Most freight AI pilots work. Most enterprise rollouts don't. Here's what's actually breaking down and what production-grade AI infrastructure looks like in freight.
Plus, training software that helped scale Nolan Transportation Group raises $30 million; fees are increasing for brokers and carriers; and PepsiCo triples the size of its electric fleet.
Training software that scaled Nolan Transportation Group (NTG) and OTR Solutions raises $30M in Series A funding
32,000 sq. ft. warehouse in Peoria, AZ, under investigation for fraud and stolen goods
🤔 Question of the Day: A nuclear verdict in transportation refers to a case where the jury awards the plaintiff at least $__ million. Find the answer in today's main story.
Today's Newsletter is Brought to You by Levity.ai.
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🐔 WHAT’S COOKIN’ IN FREIGHT
🚀 Learn to Win Secures $30M for Training Solution. Learn to Win just raised $30 million in Series A funding, led by the Westly Group. This cash boost will help them scale their AI-driven training platform, already used by the U.S. Navy, Novartis, and the LA Rams. Co-founder Andrew Powell says this milestone will push their growth in defense and commercial sectors. Kevin Nolan of Nolan Transportation Group, praised the platform for slashing new hire ramp-up times and enhancing market responsiveness. With 140% net revenue retention, Learn to Win is on track for massive growth.
📈 Rising Safety Fees For Brokers & Carriers. Federal regulators have approved a 25% fee increase for motor carriers, brokers, and leasing companies under the Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) Plan, effective in 2025. This is the first increase since 2010, following two years of fee reductions. Carriers will pay between $9 and $9,000 more annually, depending on fleet size, while brokers and leasing companies will pay an additional $46. Despite objections, the FMCSA asserts the increase is necessary for continued funding of state highway safety programs. The UCR program will distribute approximately $108 million to participating states for truck safety and enforcement in 2025.
🚛 PepsiCo Triples Size of Electric Fleet. PepsiCo is expanding its electric vehicle fleet in California by adding 50 Tesla Semis and 75 Ford E-Transit vans as part of its pep+ sustainability strategy to reduce pollution and carbon emissions. This expansion follows an earlier order for 100 Tesla Semis, of which only 36 were initially used due to delivery issues. The initiative aims to improve air quality and combat climate change by cutting transportation-related pollution. Other companies, such as Coca-Cola and Amazon, are also adopting electric vehicles to support eco-friendly initiatives.
TOGETHER WITH LEVITY
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$47 Million Nuclear Verdict Against Schneider
A Georgia jury recently awarded over $47 million to the family of Jarvis Nance Sr., an owner-operator who was killed in an August 2017 crash involving a Schneider National truck.
Nance was struck and killed after exiting his truck on Interstate 285. The verdict blamed Schneider and its former driver, Darryl Joachim, entirely for the accident.
Key Information
The $47 million verdict against Schneider and Joachim was awarded by a Georgia jury on June 7, 2024, in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of Jarvis Nance Sr., an owner-operator killed in a 2017 crash.
The jury apportioned 100% of the blame to Schneider and Joachim.
The case is considered a "nuclear verdict" because the award exceeds $10 million.
Details of the Incident
On August 17, 2017, Jarvis Nance Sr. was struck and killed after exiting his disabled truck on Interstate 285 in Georgia.
Witnesses claimed that Joachim, driving a Schneider tractor-trailer, swerved across multiple lanes, forcing another vehicle to veer into the emergency lane and hit Nance.
While Joachim did not directly strike the victim, the jury found him and Schneider fully liable for Nance's death.
Schneider and Joachim were not implicated in the original complaint filed by Nance's widow, Mistie Nance.
Joachim's Background
Joachim had only two months of experience as a truck driver before the crash.
His employment records showed multiple safety violations, including hard braking and stability control issues.
Schneider's predictive analytics software had allegedly warned that Joachim was likely to be involved in a crash soon after he was hired.
After working for Schneider for seven months, Joachim was fired when a random hair follicle screen test returned positive for methamphetamines.
Liability and Accountability
Joachim claimed he was not near the crash site and had parked his rig elsewhere, but Schneider's electronic logging data contradicted his account.
The verdict against Schneider and Joachim, despite not being directly involved in the fatal collision, highlights the potential for expanded liability in the trucking industry.
Joachim testified that Schneider "did nothing to help," despite knowing the issues he had while operating his truck. In a live video filmed just three days before the crash, Joachim can be seen backing into a pole while attempting to steer into a loading dock.
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🌎 AROUND THE FREIGHT WEB
A message we received from the CEO of a freight brokerage.
🕵️♂️ FBI Takes on Sketchy Warehouse. Reported stolen load uncovers massive fraud involving 15 fake LLCs and a warehouse of stolen goods. We'll be bringing you updates on this story as we get more info.
🚴♂️ Wind Turbine Scale. Viral video showcases cyclist passing massive wind turbine, highlighting their astonishing size.
🚨 Fake FMCSA Emails Target Truckers. Owner-operator Wayne Bruene warns of phishing emails posing as FMCSA safety audits.
📈 Freight Rate Analysis. Uber Freight data scientist examines if recent rate increases indicate market recovery or seasonality.
🇲🇽 Cross-Border Expansion. Evans Transportation launches new service for Mexico cross-border freight amid trade boom.
🎣 THE FREIGHT CAVIAR PODCAST
In this week's episode, we sat down with Andy Tomka, VP of Product at MVMNT, a Chicago-based TMS founded in 2020. He takes us through the evolution of Echo and its TMS and shares his thoughts on the importance of differentiation, as well as the future and impact of AI on the industry and jobs.
🎧 The FreightCaviar Podcast. Listen to this week's podcast on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.
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I’m Adriana, a writer and editor at FreightCaviar. I’ve covered everything from freight tech to industry lawsuits and market shifts, helping scale us to almost 14K subscribers. My goal: to make logistics stories digestible, clear, and fun to read.
200,000 drivers didn’t disappear overnight. Plus: Dalilah’s Law targets foreign dispatch, a broker ran a $1M USPS scam, the dashcam war escalates, and more.
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