Parallel Systems Raises $100 Million to Scale Production of Autonomous Battery-Powered Freight Rail Vehicles

Parallel Systems has raised a $100 million Series C funding round to scale production of its autonomous, battery-powered freight rail vehicles. The startup aims to help railroads capture a share of the short-haul freight market currently dominated by trucking. The funding was led by AVP, with participation from several other firms including Hillspire, Agility Global, Cobalt Capital, Anthos Capital, Congruent Ventures, Riot Capital, and Collaborative Fund.

Founded in 2020 by former SpaceX engineers, Parallel built its Panther vehicle to travel up to 500 miles without an operator. The vehicles lack traditional couplers, allowing them to travel in uncoupled platoons and split up automatically at train yards without human intervention. Onboard sensors monitor the tracks for obstacles once the vehicle is cleared to operate.

Traditional railroads have increasingly focused on running longer trains on fixed schedules, abandoning short routes and ceding short-haul trips under 500 miles to trucks. Parallel’s technology offers an alternative by making short hauls profitable and bypassing road congestion at locations like ports. The startup received approval from the Federal Railroad Administration to operate near the Port of Savannah in Georgia, where it has tested its safety controls on 160 miles of track.

According to CEO Matt Soule,