Kodiak AI and Charger Logistics Unveil Autonomous Trucking Route in Laredo

Kodiak AI, Charger Logistics launch autonomous Laredo lane

Kodiak AI and cross-border carrier Charger Logistics have begun hauling freight on a 435-mile route between Dallas and Laredo, Texas, extending Kodiak’s autonomous trucking operations into one of the busiest freight corridors connecting the United States and Mexico.

The service currently operates with a safety driver behind the wheel. The companies plan to transition the lane to driverless operations after Kodiak completes its safety case, but they have not announced a specific date for removing the driver from the Dallas-Laredo route.

The first delivery was completed Sept. 8. Trucks equipped with Kodiak Driver are hauling refrigerated and dry van freight for consumer packaged goods and food and beverage customers. Those shipments typically move in consistent, high-volume flows tied to retail replenishment and other scheduled demand.

For drivers and carriers, the route represents a practical test of autonomous equipment in a corridor that includes long stretches of interstate operation as well as freight activity connected to international trade. Laredo is the highest-volume commercial land port of entry in the United States. The Port of Laredo handled more than $350 billion in international trade in 2025 and accounted for nearly 40% of U.S. trade with Mexico, according to Kodiak.

Charger operates in both the United States and Mexico and counts temperature-controlled freight among its core service lines. The carrier also uses a proprietary transportation management system and internally developed applications to manage its network.

“Autonomy lets us build a network that serves both our customers and our drivers,” Andy Khera, president of Charger Logistics, said in the announcement. “Combining our in-house TMS, managed transportation, and the Kodiak Driver creates a nearly fully automated ecosystem that gives our customers long-term capacity continuity through changing labor markets and freight demand, while bringing our drivers home every night.”

The current operation is part of Kodiak’s broader Driver-as-a-Service approach. Under that model, Kodiak deploys its autonomous driving system on trucks owned and operated by a customer. The companies expect to add routes in Charger’s network over time as the carrier integrates Kodiak Driver into its fleet.

That planned expansion would not immediately eliminate driving jobs on the lanes involved. For now, the trucks require a safety driver, and the companies have not provided details on how staffing would change if the route becomes driverless. The announced plan is to move toward driverless operation only after Kodiak completes its safety case for the applicable operating environment.

A safety case is an evidence-backed assessment intended to show that an autonomous system can operate safely in a defined setting. Kodiak’s long-haul Autonomy Readiness Measure tracks the percentage of claims and supporting evidence in that safety case that the company considers materially complete.

That measure reached 96% at the end of September 2026, up from 93% at the end of August and 84% in February. The metric reflects Kodiak’s progress toward its overall long-haul objective, but it does not establish a driverless start date for the Dallas-Laredo lane.

Kodiak separately plans to launch long-haul driverless service by the end of 2026 on a Dallas-Houston route along Interstate 45. The company has not said that the Laredo operation will become driverless on the same schedule. Kodiak’s driverless trucks have been operating in commercial service in the Permian Basin since December 2024.

The Laredo launch also places Charger’s relationship with autonomous trucking companies in a broader context. Charger has a separate agreement with Aurora Innovation covering the same Dallas-Laredo corridor. Aurora said in July that Charger would deploy its second-generation driverless trucks on the route. That arrangement uses a transportation-as-a-service model in which Aurora holds the U.S. Department of Transportation operating authority, controls the truck and carries the insurance.

Under the Kodiak arrangement, the focus is on putting Kodiak’s driving system into Charger’s own fleet and operating structure. Kodiak founder and CEO Don Burnette said the Dallas-Laredo lane gives the companies a foundation for expanding driverless service after the required safety work is complete.

For now, the operation is best understood as an autonomous freight pilot with commercial cargo and a professional driver still in the cab. Its next major step will depend on Kodiak completing the safety case and determining when the route can operate without that onboard driver.