MIAMI — Ryder System Inc. has established a new technology lab that company officials tout will “revolutionize how Ryder’s customers interact with their transportation and supply chain networks.”
According to a news release, the lab — dubbed Baton, A Ryder Technology Lab — is based in Silicon Valley, California.
“Baton’s mission is to pioneer a suite of groundbreaking customer-facing technologies,” the news release stated. “These technologies will digitize and optimize networks at a level not currently available in the industry and will prepare Ryder for the coming artificial intelligence (AI) wave. To build on that success, it’s paramount we continue to invest in recruiting the brightest technology minds out there and provide them with a startup environment where they have the space and freedom to create, along with the resources of a $12 billion company.”
Leading Ryder’s innovation lab are Andrew Berberick and Nate Robert, co-chief product and technology officers for Ryder.
The two founded San Francisco-based startup Baton, which was known for the development of a proprietary logistics technology focused on optimizing transportation networks.
Ryder initially invested in Baton’s Series A funding round and then acquired the startup last year.
“What piqued our interest in Ryder then, and what keeps us excited today, is the fact that it’s the only fully integrated port-to-door logistics provider in North America managing the complex supply chains of many of the world’s biggest and best-known brands,” Berberick said. “That gives Ryder tremendous perspective and reach and as engineers, it provides us with the unique opportunity to tackle some of the largest and most daunting problems in the industry today, while preparing Ryder and its customers for the coming AI wave.”
Baton said his first challenge is to create a first-of-its-kind, AI-powered digital platform and optimization engine “that facilitates a new, integrated approach to managing transportation networks for customers where seasonality and fluctuating demand inhibit the continuous use of resources.”
“There is a massive amount of waste when supply chains do not communicate,” Robert said. “We believe we can change that and bring deep transformation to an entire sector. That’s why we’re now actively recruiting talented technologists from some of Silicon Valley’s most respected technology firms to help solve some of the most complex problems plaguing the nearly $2.5 trillion North American transportation and logistics industry. We’re looking for engineers excited by the challenge and who want the autonomy and nimbleness of a startup environment but with the power, reach, and stability of a highly respected industry titan.”
The Trucker News Staff produces engaging content for not only TheTrucker.com, but also The Trucker Newspaper, which has been serving the trucking industry for more than 30 years. With a focus on drivers, the Trucker News Staff aims to provide relevant, objective content pertaining to the trucking segment of the transportation industry. The Trucker News Staff is based in Little Rock, Arkansas.
