❯ Neolix’s driverless fleet reaches 27,000 vehicles as Shenzhen night deliveries expand to 437 routes

A driverless van at 10 p.m.Beijing-based Neolix operates about 27,000 driverless delivery vehicles across 300 cities in 15 countries, the world’s largest autonomous fleet, Bloomberg reported. At a farmers’ market in Shenzhen’s Longgang district, a grocery manager summons a van by phone after 10 p.m. and loads it with poultry bound for customers across town.

Shenzhen opened night delivery in MarchShenzhen opened nighttime deliveries to driverless vehicles in March, installing anti-glare lighting and setting new vehicle standards and an emergency response protocol under a trial regulatory framework. The trial runs only on approved corridors, and vehicles must follow pre-designated routes and areas. Since it began, Neolix’s overnight service has expanded to 437 routes. The company is testing overnight logistics with SF Express, moving parcels at Futian Station from an underground staging area to freight trains.

Empty roads at night, but harder drivingRoads are emptier and less congested at night, idle vehicles and infrastructure can work another shift, and no night-shift wages are needed. The difficulties are just as clear: cameras perform worse in low light, and lidar can struggle with headlight glare and reflections off wet surfaces. The hardest part is the final leg, with loading docks, unmarked spots and entrances missing from maps; fewer workers are on site at night, so vehicles must be more precise.

A target of 50,000 this yearNeolix CEO Yu Enyuan said the company expects its domestic fleet to reach 50,000 vehicles this year and plans to add 100,000 more next year. He said night delivery lowers costs and reduces the physical strain on couriers. With an extra overnight shift of capacity, couriers and fresh-food merchants can have next-morning goods in place earlier.

▮ SIGNALDriverless delivery vans reached scale first in the most constrained settings, low speed, fixed routes and night hours, a more pragmatic path to commercializing autonomy than carrying passengers.