Robotruck firm Kodiak AI set to debut on Nasdaq after SPAC merger

Kodiak Robotics is set to make its stock market debut on Thursday, following its merger with SPAC Ares Acquisition Corp. II (NYSE:AACT [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/AACT]) that valued the autonomous trucking startup at about $2.5B.

The merged entity has been renamed Kodiak AI. Its stock and public warrants will start trading on Nasdaq under the tickers "KDK" and "KDKRW," respectively.

Under the SPAC deal [https://seekingalpha.com/pr/20243560-kodiak-completes-business-combination-with-ares-acquisition-corporation-ii-to-accelerate], Kodiak received more than $212.5M from certain institutional investors, including $145M in PIPE funding and about $62.9M in trust cash from AACT, before expenses.

[Kodiak AI truck]
Kodiak AI

The company said its AI-powered autonomous driving system - Kodiak Driver - is designed to help address challenges in the trucking industry such as labor shortage, rising costs, and demand for shorter delivery timelines.

Kodiak Driver has logged approximately 3M on-road autonomous miles and over 3,000 paid driverless hours to date. Kodiak has partnered [https://seekingalpha.com/pr/20228096-roush-delivers-first-driverless-kodiak-driver-equipped-autonomous-truck-demonstrating-kodiaks] with vehicle upfitter Roush Industries to scale its production of autonomous trucks.

Kodiak's CEO Don Burnette told [https://www.wsj.com/articles/autonomous-truck-startup-kodiak-set-to-go-public-after-2-5-billion-deal-93f05359] _The Wall Street Journal _that the company plans to use the funds raised from the SPAC deal to expand its driverless fleet and invest in R&D to improve autonomous capabilities.

Other autonomous trucking players include Aurora Innovation (AUR [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/AUR]), Gatik, TuSimple, Plus, Torc, Volvo Autonomous Solutions, and Embark Truck.

MORE ON ARES ACQUISITION CORPORATION II

* Ares Acquisition Corporation II: Kodiak Might Be A Winner [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4801051-ares-acquisition-corporation-ii-kodiak-might-be-winner]
* Kodiak Robotics, Ares Acquisition raise over $275M for merger [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4497587-kodiak-robotics-and-ares-acquisition-raise-over-275m-for-business-combination]
* Financial information for Ares Acquisition Corporation II [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/AACT/income-statement]