Gatik, the market leader in autonomous middle mile logistics, focuses on B2B short-haul delivery, moving goods safely and efficiently using its fleet of medium duty trucks. Gatik’s autonomous vehicles (AVs) are commercially deployed in multiple markets including Ontario, Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana. Founded in 2017 by veterans of the autonomous technology industry, the company has offices in Toronto, Ontario and Mountain View, California and partners with industry leaders including Ryder, Goodyear and Isuzu. In 2021, Gatik was recognized on the Forbes AI 50 list and as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer.
Gatik is deeply proud of its Canadian roots and long-standing relationships with Toronto and Ontario. The company opened the doors to its first Canadian office in 2019 in downtown Toronto, and has rapidly grown its headcount and real estate footprint ever since. Gatik is at the heart of the AV ecosystem in Ontario and has forged a long-standing partnership with the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network (OVIN), managed by the Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI), which has helped the company to accelerate R&D efforts and winterize its commercial-grade autonomous driving technology for Ontario’s unique winter conditions.
In 2020, Gatik announced the launch of Canada’s first autonomous delivery fleet in partnership with Loblaw Companies Limited, moving essential goods from Loblaw’s microfulfilment centre in Toronto to five retail locations. During an era in which the supply chain is under more pressure than ever before, Gatik’s autonomous solution safely facilitates frequent, point-to-point deliveries across the middle mile. This constrained and measured approach to autonomous delivery offers significant benefits: establishing reliability across the supply chain by protecting against driver shortages, securing dedicated capacity and increasing product flow; reducing emissions and meeting sustainability goals by improving fuel economics and reducing service and maintenance requirements; improving safety by reducing the number of road incidents caused by distracted, inattentive or impaired driving.
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“Loblaw is Canada’s leading grocery retailer, and we are proud to play a key role in enhancing the safety and efficiency of its already robust supply chain,” said Gautam Narang, CEO and Co-founder of Gatik. “Retailers know the biggest inefficiencies in their logistics operations often exist in the middle-mile, typically between automated picking facilities and retail locations. This is where Gatik lives and succeeds, and is the reason we’re able to offer immediate value to our customers. We are delighted to partner with Loblaw in addressing this critical piece of their supply chain.”
The hub-and-spoke distribution model has become increasingly vital for Canadians – dramatic eCommerce growth and faster delivery expectations have forced warehouses and smaller distribution centres closer to consumers, necessitating more routes and more frequent trips, which in turn result in the need for more box trucks, more drivers and higher costs. In partnership with Loblaw, Gatik’s autonomous technology provides the capability to address these challenges in Ontario, and help to establish a supply chain that is safer, more sustainable and more resilient.
“Ontario’s safe, well-structured and progressive regulatory environment is helping to ensure that the province continues to lead the way in autonomous vehicle operations in Canada,” said Richard Steiner, Gatik’s Head of Policy and Communications. “This, coupled with multi-year commercial partnerships and incredible support from Ontario’s AV ecosystem partners, will enable the economic impacts of Gatik’s presence in Ontario to be realized long-term.”
In 2021, Gatik established its world-class research facility in the west end of the city, home to the vast majority of the company’s software and hardware engineering team, many of whom have been recruited from Ontario’s leading academic institutions including the University of Toronto and the University of Waterloo. The company is looking forward to deepening its relationship with Toronto, Ontario and Canada, and continuing to ensure that the advantages of middle mile autonomous delivery can be realized by more Canadians each day.
