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Aurora Innovation(AUR) - 2025 Q3 - Earnings Call Transcript
2025-10-28 22:00
Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - In Q3 2025, Aurora Innovation reported revenue of $1 million, reflecting a 12% sequential increase from Q2 2025 driven by a record number of commercial miles [22] - Operating losses for Q3 2025 totaled $222 million, with R&D expenses at $138 million and SG&A at $28 million [22][23] - The company ended Q3 2025 with $1.6 billion in cash and investments, expected to fund operations into the second half of 2027 [23] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - The Aurora Driver achieved over 100,000 driverless miles on public roads, doubling the cumulative miles from early September [5][12] - The company launched driverless commercial operations on a new route from Fort Worth to El Paso, adding multiple customers to its driverless cohort [5][6] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - Aurora plans to expand driverless operations across the Sunbelt, with future routes including Dallas to Laredo and Dallas to Atlanta [9][10] - The company is working with multiple customers to identify locations for driverless endpoints in early 2026 [9] Company Strategy and Development Direction - Aurora aims to launch its second-generation commercial hardware kit in Q2 2026, which is expected to reduce hardware costs by over 50% [16][17] - The company is focusing on expanding its driverless operations and enhancing its technology to support scaling objectives for 2026 [24] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management emphasized the importance of safety, trust, and scale in autonomous trucking, stating that strategic investments are driving operational efficiency [21] - The company is optimistic about regulatory momentum, having received approval for new safety measures and legislative support for self-driving trucks [20] Other Important Information - Aurora has established a partnership with McLeod Software to enhance customer adoption of the Aurora Driver [15] - The company is also advancing its third-generation commercial hardware kit, which is expected to unlock scale for tens of thousands of trucks [18][19] Q&A Session Summary Question: Plans for moving from terminal to endpoint shipments - Management clarified that transitioning to endpoint shipments is not a significant technical challenge, as most customer endpoints are within a five-mile range from highways [26][28] Question: Deployment of hundreds of trucks next year - Management confirmed plans to deploy hundreds of trucks in 2026, aligning with customer demand and operational capabilities [30][31] Question: Relationship with International and truck purchases - Management stated that they are purchasing stock trucks from International without a co-development partnership, aiming for driverless operations by Q2 2026 [33][34][36] Question: Progress with Volvo and truck validation - Management reported progress in integrating the Aurora Driver into Volvo trucks and starting line-side integration at their manufacturing facility [70][73] Question: Addressing dust storms and weather conditions - Management explained that both LIDAR and radar are used to navigate dust storms, with radar being less affected by such conditions [79][81]