The change in traditional mining.
Some technological sectors are advancing much faster than we imagine and one of the best examples of this is happening in mines. BYD, one of the largest electric vehicle companies in the world, has just invested millions in a Chinese startup to accelerate a project that can completely transform mining.
The Boonray company is developing vehicles capable of operating at level 4 autonomy, that is, without the need for human intervention most of the time, these trucks use a combination of integrated sensors and a fixed infrastructure such as reference points distributed in the mine to navigate with precision in complex environments and it is not just about driving alone, one of the great differentials is in changing batteries.
Instead of stopping for long periods to recharge, the trucks make quick changes, allowing practically continuous operation, this means mines running 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and this is no longer just theory, the technology is already being used in dozens of projects in China, operating in different types of terrain and in extreme conditions.
And in one of those cases, a fleet of autonomous trucks managed to perform 200 battery changes in a single day, a number that shows the level of productivity that this model can achieve. This advancement is not happening in isolation, the heavy-duty electric truck market is already growing rapidly with thousands of units sold and a growing presence in industrial operations.
And that is exactly what caught BYD's attention.
The company sees in this technology a way to unite two movements that are happening at the same time, automation and clean energy, a combination that can completely redefine traditional sectors such as mining, because at the end of the day we are not just talking about humanoid robberies or futuristic machines, we are talking about systems that are already being implemented on a large scale and that are changing the way the world works.
