Technology

Truck Talk is a weekly newsletter from FreightWaves that adds perspective and context to happenings in the trucking industry.

project44 and FourKites are the only ‘Leaders’ in the space.

Autonomous trucking software startup plans to use proceeds of its $1.1 billion initial public offering to grow its employment by 50% in the next six months.

TuSimple, the first autonomous vehicle software developer to go public, raised $1.1B at $40 per share, above the high-end of its estimated price..

Domino’s is partnering with self-driving vehicle company Nuro to schedule pizza delivery for select customers in Houston with Nuro’s R2 robot vehicle.

An understanding between European truck maker IVECO and self-driving software maker Plus includes liquified natural gas but not electric trucks.

Startup self-driving truck software-maker Embark Trucks sees itself at the center of an autonomous ecosystem driven by fleet and logistics partners.

The telematics, ELD and satellite provider is getting sold for a 50% premium. Even that is less than at least one analyst saw as its value.

Needing to know where your freight is spawns incredibly competitive market

Not being limited to the modes of a particular carrier or their own private fleet, a business can access more available capacity in the market.

The sale price is $11.50 per share, about 150% more than the closing price on Wednesday.

The acquisition provides MercuryGate with ready-made last-mile logistics exposure, Blough says.

The first autonomous trucking software company to go public, TuSimple seeks up to $1.5 billion in stock sales.

Embark Trucks hit the autonomous road sooner than the competition. Now it wants to help fleets get ready to plug into self-driving trucks.

FreightTech companies showcased their cutting-edge technology solutions for common fleet inefficiencies during the Enterprise Fleet Summit.

Trimble MAPS worked with Wisconsin trucking company Roehl Transport to implement a navigation system to allow seamless and precise last-mile operations. The companies share their story during FreightWaves’ Enterprise Fleet Summit.

Hubtek’s digital worker, TABi, enters a company’s TMS as a user, scans documents, forms and emails for data, and transfers the data to the TMS.

Mercado Labs connects, organizes and optimizes international supply chains, bringing order to the complex and monthslong importing process. End-to-end visibility is table stakes for an agile, efficient and resilient supply chain.

One interesting aspect of the report by B Riley: Could TriumphPay and Triumph Capital be headed in different directions?

Isuzu trucks will install technology from autonomous vehicle startup Gatik on its medium-duty N-Series truck models.

Samsara’s new Fleet Benchmarks Report compares a fleet’s performance to that of similar fleets across the trucking industry, providing insight into how they are trending relative to peers.

Shipwell is adding pricing intelligence tools to its enterprise platform. Shippers testing the new tools have seen procurement costs drop as much as 10%, Shipwell said.

Research firm Cowen has set a price target of $28.50 per share for EV startup Arrival – more than $10 higher than Monday’s trading price. Cowen cited its unique approach to manufacturing as one reason for its optimism.

John Krafcik, who led Waymo, the former Google self-driving car project, to recognized leadership in autonomous vehicles, is stepping down as CEO.

Kenworth and Peterbilt avoid downtime from semiconductor shortage by parking unfinished trucks and getting back to them later.

As hackers exploit the interconnectedness of the global supply chain to stage ransomware attacks, executives say technology and strategy are key to avoiding a knockout punch.

Fleets on the East Coast need to make every attempt to maximize capacity and assets

FreightWaves CEO Craig Fuller writes about FreightWaves, as well as transportation today and moving forward.

TriumphPay is acquiring HubTran to integrate machine-learning capabilities for a fully integrated payments network for its customers.

The costs of keeping up with four engine technologies and the pace of self-driving trucks push rival truck manufacturers into partnerships.

Self-driving technology startup Embark Trucks develops a universal autonomous driving system that will work in semis from the four largest manufacturers.

Investors plow more money into Plus, which expects to commercialize Level 4 self-driving technology in China this summer.

STORD, which describes itself as a cloud supply chain company, has secured a $65 million funding round as it seeks to expand upon its logistics capabilities.

Last of major trucking companies to pick an autonomous technology partner, Volvo Group chooses Aurora after three years of quiet collaboration.

Chipotle reveals it has invested in self-driving vehicle startup Nuro as it looks at new ways consumers will engage with the brand.

Truck Talk is a weekly newsletter where FreightWaves adds context, commentary and color to industry news and trends.

Autonomous trucking startup Plus is beginning production of Level 4 software this year as it works toward 10 billion miles of on-road testing.

Faxinating Solutions, an EDI provider that works with some of the largest shippers in North America and IBM, says it was the victim of a ransomware attack.

Intel’s Ravi Dosanjh and the Port of Long Beach’s Noel Hacegaba take on supply chain visibility.

Waymo is leveraging software lessons from its autonomous ride-hailing pilots to Class 8 trucks, applying fifth-generation software that debuted on a Jaguar.

In this Put That Coffee Down segment, Kevin Hill talks with Chris Hurst about why the freight and logistics sector is lagging, and why companies should fix that.

Labor groups tell DOT that automated vehicle policy should not be based on industry self-regulation.

Samsara announced Sue Bostrom as the latest strategic addition to the company’s board of directors.

The capital will drive volume growth and help Baton expand to new markets.

Turvo’s Luis Pajares explains why software that was traditionally optimized around a particular supply chain function needs to be reimagined from the 3PL customers’ perspective.

FourKites said it had a banner year in 2020 as more companies sought out the real-time supply chain visibility company.

TuSimple, the self-driving truck startup backed by fleets, suppliers and manufacturers, filed on Tuesday to become a public company.

Automation will mitigate exposure created by process errors and duplication of efforts by integrating disparate systems.

Electronic payments provider Relay Payments announces Old Dominion Freight Line is the latest carrier to join its platform.

If many fleets procrastinate to avoid a disruptive transition, there could be a shortage of equipment.

FreightWaves Ratings is FreightWaves new review/rating site of commercial products for the freight industry.

MyCarrier is scaling a white-labeled LTL TMS with a unique distribution model.

Nuvocargo recently updated its platform to include bilingual tracking features and more visibility for cargo shipments in Mexico.

Load board adds more enterprise-level automation to its compliance offering.

Even as the relationship between Ryder and Chanje was hitting the rocks, Ryder continued to do new deals with the supplier of electric vehicles and touted its role in the company’s green plans.

Major Canadian trucking and warehousing company Groupe Robert is making a large investment to build Quebec’s first 3PL automated distribution center for fresh and frozen foods.

Wabtec, short line operator Genesee & Wyoming and Carnegie Mellon aim to establish public-private institute that would research, demonstrate and commercialize advanced freight rail technology.

The desire for supply chain software and technology that is tightly integrated and that works in tandem, through platforms and ecosystems, raises the specter of cybersecurity incidents that can very quickly metastasize.

The Future of Ports 2021 event will take place virtually on March 18th, 7 PM, UAE time/8AM PT time.

Refraction AI discovered many last-mile AVs used a sensor system known as LiDAR, which was causing bottlenecks in deploying these vehicles into the real world.

“Our goal at FreightFlows is to make near-term market predictions to help vessel owners, traders, brokers and charterers have much better decision-making power in the international freight markets today,” said CEO Matt Morgan.

SPAC acquisitions are cropping up with more frequency, and we can only expect more deals to go through in 2021.

Over the next few years, the team will continue to grow and Red seeks qualified applicants.

Beer maker Molson Coors warns that a systems outage brought on by a cyberattack is causing delays and disruptions to shipments.

XPO Logistics has embraced diversity, equity and inclusion in its workforce that is enhancing its culture, and leading to business success.

Visual LANSA ⁠combines the flexibility and control of traditional programming with the benefits of low-code solutions.

The Great North is taking the slow road on implementation

How should executives think about the combination of people and technology as they attempt to solve the problems they encounter daily in their companies’ supply chain operations?

Reload, Vorto’s new autonomous platform, could save companies more than $400 million per year while increasing sustainability.

Fluid Truck specializes in box trucks and cargo vans and focuses on last mile

Data Gumbo’s Andrew Bruce and Atlas Operating’s Yousuf Chaudhary shed light on how decision-making around lease operating expenses is affected by data.

Texas-based technology company ThoughtTrace demonstrates how its artificial intelligence-enabled platform can help companies better understand important documents, including contracts, during a rapid-fire demo at Evolve: The Next Evolution of Oil & Gas, presented by Digital Wildcatters and FreightWaves.

Keynoting an Evolve summit session, Dan Pickering and Scott Gale call for traditional, transitional energy players to meet in the middle.

It can be confusing for shippers to identify high-impact technology investments.

EQT CEO Toby Rice gave the keynote Wednesday for “Evolve: The Next Evolution of Oil & Gas,” a virtual event presented by Digital Wildcatters and FreightWaves.

As a love affair with electric vehicle companies fades, self-driving truck startups appear to be the new courtship objects of blank check companies.

“We are solving meaningful business challenges with innovation and passion,” says GreyOrange Chief People Officer Ramya Sampath Sharma.

Stockholm-based electric trucking company Einride conducted a survey to gain insights into women’s views on a career in the trucking industry and how technology and autonomy impact interest.

With expansion into both Asia and Europe, Cargobase expects to more than triple its revenues.

Innovators worldwide are finding new ways to simplify and disintermediate the execution layer of the supply chain.

Craig Fuller reasons that if “project44 is the Visa of the industrial world, then having the greatest acceptance and connectivity will be a major differentiating factor.”

PowerFleet’s LV-400 allows users to remotely monitor and make changes to the reefer trailer from their PC.

Amazon-backed Deliveroo announces plans to go public less than a year after British regulators questioned the viability of the business.

As Amazon continues to dominate e-commerce, major retailers are stepping up their investments hoping to benefit from shifting consumer demands.

“Ocean Insights has dominated the container-tracking space, and we look forward to providing the industry not only the best ocean capabilities but also the most comprehensive end-to-end visibility platform,” says project44 CEO Jett McCandless.

We are on the cusp of a golden age of technology-led innovation in supply chain.

Tim Adams invented We Care Safety Flaps to reduce “collateral damage” from accidents involving tractor-trailers.

The AAR released climate policy proposals encouraging partnerships and market solutions that promote competition and carbon capture, utilization and storage technology.

The asset-light warehouse startup will use the capital to expand its network, co-founder says.

U.S. rail operator CSX says it is investigating a “data security incident” after a ransomware gang appears to have leaked personal information of employees and retirees.

Evan Efstathiou discusses why VCs are looking to invest more in maritime just as shipowners are looking to partner more with startups.

The Global Secure Shipping project began after 9/11 when the government sought increased security at ports. This fireside chat explores the customs, weight, six-sided security and visibility benefits of smart containers.

This fireside chat about logistical trends in artificial intelligence and automation highlights a variety of misconceptions. “Almost immediate ROI” might be enough to steer logistics companies toward AI, said Kate Curtin, head of marketing at Deep Cognition.

Other athletes may look at sports-related or media-related investments. But Kelvin Beachum, an offensive tackle, is deep into tech startups.

Suvrat Joshi joins logistics software-as-a-service platform FarEye as chief product officer.

Supply chain digitization strategies impact shippers, carriers, 3PLs and consumers. Christian Piller, vice president of value engineering at project44, and Dolly Wagner-Wilkins, chief technology officer at Worldwide Express, discuss the benefits and challenges that digitization strategies bring.

“Ordering a truck in Poland is completely different than shipping something in Greece or Portugal.”

Life cycle management and recycling expert Lauren Roman dives into what it takes to responsibly recycle electric vehicle batteries.

In the oil patch, a significant share of logistics activity is highly repetitive. Blockchain can automate the payment processes.

FreightWaves is bringing back its in-person events this year with the F3: Future of Freight Festival in November, celebrating all things freight in a communitywide celebration throughout the city of Chattanooga.