Japanese & Finland companies MUJI and Sensible 4 have combined their expertise to create a robot bus, first in the world to function in all weather conditions. For this self driving shuttle, Sensible 4 provides the autonomous driving technology which ensures the vehicle with superior positioning, navigation and obstacle detection performance, while MUJI provides the vehicle its famous design and user experience.

The vehicle will premiere to the public in March 2019 in Helsinki. After the launch, the Gacha shuttle bus, as its called, will be driving and taking passengers in three Finnish cities in real-life traffic (also available in MUJI stores in November 2019 in Helsinki). Sensible 4 and MUJI are finalizing plans for the first Gacha fleet which is expected to roll out in 2020. The aim of the collaboration is to develop autonomous shuttle bus fleets for mainstream use and to provide real transportation services for the public already in 2021. If the concept catches on, this can be a major change to the way people travel and a benchmark for other nations to institute a similar trial. Currently, Sensible 4 is looking for suitable industry partners whom would be interested in producing the buses as well as investors to accelerate the company growth. Naturally all autonomous vehicles need to be able to drive in various weather conditions, before they can be commercially deployed. Harri Santamala, CEO of Sensible 4, comments on this issue in a press release: "We are developing these vehicles so that they can become part of daily transportation service chain. Autonomous vehicles can't become mainstream until their technology has been insured to work in all climates."

Learn more about the corporations involved in making the Gacha bus, click here.