Kodiak AI, DTL Transport Sign Deal for 75 Driverless Trucks
By Greg Bock · · 2 min read
Insider Brief
- Kodiak AI and DTL Transport signed a binding agreement to deploy Kodiak’s autonomous-driving system on 75 driverless trucks owned and operated by DTL.
- DTL will pay a per-mile fee under Kodiak’s Driver-as-a-Service model and initially operate the trucks on routes between Dallas and El Paso and between Dallas and Atlanta.
- The deal follows a September California pilot and builds on Kodiak’s existing autonomous-trucking deployments with Atlas Energy Solutions and planned driverless freight service for IKEA.
Kodiak AI and DTL Transport have signed a binding agreement to deploy Kodiak’s autonomous-driving system on 75 driverless trucks owned and operated by the California freight carrier.
Under the deal, DTL, which specializes in long-distance team driving and transports produce for large grocery customers, will pay Kodiak a per-mile fee for use of the Kodiak Driver system, according to Kodiak. The company noted it is the first publicly announced definitive agreement under its Driver-as-a-Service model with an interstate trucking carrier operating driverless trucks in its own fleet.
DTL plans to use the trucks on long-haul routes across the Sun Belt, initially along Interstate 10 between Dallas and El Paso, Texas, and Interstate 20 between Dallas and Atlanta. Kodiak has previously tested its autonomous-driving system on both routes. The companies did not provide a schedule for deploying all 75 trucks.
From Pilot to Commercial Agreement
The agreement follows a September pilot in California in which a Kodiak-equipped truck hauled perishable goods for DTL about 225 miles between Fresno and Los Angeles along Interstate 5 and California Route 99. Kodiak said those trips were the first commercial goods hauled autonomously by a Class 8 truck in California. The deliveries were conducted under a heavy-duty autonomous-vehicle testing permit issued to Kodiak by the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
DTL said it plans to use autonomous trucks alongside its existing workforce to add freight capacity. The longer routes covered by the new agreement could allow DTL to move freight without the driving-hour limits that apply to human-operated trucks. The companies said additional lanes could be added later.
Kodiak Expands Driver-as-a-Service
The DTL agreement extends a commercial model Kodiak has already used in industrial trucking.
As of June 30, Kodiak said its autonomous-driving system was installed on 35 driverless trucks owned and operated by Atlas Energy Solutions. Kodiak has committed to increasing that fleet to 100 trucks by mid-2027. The company said it also plans to begin driverless highway freight service by the end of 2026 carrying goods for IKEA between Dallas and Houston on Interstate 45.
