The Driver Services

Torc Gets New Leadership as Daimler Looks to Take the Company Global

Daimler Truck independent subsidiary, Torc Robotics, an early developer of self-driving technology, recently announced that its current CEO and Torc’s founder Michael Fleming will be replaced in October by Dr. Peter Vaughn Schmidt. Fleming will remain on the company’s board of directors. The move indicates that Daimler is revving up its production of autonomous trucks and would like to make Torc a global company. Daimler expects to perfect its autonomous truck platform within the next few years. Fleming began experimenting with driverless vehicles in 2004 and 2005 when he competed in the DARPA Grand Challenge which featured self-driving vehicles traveling over a 132-mile course in the Mojave Desert. “I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to Michael Fleming,” Daimler Truck CEO Martin Daum said in a press release. “His achievements for our company and for our industry as a whole cannot be overstated. He is a true pioneer and visionary who paved the way for autonomous driving, founding Torc Robotics 17 years ago.” About Vaughn, Daum said, “Peter has been responsible for autonomous driving at Daimler Truck for many years and has been closely supporting Torc since we invested in 2019. I am very pleased that we have the right personality in him to shape this next phase as CEO of Torc.” Vaughn has 17 years of experience with Daimler and has worked in production and plant management. His experience is also deep in how to commercialize products, which is precisely what Daimler is looking to do with Torc. Daimler acquired Torc in 2019. At the time, Fleming said, “Great things are not accomplished in short order, and we have always believed this race to be a marathon and not a sprint. The lessons learned and foundation we’ve created over the last decade has positioned us as one of the most experienced firms in the self-driving space.”