Autonomous Trucks Hit the Fast Lane

Fresh capital and new alliances propel driverless freight from pilot runs to commercial reality

27 Sep 2025

Autonomous trucking in the US is moving from experimental trials to early commercial deployment as new capital and manufacturing partnerships reshape the sector. The public market listing of Kodiak AI in September has become a marker of that shift, highlighting growing investor confidence in long-haul freight as one of the most practical uses of self-driving technology.

Kodiak AI went public on September 25 through a merger with Ares Acquisition, raising about $275mn from a combination of private investment in public equity and cash held in trust. The funding is intended to support the expansion of autonomous truck operations along major freight corridors, where routes are predictable and operating conditions are easier to manage than in urban environments.

Investors have increasingly favoured freight over consumer-facing autonomous vehicles. Long-haul trucking offers clearer economics, with high utilisation rates and direct links to labour shortages and rising costs faced by logistics groups. The American Trucking Associations estimates the US is short tens of thousands of drivers, a gap that has proved difficult to close through recruitment alone.

Against that backdrop, autonomous trucks are being positioned as a supplement rather than a replacement for existing fleets. Highway driving allows for simpler monitoring and regulation, making it more suitable for early deployment than complex city streets. Industry analysts say this has helped trucking emerge as one of the first areas where autonomy could be scaled commercially.

Kodiak’s approach reflects that focus. Alongside its listing, the company expanded its partnership with Bosch, concentrating on the development and manufacture of safety-critical systems such as steering and braking. These components must meet strict regulatory standards and be produced reliably at volume, a hurdle that has limited many autonomous vehicle programmes.

The move to public markets brings added pressure. As a listed company, Kodiak must disclose operational and safety data and demonstrate progress towards revenue-generating deployments. That transparency may support trust among regulators and customers, but it also exposes the business to closer scrutiny of its execution.

More broadly, capital is increasingly flowing towards autonomous vehicle groups with defined routes, established industrial partners and near-term commercial plans. For freight operators, that suggests gradual changes rather than disruption. For the sector, it signals a shift away from experimentation and towards measured deployment on US highways.