Chinese autonomous logistics service provider Neolix was named among the first batch of companies approved by the Malaysian government to begin public road sandbox testing in the Southeast Asian country.
The approval, issued by the Malaysian Ministry of Transport, was granted under the country's National Regulatory Sandbox framework for autonomous delivery vehicles, Neolix announced on June 30.
Founded in 2018, Neolix operates one of the world's largest commercial autonomous delivery fleets, with its vehicles deployed in over 15 countries and 300 cities.
Road trials are expected to begin in the coming weeks in Cyberjaya, Malaysia's flagship smart city and technology hub located just south of the capital Kuala Lumpur.
Testing will span closed-road, semi-open, and public-road environments in Cyberjaya and several other locations to evaluate vehicle performance across real-world urban conditions, including traffic signals, intersections, and speed bumps.
The sandbox testing is expected to be carried out in phases throughout the second half of this year.
Neolix said the pilot program will be conducted together with companies from Malaysia and elsewhere in Southeast Asia to evaluate multiple use cases, including express parcel delivery, campus logistics, and on-demand e-commerce fulfillment.
The initiative is expected to help establish operational standards and deployment models that could support future commercial expansion across Southeast Asia, the company said.
Malaysia's left-hand traffic system provides a valuable testing environment for deployment across many Asia-Pacific markets, it noted.
"Malaysia represents an important next step in Neolix's international expansion strategy," said a company representative.
"We see strong long-term demand for autonomous logistics infrastructure across the region, and Malaysia provides an ideal environment to validate technologies designed specifically for dense urban Asian markets."
Neolix has been actively advancing deployment initiatives across the Asia-Pacific region and expanding its international footprint.
Besides the pilot program in Malaysia, Neolix is also expected to deliver more than 10,000 vehicles across the United Arab Emirates by the end of 2026, while advancing localization programs in South Korea, Singapore, Germany, and Australia. - China Daily/ANN
