Over the course of the past few centuries, our planet has suffered too many damages. These injuries have come from the population who should be taking the best care of it—us, the human beings. But as climate activist Elizabeth Wathuti writes, “I believe in our human capacity to care deeply, act collectively, and do what is right…We can absolutely find our way out of the planetary crisis we face..” This sort of sentiment is why Gemini was created: because we recognize this responsibility to retract the damages people have made, and because we believe that this healing work can still be accomplished. Put simply, we exist to help “find our way out.”

Let’s talk numbers for a moment. When it comes to carbon emissions, the transportation industry is responsible for about one-quarter of total emissions across the globe. And although only 1% of vehicles on the roads in the US are trucks of the big-rig, long-hauling variety, they account for approximately 20% of emissions. At Gemini, our brand mission is to accelerate decarbonization—meaning we want to rapidly create a sustainable solution to the carbon emissions crisis at hand. That’s why we directed our focus on the transportation industry: to create the biggest impact for the biggest good.

So, how are we setting out to accomplish this? Our team was initially inspired by NASA’s Gemini 5, the first manned spacecraft to use fuel cells and thereby launch the commercial fuel cell industry. Combining our expertise in the latest fuel cell technology, energy and automotive engineering, Gemini has designed a fully autonomous, zero-emission freight truck. In other words, we’re creating the smart trucks of the future. Our innovative mobility system is powered by liquid hydrogen for a scalable, efficient, and zero-emissions solution to the green transportation revolution.

There are a few other reasons why we’ve focused our efforts on long-haul trucking. As we mentioned before, the most emissions in the transportation sector are caused by the biggest vehicles: the Class 8 vehicles, or freight trucks. Another relevant statistic is that in comparison to vehicles in other categories, Class 8 vehicles account for the most mileage by far. This means that eliminating freight truck emissions would be extremely impactful for both decarbonization and sustainable utilization. What’s more, as demands for fast cross-country shipping increase, so will total emissions and mileage–which is all the more reason to electrify the trucking industry.

Another thing to keep in mind is the number of transportation mandates that are coming down the pipeline. At both the state and federal levels of government, deadlines are approaching to replace current freight vehicles with more sustainable solutions. That solution, as outlined in these mandates, is to utilize low- or no-emission powertrains in vehicles. While low-emission vehicles are certainly better than their predecessors, our goal at Gemini is to land on the final solution, not a stop along the way. That final solution is going to be zero-emission vehicles, which can be used to fulfill the upcoming mandates. 

You may be thinking: I understand the need for zero-emission trucks, but why should they be autonomous? There’s a few key reasons for this: driver shortages and freight truck accidents. As of today, there’s a shortage of approximately 80,000 truck drivers in the US, and this number is estimated to double by 2030. By making our vehicles autonomous, they will be able to run around the clock without drivers, which both solves the driver shortage issue within the industry and saves on costs. What’s more, removing drivers from the equation will reduce human error and save lives, effectively reducing the hundreds of deaths occurring from freight truck accidents every year in the US. 

At Gemini, we believe that immense change must be made if we want to avoid our climate reaching a dangerous point of no return. And for best results, we recognize the importance of acting now rather than later. By electrifying the largest transportation market ($4 trillion global, $800 billion in the US), we plan to change the world one smart truck at a time. 

Interested in learning more about our mission and plan for a better future? You can subscribe to our email list [here].