Among the many industries thriving in Dallas-Fort Worth, there's a relatively new niche making waves: tech companies operating driverless trucks that have found the region suitable for autonomous vehicle operations.

Aurora Innovation Inc., a Pittsburgh-based company, has been testing autonomous trucks in North Texas for awhile. After years of testing, the company launched its first totally driverless trucks, without humans on board, between Dallas and Houston near the start of May. But within the month, the company had reversed course and put human "observers" back in the front seat at the request of one of its partners.

Why North Texas was selected first had much to do with its high freight volume, favorable weather conditions, and "collaborative, innovation-focused" policymakers, Jeremiah Kuntz, senior manager of government relations at Aurora Innovation, said in an email statement.

Kuntz credited "the leadership of Texas policymakers and first responders" in helping Aurora hit the road.

"As a result, Texas is the global hub for autonomous trucking, and the state is already seeing the safety, supply chain, and economic benefits of this technology," he said.

Houston-based Bot Auto, meanwhile, plans to launch an autonomous trucking pilot program with routes to and from Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, in partnership with door manufacturer Steve & Sons, Inc. and J.B. Hunt. The company has echoed similar sentiments for choosing North Texas and also lauded the state as a whole.

"For us, Texas offers the perfect combination of forward-thinking regulations, operational advantages, and cultural alignment for autonomous trucking," said Jeremy Desel, senior director of communications at Bot Auto. "Texas’ leadership in legislation explicitly permits driverless vehicles without special permits, providing regulatory clarity other states lack."

And at AllianceTexas, Hillwood's industrial and logistics hub in far north Fort Worth, companies can be found including Gatik, an autonomous box truck company that works with grocers such as Kroger.

As for the advantages of the technology itself, self-driving trucks can eliminate several risks such as fatigue, distraction, impaired judgment and slow response times in a world where human error is responsible for more than 90% of vehicle accidents, said Ashim Bose, a professor of practice in information systems at the University of Texas at Dallas, in an email.

But the technology is still evolving and there are challenges to be overcome, especially around "edge cases" like construction zones, adverse weather, sensor anomalies, software malfunctioning, and cybersecurity threats, Bose added.

"Safety is being prioritized by limiting deployments to safer routes, doing extensive testing, and having a 'human in the loop' (either in the cab or monitoring remotely)," Bose said. "They need to be capable of reaching a "minimal risk condition" if the autonomous driving system malfunctions."