Autonomous trucking startup Kodiak Robotics to go public via SPAC

Kodiak Robotics plans to start operating the self -driving truck through a combination with the acquisition for special purposes of Ares Corporation II.

Kodiak treatment, which raised about $ 243 million so far, is estimated at about $ 2.5 billion before money. The new and current institutional investors in Kodiak, such as Soros Fund Management, Ark Investments, and ARES, funded or committed more than $ 110 million in financing to support the transaction, as well as about $ 551 million in confidence -held money.

The deal is expected to be closed in the second half of 2025.

The transition to the stadium via SPAC is an interesting step at a time when the truck space has seen some major visits, including high -level players such as Cuspark and Tusimple. SPACS has also lost a lot of its luster from the peak of 2021, especially for intensive capital companies such as AV and EV startups.

Kodiak has something to happen, at least. It is to generate revenues, although the revenue is likely to be minimal. Kodiak, who says she paid 2.6 million miles independently, in the end she wants to market long truck transport operations. In the short term, the company followed the autonomous ruling on rough roads as a faster way to the market.

In January, Kodiak introduced the first two independent trucks to Atlas Energy Client solutions, which represents its first commercial launch. Atlas adhered to buying a preliminary order of 100 trucks to help its Sand Frac operations in the Bermean Basin in West Texas.

This part of the revenues verify the health of Kodiak more than emerging companies before revenue, which formed the largest part of the Spac mergers over the past few years, and can open the door for pipe investments. However, the road to profitability is a long path, and capital needs for huge autonomy.

Techcrunch has arrived at Kodiak to learn more about the time it takes its current runway, but they did not receive an immediate response.

The appearance of Kodiak in the public market comes during a turbulent period in public markets, and this is largely due to the tariff for president Trump and the commercial war that followed. It also comes as one of the main Kodiak competitors, Aurora Innovation, is scheduled to start with commercial truck transport operations without a driver this month.

Don Burnett, CEO of Kodiak, participated in establishing the company in 2018 after years of experience in independent leadership. He was previously working on Google’s self -driving technology before leaving in early 2016 to help launch OTTO, an AV emerging company that was founded alongside Anthony Lewandowski and Lior Ron and Clier Delonay. Otto was quickly obtained by Uber, but things disintegrated quickly as Waymo filed a lawsuit against Uber, accusing Levandowski from the steak Trade theft. Uber eventually settled with Waymo, and LEVANDOWSKI was later and admitted to being guilty. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison, but he pardoned President Trump before spending time.

Burnett, who already left Otto in front of Lewandowski’s drama, managed to avoid repercussions and follow his main goal – his thesis was that truck transport would be the deadly application of self -independence.

“We believe that the entry of public markets will accelerate our strategy to expand our current partners’ relationships, provide our technology to a broader customer base, and to provide enhanced solutions through commercial trucks and public trucks,” Burnett said in a statement.