Modern Shipper

Coinciding with $400 million funding rumors, Agility Robotics has announced a series of enhancements to its flagship humanoid robot, Digit.

For years, the narrative around freight brokerage technology has centered on automation freeing up employees to focus on relationship-building and high-level tasks. But what does that mean in practice?

FedEx is simplifying returns for merchants and consumers with a new tech-enabled service that doesn’t require a box or shipping label.

Real estate investment trust Prologis said the need for more e-commerce fulfillment space is growing.

Carriers in the Powerloop dedicated tours program commit to at least a two-week period of hauling freight using Powerloop trailers. But they can select specific loads within a tour or haul their own loads using a Powerloop trailer.

FedEx reported higher revenue and operating income in the third quarter than last year but says shipping business could slow this quarter because of weakness and uncertainty in manufacturing.

Emails sent to select carriers introduce Walmart’s new brokerage program and outline the benefits of participation.

Intangles digital twin technology can not only help in proactive maintenance but prove that over-the-road trucking fleets uphold high safety standards as well.

U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has outlined DOGE’s scope of work at the Postal Service in a letter to lawmakers, including how existing assets can support the logistics needs of other agencies.

According to a SnapFulfil survey, 56% of respondents expect their warehouse automation levels to increase somewhat over the next two years, while 23% foresee a significant increase.

A performance analysis by Orderful of different equipment types highlights strengths and challenges across the market.

Many major retailers are sounding the alarm about the potential impact of tariffs on their businesses and consumers, but some hope for benefits from the trade disruption.

With the integration of SONAR’s market intelligence into project44’s Freight Procurement Analytics, shippers can access data that enables more informed and agile procurement decisions.

The launch of project44’s Freight Procurement Analytics marks a major step forward in optimizing carrier networks and rate negotiations

Flexport founder Ryan Petersen and FreightWaves discuss the reasoning behind Flexport’s massive product release, the role of AI in global logistics and the evolving landscape of international trade regulations.

The U.S. Postal Service said it is moving ahead with a transportation streamlining initiative, which requires changing the frequency of truck connections between remote post offices and regional processing centers.

DHL e-Commerce is gaining a foothold in the Saudi Arabian market with a partial acquisition of Ajex Logistics Services.

Rivian Automotive is expanding its commercial electric van sales to all U.S. businesses, a shift in the company’s strategy more than a year after Rivian ended its exclusivity deal with Amazon.

President Trump is ready to unilaterally put the U.S. Postal Service under White House control, in what would be an unprecedented move to control the nation’s primary mail delivery provider, according to The Washington Post.

Cargojet is focusing more on charter business as e-commerce retailers and other companies seek dedicated airlift, which helped boost revenue more than 30% in the fourth quarter.

U.S. Postmaster Louis DeJoy has expressed a desire to transition out of that role. The Postal Service’s board will soon start looking for a successor.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro says the Trump administration has retreated from removing a lucrative tariff exemption for low-value e-commerce goods made in China. In its haste to crack down on duty evasion and fentanyl smuggling, the White House made the situation worse, she says.

Sun Country Airlines expects robust growth in cargo revenue as it begins to receive eight more 737 freighter aircraft for its Amazon flying business.

TRC Cos. recently announced it has surpassed $2 billion in funding for client projects supporting clean commercial transportation and renewable energy initiatives across North America.

The cross-border e-commerce logistics ecosystem, including cargo airlines, is bracing for a downturn in business after the U.S. moved to ban low-value Chinese imports from qualifying for zero duties.

FreightTech could contribute to a digital transformation in vehicle logistics, and Detroit-based Auto Hauler Exchange and its investors are betting on it.

“We’re partnering with over three times the number of freight forwarders that we [anticipated] by this time,” said Bryan Lacaillade, co-founder and CEO of Freightmate Ai.

Autonomous yard operations leader Outrider recently announced an industry-first deployment of advanced reinforcement learning (RL) techniques across its customer sites.

Seven-year-old electric vehicle startup Canoo has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and announced an immediate halt to operations weeks after it furloughed its remaining workers and idled its Oklahoma factory.

An autonomous railcar pilot program involving Parallel Systems’ self-propelled, battery-electric container cars will be conducted on two Genesee & Wyoming short lines in Georgia.

Following up on earlier action this week aimed at controlling the influx of unidentified e-commerce shipments from China, U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Friday proposed that low-value imports no longer qualify for duty-free entry if the products are subject to tariffs or other national security restrictions. The proposal could result in higher consumer prices […]

Amazon has announced its largest-ever order of electric heavy goods vehicles, acquiring over 200 eActros 600 vehicles from Mercedes-Benz Trucks.

“In mature markets like the U.S., data accuracy and completeness are critical to building trust and delivering value,” said Shippeo co-founder Lucien Besse.

As the first president of Armada Sunset Holdings, Chris O’Brien sees strong potential for technologies such as AI and machine learning to drive innovation in supply chain management.

Warp and Talon Logistics ask the industry to help support the LA area with relief efforts.

As the global supply chain becomes more volatile, more companies are opting for 4PL services.

This week in Borderlands: Mexican government aims to regulate Asian e-commerce imports; Emerson Electric plans $22.5M factory in Chihuahua; Chinese firm plans $20M machinery factory in Mexico; and Investment firm constructing logistics center in Laredo, Texas.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has issued a decree that effectively ended the popular “border-skipping” strategy many U.S. e-commerce sellers used to avoid tariffs on Chinese goods.

Houston-based e-commerce provider Cart.com acquires fulfillment operations firm OceanX.

Steve Blough, a co-founder of MercuryGate International Inc., speaks about how companies can use AI to strengthen decision making. 

FreightWaves got an inside look at DHL Express’ big parcel center at Miami International Airport as the global logistics integrator prepared for the holiday shipping season, when volumes are 40% to 50% higher each day than the rest of the year.

The National Retail Federation forecasts containerized imports to continue to surge through U.S. ports ahead of a possible longshore strike and tariffs planned by the Trump administration.

A federal court upholds an order requiring China-based ByteDance to sell TikTok or face ban in the US.

The air cargo market will double in size over the next 20 years, and express will be the industry’s main growth engine, Boeing said in a new forecast.

Some Amazon employees are preparing to strike or protest on Black Friday as part of the “Make Amazon Pay” demonstrations against alleged labor abuses.

KF Aerospace is swapping out old Convair cargo planes for more modern ATRs that will fly packages for Purolator in British Columbia.

Last-mile solutions provider OneRail has raised $42 million in venture capital backing to streamline the last mile of the delivery process.

The FreightWaves FreightTech 25 list shows some of the most cutting-edge technology in the industry and identifies several trends that could disrupt the sector moving forward.

Smitha Raphael, chief product and delivery officer at SnapFulfil, highlights why flexibility and seamless integrations in warehouse management tech are now top priorities for 3PLs and B2C companies.

Amazon has added 21 Air to its roster of air cargo transport providers.

Amazon is promising logistics companies that use its air cargo airline that their shipments won’t get left behind when e-commerce parcel volumes are high.

After Uber recently announced bookings growth, the company has launched a broker offering that could help support future shipment growth and brokerage penetration.

Orderful has raised $15 million with NewRoad Capital Partners to help expand Orderful’s offerings, including self-service EDI tools for small and midsize businesses.

With the next Trump administration expected to drive regulatory changes, experts anticipate a surge in M&A activity across retail, e-commerce and FreightTech, as companies like Amazon and DoorDash look to expand in a pro-business environment.

Cargojet reported good third-quarter results and says it is adding capacity to meet expected demand growth.

Two-year-old SpeedX is entering the international logistics sector with the acquisition of Accelerated Global Solutions.

Outgo believes that traditional factoring has failed to deliver for carriers.

E-commerce giant Amazon.com Inc.’s North American sales increased 9% year over year to $95.5 billion in the third quarter.

Amazon Air is looking to make money from its in-house cargo airline by renting out aircraft, including those operated by Sun Country Airlines, to shippers.

Fleet managers are turning to new AI-driven Drowsiness Detection technology, which shows that 77% of drowsy driving events are detected by behaviors other than yawning alone.

UPS’s financial performance bounced back in the third quarter, but it flagged macroeconomic weakness and in-store shopping as potential headwinds for fourth-quarter volumes.

Backers of California’s AB5 independent contractor law have scored a fresh victory after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the Postmates/Uber case.

One of the primary ways Netradyne advocates for drivers is by giving fleet managers a holistic view of their driving habits, highlighting praiseworthy, safe choices they make every day.

The first-ever Freight Fraud Awareness Day, taking place on Tuesday, aims to unite the supply chain community in tackling schemes like double brokering and cargo theft, which have seen a 400% rise since 2022.

The general aviation airport in Gary, Indiana, is expanding cargo infrastructure to help UPS. There is also a Field of Dreams mentality: Build it and other cargo carriers will come.

Freight coordination platform Cartage has raised $3.3 million in a funding round led by Y Combinator. The company, founded by industry veterans, is using AI to streamline logistics without forcing brokers, shippers or carriers to change their preferred communication methods.

As the Southeast attempts to return to normalcy in the wake of Hurricane Helene and prepare for Hurricane Milton, which is expected to make landfall near Tampa, Florida, Wednesday night, drone operators are filling a critical niche in disaster response and recovery.

Amazon’s cargo airline is welcoming shipments from logistics companies and other businesses as it tries to better utilize a private fleet originally dedicated to supporting its own e-commerce sales.

Former Amazon and Flexport executive Dave Clark has launched Auger, a $100 million-backed logistics software startup aimed at optimizing supply chain decision-making for midsize to large businesses by using AI and automation.

With a focus on charger reliability, accessibility and user experience, Charli 2.0 introduces one-tap charging, real-time station availability and installation solutions.

Wing delivery drones will soon collect orders from Serve Robotics’ autonomous sidewalk robots, forming an autonomous, multimodal delivery network.

A new White House effort to reduce the amount of online orders from China that enter the country duty free isn’t likely to interrupt the Shein and Temu business, but could have ramifications for U.S. consumers and retailers.

A Transportation Intermediaries Association report says the freight industry is “under siege” from fraud and must evolve to fight the ballooning problem.

Evigence’s Oria Malka speaks on how technology helps the cold chain limit emissions and improve shelf life.

U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce is spearheading an effort to have the Department of Homeland Security do more to combat organized retail crime in America.

Workers who build Boeing aircraft will go on strike Friday after spurning a deal recommended by their union.

At Uber Freight’s Deliver conference, its founder and CEO announced same day and scheduled deliveries offerings, advanced tech features and said the company has reached $20 billion in freight under management.

Portex founder Brittany Ennix explains how logistics technology should be built for SMB shippers.

Three freighter operators are among the early adopters of an innovative aircraft coating inspired by sharks that makes aircraft more aerodynamic and fuel-efficient.

Experts explore the strength and challenges of growing trade between the U.S., Mexico and Canada during a panel discussion Wednesday in San Antonio, Texas.

While the company continues to deny any wrongdoing, TuSimple has filed to settle its federal fraud case.

California-based A2Z Drone Delivery has launched a suite of autonomous drone docks — portable or permanent sites where drones charge and pick up or drop off packages, with no human interaction.

ShipHero is separating its warehouse management system from its fulfillment business by launching a subsidiary 3PL, LVK, to better focus on customers. The move is to better position itself in the industry as the freight recession continues and venture capital in the FreightTech community becomes scarcer.

The Teamsters union claimed a legal victory in its pressure campaign for collective bargaining at Amazon’s primary air hub in northern Kentucky, near Cincinnati.

Easing port congestion, seasonal demand trends make third surge improbable.

The old FedEx and UPS business models aren’t working in a parcel market undergoing radical transformation. The express carriers need to rethink their network strategies as B2C shipping takes precedence and consumers compromise on speed to get lower prices.

One solution to improve roadside safety for commercial trucks is easily visible flashing lights mounted at the top of the cab.

Sun Country Airlines expects to double its cargo revenue once a revised transportation contract with Amazon is fully implemented in 2026.

Returns continue to increase, which can end up costing companies. Processes can be put in place to help bottom lines, and it’s all related to transportation.

The California Supreme Court unanimously upheld the exemption from independent contractor law AB5 that Prop 22 granted to gig drivers.

FreightTech hasn’t solved freight fraud, and regulators can’t figure out who is regulating it. Is there a solution?

UPS is taking longer than expected to restore profit levels amid slower parcel growth and increased operating costs.

While supply chains have adopted new technologies to optimize efficiency, we are seeing how impactful potential risks can be.

This week: Alvys and Renaissant both close Series A’s, truck parking solutions unite and Leonard’s Express looks to optimize operations.

DHL Express is expanding China air network through teaming arrangement with Central Airlines.

This week: p44 offers eBOLs on all LTL shipments, ODeX moves into Singapore, Goodyear offers Tires-as-a-Service and AutoScheduler.AI raises funds.

The Class I railroad, CSW, is now the fourth to become a member of RailPulse.

Outpost releases new technology, combining both hardware and software, to improve commercial truck parking availability and security, as truck parking continues to be a significant problem in the U.S.

This week, we showcase an innovative way to attack Japan’s logistics labor-shortage problems; Pepsi makes a new partnership in battery technology; and Walmart wins an award for its investment in technology.

Samsara’s chief product officer explains the importance of building strong partnerships with customers to lay the groundwork for future solutions.