Saudi Arabia and Applied Intuition Embark on Massive Autonomous Trucking Venture

Abdelrahman Amr

Last updated 1-09-2026

4 min

Saudi Arabia plans “thousands of self-driving trucks” on major freight corridors by 2030.

HUMAIN and Applied Intuition will start with routes linking ports, industrial cities and hubs.

The software stack already supports Level 4 trucking, but Saudi desert conditions will test reliability.

HUMAIN is moving into “physical AI”, with robotaxis, ports and mining also in view.

Applied Intuition is building a Riyadh team as trucks begin operating on the ground.

Saudi Arabia is lining up an ambitious bet on autonomous freight, with PIF-owned HUMAIN partnering US-based Applied Intuition to put thousands of self-driving trucks on the Kingdom’s main logistics corridors by 2030. The plan starts with freight routes linking ports, industrial cities and distribution hubs, but it is clearly meant to go much further than that.

At the centre of the project is Applied Intuition’s Self-Driving System, or SDS, alongside its Vehicle OS and related vehicle intelligence tools. In simple words, this is the software stack that helps a vehicle sense the road, make decisions and drive itself within defined conditions. Applied Intuition says the system is already being used on roads in the US, Europe and Japan, including Level 4 autonomous trucking work with Isuzu Motors. Level 4 means the vehicle can handle the full driving task on its own in certain mapped areas or operating conditions, which is no small thing.

What makes this one stand out is the scale. Qasar Younis, co-founder and chief executive of Applied Intuition, said the company’s original vision was to build one platform that could bring intelligence to any machine in any industry, adding that Saudi Arabia is where that vision is now coming to life at national scale. He also noted that most autonomy programmes begin with a small fleet or a single route, while this one starts with the aim of reshaping an entire freight network. That is a bold swing, and, well... I mean, not exactly a modest pilot.

Saudi Arabia is not the easiest place to test this kind of technology either. Long-haul desert routes, punishing heat and blowing sand can be a real headache for sensors, hardware and reliability. That said, Applied Intuition is not coming in cold. The company points to previous work with Komatsu, where its systems were used in mining environments dealing with dust, remote terrain and harsh temperatures. Still, trucking across a whole country is another kettle of fish.

For HUMAIN, the move marks an important step beyond AI infrastructure and software into what is often called physical AI, meaning artificial intelligence that interacts with the real world through machines, vehicles and industrial systems. The company, launched in 2025 as a PIF-backed AI player, has been building across the stack from infrastructure and cloud to models and applications. Now it is pushing into machines that move goods, and later perhaps people too.

And believe it or not, the trucking programme may only be the opening chapter. The two companies say the same infrastructure, data systems and operational know-how could later support robotaxis, ports, mining and other sectors. Younis said autonomous trucking is “just the beginning” and argued that once the data and infrastructure are in place at national scale, the same intelligence can be extended to everything that moves.

Applied Intuition is also building a local footprint in Riyadh, where it has opened an office and is hiring a Saudi-based team to work on deployment, operations and scaling. Trucks are already on the ground as the initiative begins. For the local ecosystem, that detail matters a lot. Around Arageek, we often talk about how real capability is built when global technology is not only imported but actually operated, maintained and improved by teams on the ground. I’ve seen founders across MENA get chuffed to bits when big infrastructure projects create room for specialised local talent rather than keeping everything outsourced.

There is a practical business case here too. Autonomous trucks could stay on the road longer than human-driven ones, with fewer limits linked to shift changes and driver fatigue. Software can also optimise fuel use and monitor vehicle health continuously, helping fleets run more efficiently. On the flip side, success will depend on whether these systems can perform reliably on real Saudi routes, day after day, without turning operations into a faf.

If HUMAIN and Applied Intuition hit their target, Saudi Arabia could end up hosting one of the world’s largest real-world deployments of autonomous trucking. I reckon that alone makes this partnership worth watching. It is a major test not only for self-driving freight, but for whether physical AI can move from carefully controlled pilots into the hard, dusty, very real world of national logistics.

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