halo’s vehicles are not self-driving.
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Equipped with a suite of six cameras, modems, antennas, and other components, Halo’s fleet transmits data to remote pilots stationed at a Halo operations center.
These pilots utilize the streamed video and sensor data to remotely operate the vehicles.
After a remote driver completes a car delivery, they transfer control to the customer and move on to the next vehicle awaiting remote delivery or collection.
While Halo has been using teleoperations to deliver vehicles in Las Vegas for about a year, a human driver has always been present in the front seat for safety purposes.
Now, Halo cars will be delivered to customers without drivers in the vehicle.
According to Anand Nandakumar, founder, and CEO of Halo, this is a significant step towards realizing the company’s vision of economically viable on-demand vehicles.
However, Halo has not yet reached the stage of achieving positive unit economics. Initially, a remote chase car will follow the remotely piloted vehicles.
The driver of the chase car can take over if necessary.
The chase car also serves as a buffer vehicle to prevent potential rear-end accidents with other road users if the Halo car needs to stop.
If the system detects an anomaly, Halo’s cars will come to a stop in the lane, meeting Nevada’s minimal risk condition for autonomous vehicles.
Halo plans to eliminate the chase car over the next year based on the performance of current operations.
The transition will occur in phases across operation zones and depending on the time of day.
While Halo may be the first company to successfully deliver remote-piloted electric vehicles to customers in Las Vegas, it is not the only one attempting such a feat.
In December 2022, Arcimoto partnered with Faction to develop EVs that can be delivered to a customer’s hotel using a combination of low-level autonomy and tele-assist technology.
Halo’s announcement follows six months of intensive internal testing and training. The company initially aimed to launch its driverless operations by the end of 2022 but delayed prioritizing safety.
Connectivity plays a crucial role in Halo Car’s business model. The vehicles are remotely piloted using T-Mobile’s 5G network, with AT&T and Verizon as backup options.
Halo has developed an algorithm that selects the strongest network connection at any given time to ensure reliable, high-quality streaming and low latency.
Starting from Thursday, Halo’s driverless vehicle deliveries are available in downtown Las Vegas between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., with plans to expand to more areas of the city in the coming months.
The startup’s fleet consists of Chevy Bolt EVs and Kia Niro EVs, totaling 20 vehicles.
Halo intends to grow its Vegas fleet to hundreds of vehicles before expanding to new cities in 2024.
Anand Nandakumar stated, “Our transition to driverless deliveries marks a significant milestone for us as a company.
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It proves that our remote-piloting technology is not just innovative but commercially viable and ready to be scaled up.
As we prepare to expand and launch new markets, our mission remains unchanged: to provide affordable, accessible, efficient EV transportation.”
