Westwell at Port of Felixstowe was the biggest winner at the fourth annual Self-Driving Industry Awards, scooping both Fleet Operator and Vehicle of the Year 2026 for the all-electric Q-Truck, the first non-passenger vehicle to win the headline prize.
Held at the Turner Contemporary in Margate on Friday 16 October, the event also saw a first for Kent with the 2024 Vehicle of the Year, the Ohmio LIFT shuttle, giving autonomous passenger rides along the seafront (with a safety driver on board). Ohmio UK picked up Project of the Year 2026 for an initiative with Barnes Hammersmith Electric Light Transit in London.
A statement from the judging panel read: “Over 50 of these incredible Westwell HGVs are already in use 24/7 at Port of Felixstowe in Suffolk, making it certainly the most advanced commercial self-driving deployment in the UK, and probably in Europe. The hazardous quayside environment is a perfect use case, and the automated six-minute battery swap is a game-changer.
“Having offered driverless rides in the car park at the last two events, Ohmio UK raised the bar by going on-road. As well as being a fantastic demonstration of automated public transport, this fulfilled a challenge set by Councillor Rob Yates at the inaugural Awards back in 2023. We’re delighted that both members of the public and local dignitaries, including Polly Billington MP, got to experience it.”
In the individual categories, Kaity Fischer, of Wayve, won Person of the Year for driving the robotaxi roll-out in London. Bhavini Makwana, of the Thomas Pocklington Trust, won Consumer Champion for engaging with AV companies to highlight the needs of blind and partially sighted users. Professor David Keene MBE, CEO of Aurrigo, won Self-Driving Industry Legend for a glittering 30-year career.
Awards partners
Supported by partners Zenzic, the ABI, Ava and Chip, BSI, ITS UK, PAVE UK, PAVE Europe, and techUK, along with charity partner Technology Books for Children, the Self-Driving Industry Awards 2026 was again hosted by Jim Carey Connell.
The judging panel included Mark Cracknell of Zenzic, Alex Bainbridge of Autoura, Dr Nick Reed of Reed Mobility, and Dr Martin Dürr of Dromos.
Award winners
Here’s the full list of 2026 Self-Driving Industry Award winners:
- Vehicle of the Year: Westwell Q-Truck at Port of Felixstowe
- Project of the Year: Ohmio UK with BHELT in London
- Person of the Year: Kaity Fischer
- Industry Legend: Professor David Keene MBE
- Consumer Champion: Bhavini Makwana
- Regional Leadership: Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai
- Launchpad Award (Research): Institute for Driverless Transport
- Launchpad Award (Hardware): Osmosis AI
- Special Recognition (Training): RumiCar
- Special Recognition (Deployment): Karsan
- Consumer Service: Baidu Apollo Go
- Fleet Operator: Westwell at Port of Felixstowe
- V2X: AppyWay
- Trust: Aribo
- Testing: Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League, A2RL
- Software: Fusion Processing
- Research: Anthrometric
- Legal: Shoosmiths
- Insurance (Underwriter): ibott
- Insurance (Broker): Aon
- Hardware: Oxford RF
- Design (Retail): RoboShop by PIX Moving
- Design (Industrial): Auto-Cargo by Aurrigo
- Aftermarket: Flexdrive by Lyft
More to follow…
