Ryder and Kodiak Open Truckport for Autonomous Trucks in Houston

Kodiak’s first freight transfer point at a Ryder facility enables planned deployment of driverless trucks to and from Houston

MIAMI & MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE: R), a leader in supply chain, dedicated transportation and fleet management solutions, and Kodiak Robotics, Inc., a leading autonomous trucking company, announce a collaboration to leverage Ryder’s service network to enable the commercialization and scaling of Kodiak’s autonomous truck solution. To start, Kodiak and Ryder established their first truckport in Houston, strategically-located at an existing Ryder fleet maintenance facility. The truckport, which opened in December, enables Kodiak to launch and land autonomous trucks as well as transfer freight to serve routes between Houston, Dallas, and Oklahoma City.

While the collaboration initially focuses on the establishment of Kodiak’s Houston facility, the companies see opportunity to leverage Ryder’s extensive service network to support additional truckport operations and to provide on-site technician and maintenance services.

“Ryder’s vision is to build out a portfolio of key service elements that support the safe deployment and maintenance of autonomous trucks,” says Karen Jones, EVP, CMO and head of new product development at Ryder. “By managing the unique logistics of autonomous operations as well as the servicing needs of autonomous trucks, we continue to build on our expertise. And by collaborating with leaders in the space like Kodiak, we advance our shared goal of facilitating the commercialization of autonomous technology.”

Today, Kodiak trucks operate all routes with safety drivers, including its Houston-Dallas and Houston-Oklahoma City routes. The autonomous trucking company plans to introduce its first driverless operations along its Dallas-Houston route later this year, using the Ryder facility as a launch point.

“Ryder’s industry-leading fleet services and vast footprint of service locations makes it an ideal partner as we scale autonomous trucks,” said Don Burnette, founder and CEO of Kodiak. “Expanding our network of truckports with Ryder will enable us to operate autonomous trucks at scale with our customers. Our goal is to build the elements we need for driverless operations, and having this Houston location up and running is a critical component of that plan. The Ryder facility will serve as a base to conduct testing and to validate the truckport operational model. Leveraging existing infrastructure eliminates the need for Kodiak to build and develop real estate, and it allows us to focus on launching and scaling driverless truck deployment.”

About Ryder System, Inc.

Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE: R) is a leading logistics and transportation company. It provides supply chain, dedicated transportation, and fleet management solutions, including warehousing and distribution, e-commerce fulfillment, last-mile delivery, managed transportation, professional drivers, freight brokerage, full-service leasing, maintenance, commercial truck rental, and used vehicle sales to some of the world’s most-recognized brands. Ryder provides services throughout the United States, Mexico, and Canada. In addition, Ryder manages nearly 260,000 commercial vehicles and operates approximately 300 warehouses encompassing more than 95 million square feet. Ryder is regularly recognized for its industry-leading practices in third-party logistics, technology-driven innovations, commercial vehicle maintenance, environmental stewardship, corporate social responsibility, world-class safety and security programs, military veteran recruitment initiatives, and the hiring of a diverse workforce. www.ryder.com

About Kodiak Robotics, Inc.

Kodiak Robotics, Inc. was founded in 2018 and has become the trusted world leader in autonomous ground transportation committed to a safer and more efficient future for all. The company is developing an industry-leading technology stack purpose-built for long-haul trucks, making the freight industry safer and more efficient. Kodiak’s unique modular hardware approach integrates sensors into a streamlined sensor-pod structure that optimizes for perception, scalability, and maintainability. The company delivers freight daily for its customers across the South, using its autonomous technology. Kodiak also leverages its commercial self-driving software to develop, test and deploy autonomous capabilities for the U.S. Department of Defense. Learn more about Kodiak on the web at kodiak.ai, and on LinkedIn and Twitter. You can find the company press kit HERE.

Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: Certain statements and information included in this news release are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Federal Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements, including our expectations regarding autonomous vehicles, are based on our current plans and expectations and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Accordingly, these forward-looking statements should be evaluated with consideration given to the many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements including those risks set forth in our periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. New risks emerge from time to time. It is not possible for management to predict all such risk factors or to assess the impact of such risks on our business. Accordingly, we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

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