Kodiak Robotics starting to the public mark via Spac

Starting the self -driving truck Kodiak Robotics Place for the public through a merging process with Ares Acquisition 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.

Going to public places via SPAC is an interesting step at a time when the truck space has seen some major visits, including prominent players like Start and Tusimple closing. Spacs lost a lot of their luster from The peak 2021Especially for intensive capital companies such as the startups AV and EV.

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 was delivered to her The first two independent trucks To Customer Atlas Energy Solutions, on the occasion of its first commercial launch. Atlas adhered to purchasing a preliminary request of 100 trucks to help its Sand Frac operations in the Bermean Basin in West Texas.

This part of the revenue causes the Kodiak more healthy technology than emerging companies before revenue, which formed the largest part of Spac integration operations over the past few years, and can open the door to 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 trucks completely without a driver This month.

CEO Kodiak Don Burnett He participated in the establishment of the company in 2018 after years of experience in independent leadership. He previously worked on Google’s self -driving technology before leaving in early 2016 to help launch OTTO, a start -up company that was established side by side Anthony LewandowskiLior Ron and Clair Delonay. Otto was obtained by Uber, but things quickly exploded as Waymo filed a lawsuit against Uber, accusing Levandowski of the theft of Secret Trade. 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 transportation will be the deadly application For autonomy.

“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.