BrightDrop will be led by Travis Katz, who came to GM from venture capital firm Redpoint Ventures. The brand initially will operate in the U.S. and Canada, with sales and service going through a new BrightDrop dealer network.
GM estimates that the annual market opportunity for parcel, food delivery and reverse logistics in the U.S. will exceed $850 billion by 2025. Demand for urban delivery to fulfill e-commerce orders is expected to grow 78 percent by 2030, GM said, citing the World Economic Forum. The boost in demand is expected to increase the number of delivery vehicles by 36 percent in the 100 largest cities worldwide.
The electric commercial-van segment is expected to become more competitive in the next several years, with new offerings from Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Rivian. Guidehouse Insights forecasts that U.S. sales of battery-powered light commercial vehicles will climb to 623,000 in 2030 from about 56,000 last year.
Ford accounted for 48.6 percent of the U.S. large-van market last year, according to the Automotive News Data Center, vs. a 20.3 percent share for the Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana, which GM has not redesigned since their introduction in 1995.
Production of 500 EV600 vans for FedEx will begin around the same time Ford plans to launch the electric Transit in late 2021. In early 2022, GM will start building BrightDrop vans for other customers.
The EV600, powered by GM’s Ultium batteries, will be able to drive up to 250 miles on a full charge, nearly doubling the E-Transit’s range.
“It sounds like it will be a fierce battle. What GM announced is not a timid, lukewarm type of approach. It’s aggressive,” Whiston said.
BrightDrop has done pilot testing of the EP1 with FedEx. The pallets can carry 23 cubic feet of cargo weighing up to 200 pounds, and couriers who used them during the pilot were able to handle 25 percent more packages per day. BrightDrop and FedEx Express will begin another pilot in one of the biggest urban centers in the U.S. this quarter, GM said.
