Self-Driving Trucks Just Got the Green Light in California

California's highways are about to get a lot more interesting. After years of watching autonomous trucking unfold in Texas, two of the biggest names in the space — Aurora Innovation and Kodiak AI — just got the official green light to test their self-driving big rigs on public roads in the Golden State. And one of them has already started rolling.

The permits are finally here

Aurora and Kodiak both filed for testing permits back in the spring, shortly after California's DMV approved updated rules that lifted a long-standing ban on driverless vehicles weighing more than 10,000 pounds. That restriction had effectively pushed autonomous trucking out of the very state where both companies are headquartered. Now that the permits are issued, both firms are cleared to begin testing — as long as a human safety operator stays behind the wheel.

Kodiak is already on the road

Kodiak didn't waste any time. As reported by TechCrunch, the company has already deployed a handful of test trucks in California, mostly clustered around its Mountain View headquarters. There are guardrails in place, though: the permits block operations on roads with speed limits of 25 mph or slower, unless a truck is traveling a direct route between destinations.

Why everyone's watching

Until now, both companies channeled their testing and commercial launches into Texas. Aurora kicked off a driverless truck service on the Dallas-to-Houston route back in May 2025 and has since layered on more corridors, including Fort Worth to El Paso and Fort Worth to Phoenix. Kodiak began commercial driverless operations in January 2025 in the remote Permian Basin of West Texas before expanding onto highway routes like Dallas to Houston. Bringing that momentum back home to California marks a major milestone for both players.

Not everyone's on board

Of course, the rollout isn't winning over everyone. Last week, Teamsters California sued the state DMV, claiming the agency sidestepped laws that require studying — and publicly disclosing — the potential economic impact of autonomous trucks on public roads. The union also argues the DMV failed to properly weigh the safety risks these vehicles pose to everyday motorists. It's a timely reminder that the technology may be ready long before the politics are.

What this means for the road ahead

For now, these are still tests with human monitors sitting in the cab. But the direction is unmistakable: autonomous trucking is shifting from a Texas experiment into a nationwide reality, one permit at a time.

Personally, I'm fascinated — not just by the tech, but by how quickly the regulatory picture is moving. The same story that played out in Texas is now unfolding in California, and the companies that nail both safety and economics first will ultimately own the road.