LIZ: WE HAVE SOME MAJOR NEWS
COMING OUT OF THE TRANSPORTATION
SECTOR.
REMEMBER BACK IN 2019 THE
"CLAYMAN COUNTDOWN" WAS
THE FIRST NATIONAL NETWORK TO
RIDE IN WAYMO’S AUTONOMOUS
VEHICLES ALONG WITH THEN-CEO
JOHN CRAFTCHECK.
MAYBE WE CAN SHOW YOU THAT.
WELL NOW THE ALPHABET UNIT HAS
ITS OWN SELF-DRIVING TRUCKING
COMPANY, WHICH HAS JUST STRUCK A
DEAL WITH UBER FREIGHT.
THE DEAL WILL ALLOW FUTURE WAYMO
CUSTOMERS TO USE UBER
FREIGHT TO PLAN THEIR OWN
AUTOMATED AND ALSO HUMAN-DRIVING
TRUCKING FLEETS.
THIS NEWS COMES AS LEGIONS OF
BIG NAME COMPANIES CONVERGE ON
THE 2022 UP-SUMMIT IN BENT ON
VILLE, ARKANSAS.
BOEING, FORD, KANU, ALASKA
AIRLINES AMONG THE BUSINESSES
DISCUSSING THE TRANSFORMATION OF
TRANSPORTATION.
FRONT AND CENTER AT THE SUMMIT
AUTONOMOUS TRUCK COMPANY GATIK,
WHICH TODAY ANNOUNCED A NEW
PARTNERSHIP WITH GEORGIA PACIFIC
AND KBX LOGISTICS.
GATIK HAS SMART-HAUL TRUCKS AND
THEY START DRIVING GEORGIA
PACIFIC PAPER GOODS, COMPETELY
AUTONOMOUS TO SEVERAL DOZEN SAM
’S CLUB STORES IN THE DALLAS
FORT WORTH AREA THIS SUMMER.
THE CEO AND CO-FOUNDER OF GATIK
IS WITH US.
YOUR DREAM OF USING THESE
SMALLER TRUCKS FOR LAST-MILE
DELIVERIES SOUNDED LIKE A DREAM,
RIGHT?
NOW YOU’RE IN BENTONVILLE WITH
THIS MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING FOR GEORGIA
PACIFIC?
>> SURE, THANK YOU, LIZ, THANK
YOU FOR HAVING ME BACK.
SO WE HAVE BEEN DOING COMMERCIAL
DELIVERY SINCE SUMMER OF 2019.
OVERTIME WE HAVE EXPANDED OUR
OPERATIONS TO EXPAND OVER
MULTIPLE SITES SO INITIALLY IT
WAS IN BENTONVILLE, WITH WALMART
AND THEN EXPANDED TO LOUISIANA.
LAST YEAR WE EXPANDED TO TEXAS
WITH MULTIPLE CUSTOMERS, AND
TODAY WE ARE A NOUNING OUR
PARTNERSHIP WITH GEORGIA PACIFIC
AND KBX, AND THIS PARTNERSHIP IS
SPECIAL AND UNIQUE BECAUSE THIS
IS THE FIRST TIME THESE
PARTNERS HAVE COME TOGETHER TO
DISRUPT TRADITIONAL SHORT-HAUL
MARKET WHICH IS BY CLASS 8 SEMI
RIGS, AND INSTEAD OF THOSE RIGS
WE’RE NOW USING AUTONOMOUS BOX
TRUCKS BUILT BY GATIK AND BEHIND
ALL OF THIS , THE THING THAT’S
DRIVING THIS ADOPTION IS
CONSUMER EXPECTATION SO WHAT
WE’RE HELPING OUR PARTNERS WITH
IS INCREASING THE FREQUENCY OF
DELIVERY, INCREASING THE
FREQUENCY OF STORE
REPLENISHMENT AND MAKING SURE
THAT THERE ARE NO OUT-OF-STOCK
ITEMS, NOTHING WASTED AND THE
WHOLE SUPPLY CHAIN IS MORE
EFFICIENT.
LIZ: WELL BUT YOU’RE LEAVING OUT
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT
S.
WELL A COUPLE OF THEM REALLY.
NUMBER ONE, THESE ARE ALL
ELECTRIC CARS, CORRECT, ALL
ELECTRIC TRUCKS, IS THAT TRUE?
>> WE HAVE HAVE A MIXED FLEET.
SOME ARE ELECTRIC, SOME ARE
LEGACY.
LIZ: OKAY SO
WELL THE ISUZU TRUCK SOME ARE
MIXED FLEET BUT YOU’VE GOT TRUCK
DRIVERS THE ONES WHO ARE WORKING
AT THE MOMENT PAYING $1,000 JUST
TO FILL UP A TANK OF GAS FOR
SOME OF THE BIGGER TRUCKS,
SO THERE’S THE SAVINGS RIGHT
THERE.
NOT TO MENTION THAT THERE’S A
SHORTAGE OF TRUCKERS THAT WE’VE
BEEN TALKING ABOUT ON FOX
BUSINESS FOR MANY MANY MONTHS AT
THE MOMENT.
WE WERE JUST WATCHING A VIDEO.
THIS IS FASCINATING TO ME.
I WOULD IMAGINE THOUGH IF I’M
DRIVING ALONGSIDE ONE OF THESE,
I MEAN, I DON’T SEE ANY DRIVER,
THEY ARE KIND OF HUGE.
TELL ME HOW YOU MAKE SURE THAT
EVERYTHING IS COMPLETELY SAFE.
I MEAN, IF DALLAS FORT WORTH IS
ALLOWING THIS ITS GOT TO HAVE
BEEN TESTED, RIGHT?
>> YEAH, SO WE HAVE A VERY
DIFFERENTIATED GO-TO-MARKET
STRATEGY WHERE THE COMPANY WE
FOCUS ON THESE FIXED REPEATABLE
ROUTES IN A B2B CAPACITY SO
INSTEAD OF TRYING TO SOLVE
AUTONOMY, WHAT WE DO IS OBSESS
OVER THESE FIXED REPEATABLE
ROUTES, MAKE SURE THAT THE
TECHNOLOGY IS PERFECT,
OPTIMIZE THE TECHNOLOGY FOR
THESE ROUTES AND FRANKLY WE
HAVE THE LUXURY OF CHOOSING THE
SAFEST POSSIBLE ROUTES.
WE CAN AVOID ROUTES WITH SCHOOLS
, HOSPITALS, FIRE STATION
S ALL IS FAIR GAME AND
THE STRATEGY IS VERY ACCRETIVE
SO ROUTE-BY-ROUTE AND SIDE-BY-
SIDE IS HOW WE SEE THE
INDUSTRY INSTEAD OF ZERO
-TO-ONE STEP FUNCTION WHERE
THE APPLICATIONS ARE TRYING TO
GO TO, SO ENSURING THAT AT THE
ROUTE LEVEL OUR TECHNOLOGY WORKS
PERFECTLY, BEFORE WE PULL THE
DRIVER OUT.
LIZ: WELL TELL ME WHAT’S
HAPPENING TODAY.
YOU’VE GOT THE EAR OF MANY OF
THESE TOP CORPORATIONS.
HAVE YOU BEEN MAKING YOUR PITCH
RUNNING UP TO THEM AT LUNCH
SAYING HEY, HEY, LET ME DELIVER
SOME OF YOUR STUFF.
I MEAN ISUZU MOTORS IS HAVING A
NICE DAY UP ABOUT 1% AND TOYOTA
ABOUT 4%.
>> FRANKLY, THE CUSTOMER DEMAND
HAS BEEN THROUGH THE ROOF SO
OVERTIME WITH THE LAST FEW YEARS
WE HAVE BEEN ADDING CUSTOMERS
FROM ALL DIFFERENT SEGMENTS
STARTING WITH RETAIL AND GROCERS
TO DISTRIBUTION, E-COMMERCE,EPG,
AND ON OUR END WHAT WE ARE
TRYING TO DO IS GET AS MANY
TRUCKS ON THE ROAD AS POSSIBLE,
AND GATIK HAS BEEN DOING
COMMERCIAL DELIVERY SINCE 2019
BUT THIS YEAR AND NEXT THE
FOCUS IS ALL ABOUT SCALE AND
GROWTH.
WITH OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH ISUZU,
WE ARE TRYING TO GET THESE
TRUCKS BUILT FAST ENOUGH SO WE
CAN HELP OUR CUSTOMERS INCREASE
THE OPERATIONAL DELIVERIES, MAKE
THESE DELIVERIES MORE FREQUENT
AND HELP DISRUPT THE NETWORK
THAT WAS ALSO SERVED BY CLASS 8
WITH OUR AUTONOMOUS BOX TRUCKS.
LIZ: I LOVE WATCHING IT CRUISE
THE STREETS AND IT STARTS
BACKING UP, WHEN IT’S MAKING ITS
DELIVERY.
THAT IS JUST UNBELIEVABLE.
DO US A FAVOR, GAUTAM.
PLEASE COME BACK WHEN YOU STRIKE
YOUR NEXT PHILANTHROPY ORDEAL.
WE WANT TO FOLLOW THIS STORY.