Key takeaways: - PepsiCo has become the first major consumer goods company to deploy driverless freight trucks at commercial scale, signalling that autonomous logistics is moving beyond pilot projects and into everyday supply chain operations. - Supporters say autonomous trucking could reduce costs, improve delivery reliability and help tackle chronic driver shortages, making it an increasingly attractive proposition for food manufacturers and retailers. - The technology’s expansion is also intensifying debate over job losses, safety risks and regulation, raising questions about how quickly the food industry should embrace driverless freight. The food industry has spent the past several years trying to make supply chains more resilient. First came the pandemic, followed by labour shortages, inflation, transport disruption and rising operating costs. While many manufacturers responded by investing in automation inside factories and warehouses, PepsiCo is now pushing that transformation beyond the factory gate and onto public roads. The snack giant has entered a multi-year partnership with autonomous freight specialist Gatik to launch one of the biggest real-world tests of autonomous freight technology in the US, deploying dozens of driverless trucks to transport Frito-Lay snacks between manufacturing sites, distribution centres and retail locations. While self-driving cars continue to dominate public attention, it’s the less glamorous world of freight that may be bringing autonomous technology into the mainstream first. However, the move has attracted attention far beyond the tech itself. The rollout has reignited concerns about employment, safety and regulation. Labour groups have criticised it, while regulators continue to grapple with how autonomous freight should be governed. The result is a debate that extends well beyond PepsiCo’s experiment and into broader questions about how supply chains will operate in the years ahead. From pilot project to everyday deliveries PepsiCo has become the first major consumer goods company in the US to deploy