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Kodiak Robotics has launched an industry advisory board to guide the company’s development, growth and public commitment to driverless truck technology, the company announced on March 27.
Former Kodiak COO James Reed chairs the group, which also includes executives from Werner Enterprises, UPS, the Arkansas Trucking Association and Loadsmith, as well as the former head of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
“This board brings together a powerful combination of innovation, leadership and rich insight, and I am honored to have them as part of the Kodiak team,” Kodiak founder and CEO Don Burnette said in a LinkedIn post.
The members of the advisory board include:
- Chad Dittberner, SVP of dry and expedited at Werner, who has more than 30 years of carrier experience.
- Anne Ferro, former FMCSA administrator, former president and CEO of the American Motor Vehicle Operators Association and former Motor Vehicle Administrator and Maryland Motor Truck Association, president and CEO.
- William Kruger, vice president of maintenance and fleet engineering at UPS, where he has worked since 1989 and leads a Corporate Automotive ATG group with the autonomous fleet strategy.
- Shannon Newton, President of the Arkansas Trucking Association, who has spent 20 years with the association and chairs the Trucking Association Board of Directors of the American Trucking Associations.
- Brett Suma, founder and CEO of Loadsmith, a third-party logistics platform for shippers and carriers, which has equipped 800 trucks with Kodiak Driver self-driving technology through a partnership.
Reed, now Walmart’s vice president of transportation development, called the board members “a remarkable group of industry luminaries whose experience includes working with leading carriers, carriers, safety advocates and regulators.”
“Their unique perspectives will help lead and shape the ways we approach industry and driver engagement, transform the industry and increase public acceptance of autonomous trucks,” Reed said.