Uber Freight could see more bookings through new broker tech

Uber Freight on Thursday unveiled a new program, Broker Access, that offers freight brokers direct access to its carrier network and digital platform. Broker Access, built on its 2021 offering Market Access, allows brokers to automate the company’s load execution process without making large technology investments while also leveraging Uber Freight’s carrier network for their shippers’ needs.

This offering comes on the heels of Uber’s quarterly earnings report, showing gross bookings for its freight arm rising year on year for the first time since its acquisition of managed services provider Transplace in 2021, and will likely help support its gross bookings growth moving forward.

For brokers, load execution can be a complex process, involving multiple platforms, workflows and risk management tools. Broker Access centralizes load management, tracking and payment within a self-service portal or through API and TMS integrations.

“The whole idea of Broker Access is really just to simplify the process for brokers who are posting loads and trying to find capacity for their shipments. Once we help them find that capacity, we do a really good job of helping brokers more easily track and execute [shipments],” Brooks McMahon, vice president of emerging products and business development, told FreightWaves.

Through Uber Freight’s system, brokers gain real-time visibility into load statuses and can manage all aspects of a shipment, from pricing to document handling, in one dashboard. Brokers can control the pricing and bidding process or allow Uber Freight’s algorithms to dynamically price loads based on market conditions.

“Mariner Logistics has been at the forefront of innovation in freight brokerage, and as the first brokerage company to leverage Uber Freight, we’ve seen firsthand how this platform enhances our ability to cover challenging shipments at market-competitive prices,” said Ken Apple, vice president of engineering at Mariner Logistics, in a news release.

Uber Freight’s Broker Access pricing page. (Photo: Uber Freight)

For smaller brokers in particular, Broker Access presents an opportunity to compete on a larger scale. Access to Uber Freight’s carrier marketplace means brokers can expand their service reach and enter new lanes without investing heavily in building a carrier network from scratch.

Uber Freight’s carrier network benefits from the security of working with Uber Freight while taking on the financial risk of partnering with smaller brokers, as payments are guaranteed through Uber Freight. In turn, smaller brokers can grow their carrier networks and establish industry credibility without needing to manage upfront payments to carriers — a challenge new brokers often face.

Another feature is Broker Access’ fraud mitigation capabilities. The program integrates advanced monitoring and vetting processes, allowing brokers to connect with trustworthy carriers while minimizing risks associated with fraud. The platform’s automation further enhances security by managing and validating carrier details.

Integration partnerships

Since the key to the tool is allowing brokers to leverage Uber Freight’s proprietary technology without having to add an extra step, the technology today is being offered through TMS integrations including Alvys, Tai Software and a new integration with capacity solution Parade, a partnership announced Thursday as well.

“At Parade, we aim to expand capacity access by enabling our customers to connect with carriers where they prefer to do business,” Anthony Sutardja, CEO of Parade, said in the release. “Our integrated partnership with Uber Freight’s Broker Access significantly broadens capacity options for freight brokers, empowering them to support their growth with trusted access to quality carriers.”

For other legacy systems, including McLeodTMS, Uber Freight is working with industry technology consultant Metafora to make access easier.

“We brought our managed integration offering, which we call Socket, to market for exactly this reason – to accelerate innovation in the space and allow brokers, carriers and shippers a better opportunity to differentiate with technology cost effectively,” said Ryan Schreiber, chief growth officer at Metafora. “Because of the work we’ve done, we’re uniquely positioned to democratize access and we’re excited to add Uber Freight, and its customers, to the list of companies benefiting from this approach.”