Einride AB, a technology company driving the transition to electric and autonomous freight operations for large shippers, and Legato Merger Corp. III, a special purpose acquisition company, announced today that they have entered into a definitive business combination agreement for a proposed business combination that would result in Einride becoming a NYSE-listed public company.
The Transaction can be viewed as the public market’s first autonomous and electric freight technology platform.
Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, Einride has deployed its technology platform and operational expertise across seven countries, demonstrating commercial traction. Upon closing the transaction, Einride is expected to continue its operations with more than 25 enterprise customers, manage and grow its current fleet of approximately 200 electric vehicles, and advance scaling autonomous deployments with customers that today include GE Appliances and Apotea, Sweden’s leading online pharmacy.
Einride is serving customers across North America, Europe and the Middle East. Einride notes that the company has helped global customers cost-efficiently transition their logistics to electric and autonomous technology.
The Einride Business Model
Einride’s business model centers on a dual Freight-Capacity-as-a-Service (FCaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) approach through its proprietary AI powered platform, which orchestrates the entire ecosystem required for electric and autonomous operations.
Under its FCaaS model, Einride provides end-to-end freight services for both driver-operated heavy-duty commercial electric trucks and heavy-duty autonomous electric trucks.
Through its SaaS offering, Einride can license its technology platform to third parties, including both the operational planning AI software and Einride’s proprietary autonomous driving system, creating multiple revenue streams and scalability pathways.
Einride notes that it is expanding its U.S. footprint to serve its customers there. Currently, the U.S. represents Einride’s second largest market and the company plans to continue to invest in this market over the coming years to accelerate deployment of its autonomous systems, establish domestic hardware supply chains, bolster R&D efforts, and create jobs across key logistics and technology hubs.
Einride noted that the company has demonstrated commercial traction with over 1,700 driverless hours in contracted customer operations, over 11 million electric miles driven, and over 350,000 executed shipments. With a current Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) run-rate of approximately $45 million and a total contracted base of $65 million ARR in signed customer contracts, Einride sees this achievement as strong commercial validation with a customer base of blue-chip global transport buyers.
Additionally, the company has a base of more than $800 million of potential long term ARR within its Joint Business Plans, which are detailed scaling plans with customers for the continued expansion of electric and autonomous deployments.
Operationally, Einride underscores it 99.7% on-time performance rate, which showcases both the reliability and scale of its electric freight operations.
Furthermore, Einride leverages its suite of AI planning tools to match customer demand with optimized vehicle operations, achieving a demonstrated approximate 13% reduction in fleet-level total cost of ownership, compared to the diesel baseline, with even further cost savings potential through the deployment of Einride’s autonomous freight solutions, and nearly 90% accuracy in energy predictions. Einride’s comprehensive platform manages everything from charging infrastructure optimization to battery management systems. This enables the company to offer full-service freight solutions under take-or-pay contracts averaging 4.5 years in duration with minimum volume commitments, providing strong revenue visibility and predictable cash flows.
Autonomous Technology Architecture
Einride says that their autonomous technology stack, built entirely in-house and from the ground up for driverless operations, enables a superior cost transition to autonomous freight operations for its customers. The software stack is incorporated into Einride’s autonomous cab-less vehicles and deployed for autonomous operations with Einride’s shipper customers. Additionally, the technology stack is vessel-agnostic and can be deployed across multiple vehicle platforms beyond Einride’s own proprietary autonomous cab-less electric trucks. This provides additional revenue streams in areas such as defense and specialized civilian applications, they note.
Einride states it was the first company globally to receive permits for cab-less heavy-duty autonomous vehicle operations on public roads (2019 in Europe, 2022 in the United States), and has maintained zero traffic incidents across all operations.
The company employs a comprehensive three-modality perception stack combining LiDAR, camera, and radar technologies, an approach that has become industry standard for heavy-duty commercial applications. This multi-modal sensor suite, combined with motion sensors and Global Navigation Satellite System satellite tracking, feeds into Einride’s proprietary dual-path software architecture, comprised of a primary deep learning model that provides human-like driving behavior, supported by a secondary rule-based, deterministic system that serves as a guardrail and forms the foundation for regulatory approvals.
Safety & Regulatory Leadership
Einride emphasizes that safety is fundamental to their operations, serving as the foundation for its regulatory achievements. The company maintains its proven safety record through a proprietary safety case that is documented and third-party audited. This safety framework has enabled Einride to secure permits for public road operations for heavy-duty cab-less autonomous vehicles in four countries across North America and Europe.
Importantly, the company’s regulatory approach has evolved from initial nine-month approval processes to recent permits obtained in weeks, demonstrating growing regulatory acceptance of Einride’s solutions and established track record with authorities.
In a discussion with Roozbeh Charli, Einride CEO, I asked how he views the regulatory environment to deploy AV’s in both the U.S. and EU with regard to allowing driverless trucks on public roads. In his view, the situation in Europe is similar to the U.S. approach, where cities and states are key to allowance. “Deployment in Europe is OK, because we can work with Member States and localities to secure any needed permissions,” he said, adding that he feels positive regarding the evolution of EU regulations.
Management Commentary
“Today marks a defining moment for Einride and for the future of freight technology,” said Roozbeh Charli, CEO of Einride. “We’ve proven the technology, built trust with global customers, and shown that autonomous and electric operations are not just possible, but better. This Transaction positions us to accelerate our global expansion and continue to deliver with speed and precision for our customers. The foundation is built, the demand is clear, and our focus is on execution and delivering the future of freight.”
“From the start, Einride has been about more than just technology, it has been about transforming an entire industry,” remarked Robert Falck, Founder and Executive Chairman of the Board of Einride. “Together with Roozbeh and the team, we’ve built a strong foundation and are now well-positioned to execute on that vision and enable an electric and autonomous future for the industry.”
“Our proprietary technology stack, purpose built for autonomous operations, combined with our vessel-agnostic approach, provides significant competitive advantages,” commented Henrik Green, CTO of Einride. “With our demonstrated safety record and established ability to operate autonomous vehicles commercially, we are well-positioned to capture the significant market opportunity as the industry transitions to electric and autonomous freight.”
“This transaction with Einride aligns with our vision to bring industry-leading, innovative technology to the public markets,” added Eric Rosenfeld, Chief SPAC Officer of Legato. “Einride’s proven customer relationships, regulatory achievements, and technology platform position the company to be a leader in the transformation of the freight industry. We believe that the market fundamentals are strong, the timing is right, and Einride has the operational excellence to capitalize on this massive shift in how goods move around the world.”
The Transaction
The Transaction values Einride at $1.8 billion in pre-money equity value and is expected to generate approximately $219 million in gross proceeds before accounting for potential redemptions of Legato’s public shares, transaction expenses and any further financing. Additionally, the company is seeking up to $100 million of private investment in public equity (“PIPE”) capital to accelerate growth. As announced previously, the transaction is further supported by $100 million in crossover capital raised by Einride during 2025 from existing and new institutional investors including a global asset management company based in the United States, EQT Ventures, and NordicNinja.
The existing shareholders of Einride are expected to own approximately 83% of the pro-forma equity after closing of the Transaction, assuming the company raises a $100 million PIPE. Einride’s existing management team will continue to lead the company following completion of the Transaction.
The Transaction was unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of Legato Merger Corp. III and Einride. Completion of the proposed Transaction is anticipated to occur in the first half of 2026 subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
For additional information about the Transaction, see Legato’s Current Report on Form 8-K, which can be obtained at the Securities and Exchange Commission’s website.
Perspective
The U.S. is currently the centerpiece of autonomous trucking development and deployment. By my count, eight companies are focused on long-haul trucking, two on short haul, and six operating off public roads (in logistics yards as well as industrial hauling on private roads).
The short haul B2B space has two players, Einride and Gatik.
Gatik sources its trucks based on an in-depth partnership with Isuzu Trucks. Einride’s business model does not require a manufacturer partnership; they build their own vehicle (while also providing retrofits to stock trucks). An in-depth study contrasting “supply tech to truck manufacturer” versus “build and market a bespoke vehicle” would be fascinating to see.
Einride’s single operation in the U.S. serving GE Appliances runs at low speeds on very limited sections of public roads; thus the current overlap with Gatik is minor: Gatik runs at posted speeds on all types of local roads. But as Einride scales up due to the SPAC infusion, they may seek to compete head-to-head with Gatik.
To do so would be challenging, as Gatik has quite a head start.
Gatik said earlier this year that their scalable Version 3 platform will begin driverless operations by the end of this year. But they are not new to driverless operations. In 2021, on an earlier version of their platform, Gatik began moving short haul freight for both Walmart fully driverlessly.
Since then, Gatik has provided freight services for Kroger, Loblaws, Walmart, Georgia-Pacific, and others. After working with Loblaws for some time, Gatik recently announced a new contract to deliver goods with greater frequency and responsiveness to over 300 Loblaw stores. Twenty autonomous trucks equipped with Gatik’s next generation sensor suite will be deployed by the end of 2025, with a further thirty autonomous trucks to be deployed by the end of 2026. Total Contract Value for Gatik’s autonomy services to Loblaws is approximately $50M Canadian dollars. And that’s only one customer of many.
That said, the short haul B2B space is huge. There is room for multiple players. Based on my Einride discussion today, next year is likely to be an inflection point for the company in deploying driverless freight services in multiple markets. The Operational Design Domain in these deployments will be key to competitiveness.
So, there’s plenty to keep an eye on in the coming months. In the autonomous trucking SPAC world, Kodiak recently went public while the PlusAI SPAC transaction is expected to close early in 2026. Einride is joining a new club, which likely will have several more members this time next year.
Disclosure: Richard Bishop is an Advisor to and/or an equity holder in the following companies mentioned in this article: Gatik, PlusAI.