Argo AI has begun driverless operations in Miami and Austin, two of eight cities worldwide in which the company is currently developing its technology.

The company has developed its Argo Autonomy Platform for five years. It says the platform can now operate without a driver, during daytime business hours, while sharing the road with many others.

The platform provides a set of APIs known as Argo Connect that allow ridesharing, delivery and logistics companies to integrate Argo autonomous vehicles into their own digital services. The company also has a portfolio of autonomy solutions to help businesses manage in-market services and depot operations.

The company has adopted a strategy of targeting development and commercialisation on large cities. The logic is that this maximises scale and attracts business customers where they are most active. Argo operations span large US rideshare and goods delivery urban markets such as Miami, the second largest US rideshare market; Washington, DC, a top-5 city; and Austin, a top-20 city.

In addition to Miami, Austin, and D.C., Argo operates in five other big cities in the US and Europe (Pittsburgh, Detroit, Palo Alto, Munich and Hamburg) — enabling the technology to learn from a diversity of road infrastructure and driving behaviours.

The company has attracted car maker partners covering many different vehicle types. The Argo Autonomy Platform is designed for integration with multiple vehicle form factors, and the company works closely with partners Ford and Volkswagen to follow a systems engineering approach for high-quality, reliable and safe operations. The Argo test fleet is currently made up of the Ford Escape Hybrid and VW’s all-electric ID. Buzz.

Argo has also integrated with with go-to-market partners, including Lyft and Walmart. These partnerships also include integration with backend cloud infrastructure to connect the Argo fleet with partners’ digital services.

“Argo is first to go driverless in two major American cities, safely operating amongst heavy traffic, pedestrians and bicyclists in the busiest of neighbourhoods,” said Bryan Salesky, Founder and CEO, Argo AI. “From day one, we set out to tackle the hardest miles to drive — in multiple cities — because that’s where the density of customer demand is, and where our autonomy platform is developing the intelligence required to scale it into a sustainable business.”