The Belgian retail group Colruyt is selling a majority stake in its in-house developed autonomous pallet trucks. The buyer of 70% of Colruyt’s research and development activities related to autonomous pallet trucks is KION, a German forklift specialist that was already partially involved in the project.

In fact, this is a strategic partnership in which Colruyt has chosen KION as its preferred global partner to bring its most advanced SDV technology to the market.

The exact amount KION is paying is unknown. Colruyt, however, indicates that the deal is expected to contribute 20 million euros to net income in the current fiscal year.

Early partnership with the KION brand STILL

Smart Innovation, Colruyt’s innovation team responsible for developing concepts for the company’s own stores, such as the ‘easy check-out’ system and the smart shopping cart, originally developed the SDVs to make their own distribution centers more efficient, because, at the time, there was no suitable truck on the market that met all their requirements.

To that end, Colruyt partnered with STILL, a KION brand: Colruyt developed the software, while STILL handled the hardware integration.

In 2023, Colruyt began using the equipment to test and refine it, and later for tasks such as loading and unloading trucks. The autonomous STILL pallet trucks have now been operating smoothly alongside the logistics teams at two distribution centers for two years.

Broad commercialization

But because Colruyt is first and foremost a retailer – not a technology company specializing in the global marketing and production of robotics – it has now struck a deal with KION.

Colruyt will retain a 30% stake, and its innovation team, based in Haasrode and consisting of 15 people, will continue to steer both current and future developments.

KION, for its part, is acquiring 70% of Colruyt’s research and development activities in self-driving pallet trucks, with the aim of now widely commercializing the technology “in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.”

According to Colruyt, KION is “excellently positioned” thanks to its global presence and expertise. The German group “sees strong potential in these innovative solutions, not only in retail but also far beyond, in numerous other sectors.”

SDVs have already been sold to companies both domestically and abroad, including the Belgian logistics giant H.Essers.

KION opened an automation center in Antwerp at the end of 2024, where more than 400 people are employed. That is where the self-driving pallet trucks are assembled. In 2025, KION generated approximately €11.3 billion in revenue and employed more than 42,000 people.

Specifically tailored to retail logistics

Colruyts/KION’s SDV lacks major technological innovations compared to players such as MiR, Geekplus, or Filics. After all, LIDAR + SLAM navigation without physical infrastructure is now standard industry technology.

Autonomous loading and unloading of truck trailers already exist and are being used commercially, for example, by Fox Robotics and Navflex. KION itself already cooperates with Fox Robotics in North America and has recently taken a 35% stake in Chinese pallet-storage robotics specialist ZIKOO.

But where their autonomous pallet trucks stand out from the competition is that they are specifically tailored to retail logistics, handling both Euro and block pallets, and fitting seamlessly into a busy retail distribution environment with many human coworkers.

Experts view the Colruyt deal as a nice, guaranteed cash injection compared to the uncertainty of rolling out global commercialization on their own. At the same time, their 30% stake also allows them to remain co-owners and co-developers, meaning they’ll profit if the technology is sold worldwide.