ENVO Drive to Collaborate with San Fran Startup Faction on Autonomous EV Tech

Burnaby-born ENVO Drive Systems is partnering with a Silicon Valley startup that develops driverless solutions for light electric vehicles.

Founded in early 2020, San Francisco’s Faction Technology is marching down a path toward next-gen micro-logistics for vehicle-on-demand infrastructure.

By combining ENVO’s versatile Utility Personal Transporter (UPT) platform with Faction’s driverless technology, the collaboration is poised to create fleets of flexible micro-EVs tailored for niche but important markets, according to a statement from the B.C. firm.

Examples of such driverless applications include last-mile delivery, agricultural and industrial transport, and emergency responses.

The strategic partnership “aligns with our mission to ‘rightsize’ mobility and provide sustainable, adaptive solutions for fleet users in high-risk or high-cost applications,” according to ENVO’s chief executive, Ali Kazemkhani.

“The modular UPT platform offers a versatile, robotized four-wheeler capable of carrying various equipment or payloads, adaptable to any environment,” explains Kazemkhani. “We are at the beginning of this journey, aiming to address not only technology development but also the creation of sustainable and practical business models that are affordable and scalable for both large and small fleet operations.”

Ain McKendrick, who heads Faction, believes his company’s partnership with ENVO Drive “represents a new step forward in redefining light electric, autonomous mobility solutions.”

“By integrating Faction’s driverless technology with ENVO’s innovative UPT platform, we’re unlocking new possibilities for micro-EVs to address specialized vehicle use cases both on and off-road, from last-mile delivery to industrial transport, all while pushing the boundaries of efficiency and sustainability,” the CEO stated.

ENVO’s UPT was originally revealed last year at Everything Electric in Vancouver.

The B.C. startup was recently named one of Canada’s most investible cleantech firms and has also been recognized among the nation’s fastest growing clean technology companies.