---
title: "Aurora's 500-truck Charger Logistics deal is non-binding, and the carrier also runs rival Kodiak"
description: "Aurora reports third-quarter results after the close on October 28 carrying a $9.76 billion market value and a 2030 plan for more than 30,000 driverless trucks. Its newest demand receipt is a non-binding MOU with a carrier that just launched rival Kodiak AI on the same Dallas-Laredo corridor."
publisher: "The Inference"
section: "Robotics & Defense"
published: 2026-10-27T14:08:01.360Z
modified: 2026-10-27T14:08:01.360Z
canonical: https://theinference.org/article/aurora-s-500-truck-charger-logistics-deal-is-non-binding-and-the-carrier-also-runs-rival-kodiak
language: en
keywords: "Aurora Innovation, Autonomous Trucks, Kodiak AI, Charger Logistics, Trucking"
---

# Aurora's 500-truck Charger Logistics deal is non-binding, and the carrier also runs rival Kodiak

> Aurora reports third-quarter results after the close on October 28 carrying a $9.76 billion market value and a 2030 plan for more than 30,000 driverless trucks. Its newest demand receipt is a non-binding MOU with a carrier that just launched rival Kodiak AI on the same Dallas-Laredo corridor.

[Aurora Innovation](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/aurora-innovation) said on October 26 that Charger Logistics, a private carrier hauling freight between the United States and Mexico, intends to buy up to 500 trucks running Aurora's driverless system, with deliveries across 2027 and 2028 [1]. The instrument is [a non-binding memorandum of understanding](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261026473142/en/Charger-Logistics-and-Aurora-to-Begin-Scaling-Autonomous-Fleet-to-500-Trucks), an intention rather than an order, signed two days before third-quarter results, due after the close on October 28 [1].

## What $9.76 billion is buying

Aurora's market value stood at $9.76 billion on October 26 [2]. [The June quarter brought about $2 million of revenue and a $270 million net loss](https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001828108) [3]. The value rests on 2030: [more than 30,000 driverless trucks and more than $5 billion of revenue](https://theinference.org/article/aurora-promises-30-000-driverless-trucks-by-2030-uber-already-sold-1-1-billion-of-that-story) [4].

*Chart: **Aurora's quarterly net loss has widened to $270 million, its largest in at least ten quarters** Line chart of Aurora Innovation's quarterly net loss and operating cash flow from Q1 2024 to Q2 2026. The net loss widens from $165 million to $270 million and operating cash outflow from $150 million to $225 million.*

*Quarterly net loss and operating cash flow in millions of US dollars, as reported in Aurora Innovation's SEC filings; both figures are negative (losses and cash outflows). Source: Aurora Innovation quarterly figures from its SEC filings, retrieved October 27, 2026. [12]*

Under Driver as a Service, the customer buys the truck and pays Aurora $0.85 or more a mile [4]. At that rate and the 225,000 miles a year Aurora's trucks already average, 30,000 trucks is roughly $5.7 billion, so the revenue target is mostly a truck-count target [4][5].

## An order book made of two MOUs

[Charger's July deal](https://www.truckingdive.com/news/charger-logistics-plans-to-buy-500-autonomous-trucks-using-auroras-tech/833898/) was transportation-as-a-service, with Aurora owning and running the trucks on the Dallas-Laredo lane [6][7][8]. Under the memorandum, Charger would buy the trucks and subscribe to the software, a model Aurora calls high-margin, capital-efficient and asset-light for itself [1]; the fine print concedes it may never become binding orders [1]. The risk of a late truck or an underused one sits with the buyer, not the software vendor.

The DaaS book is two non-binding memorandums: Hirschbach Motor Lines, an Iowa refrigerated carrier, for [up to 500 trucks announced in April](https://www.dcvelocity.com/transportation/trucking/autonomous-trucks/hirschbach-motor-lines-will-buy-500-autonomous-truck-systems) with delivery beginning 2027 [5][9], and Charger for up to 500 now [1], with further customers only in negotiations [5]. Together they cover about 3% of the 2030 target [6][10]. The newest buyer also hedged, [launching a 435-mile Dallas-Laredo lane](https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/kodiak-ai-and-charger-usa-launch-autonomous-trucking-between-dallas-and-laredo-1036608702) with rival Kodiak AI (Nasdaq: KDK) on October 8, still with a safety driver aboard [6][10].

*Chart: **Aurora's 2030 target is a 150x ramp from the fleet it expects to exit 2026 with** Column chart of Aurora's driverless truck targets: about 200 at end-2026, more than 1,000 in 2027, 7,500 in 2028 and more than 30,000 in 2030, all company projections.*

*Trucks in operation targeted by Aurora, stated at its September 23, 2026 Analyst and Investor Day; all four are company targets, not reported results. Sources: Trucking Dive, October 26, 2026; Business Wire, September 23, 2026. [4][5]*

## The milestones that slipped

The near-term targets moved the other way in the same season. Positive gross profit on a run-rate basis is now a first-half 2027 event rather than end-2026, and the 2030 gross-margin goal was cut to 60% from a 70% target previously set for 2028 [4]. Werner, the trucking company, already runs driverless loads with Aurora and is [still negotiating price](https://theinference.org/article/aurora-wants-5-billion-for-driverless-trucks-werner-says-the-math-does-not-work-yet); the economics work "at scale where nobody is eating some of the cost," its information chief Daragh Mahon said [4].

## Aurora's side of the ledger

CFO [David Maday](https://theinference.org/markets/people/david-maday) calls 30,000 trucks "a realistic number," modest against the more than 2 million trucks on US roads [4]. The Aurora Driver has logged over 500,000 driverless miles, and Aurora says it is fully allocated to exit 2026 with 200 trucks while Roush, which installs Aurora's hardware, targets 20 trucks a week [5]. [The shares rose on the Charger news](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4657141-aurora-inks-deal-with-charger-to-expand-its-autonomous-truck-program) [8].

## What Wednesday has to count

The call is 5 p.m [1]. Eastern on October 28 [1]. Three counts decide whether memorandums become orders: driverless trucks against the 200 exit target, revenue bending toward a fourth quarter [guided to deliver over half of 2026's $14 million to $16 million](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4587920-aurora-projects-over-200-driverless-trucks-by-end-of-2026-as-hirschbach-targets-500-truck) [11], and any MOU converted into a signed agreement. The market has paid for 30,000 trucks; this quarter it gets to count them [11].

## Takeaway

Aurora's newest 500-truck commitment is a non-binding MOU from a carrier hedging with rival Kodiak AI, and its whole Driver-as-a-Service book covers about 3% of the 2030 target on which its $9.76 billion valuation rests. Wednesday's call gets to count actual trucks against a 200 exit target.

## Sources

1. [Business Wire, Charger Logistics and Aurora to Begin Scaling Autonomous Fleet to 500 Trucks, 26 October 2026](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261026473142/en/Charger-Logistics-and-Aurora-to-Begin-Scaling-Autonomous-Fleet-to-500-Trucks)
2. [CompaniesMarketCap, Aurora Innovation (AUR) market capitalization, data as of 26 October 2026](https://companiesmarketcap.com/aurora-innovation/marketcap/)
3. [Aurora Innovation quarterly figures from its SEC filings, retrieved 27 October 2026](https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001828108)
4. [Trucking Dive, Aurora targets 30K driverless trucks, $5B revenue in 2030, 26 October 2026](https://www.truckingdive.com/news/aurora-targets-30k-driverless-trucks-5b-revenue-in-2030/833800/)
5. [Business Wire, Aurora Outlines 2030 Vision to Scale to 30,000 Driverless Trucks at Analyst and Investor Day, 23 September 2026](https://markets.financialcontent.com/prnews/article/bizwire-2026-9-23-aurora-outlines-2030-vision-to-scale-to-30000-driverless-trucks-at-analyst-and-investor-day)
6. [Trucking Dive, Charger Logistics plans to buy 500 autonomous trucks using Aurora's tech, 26 October 2026](https://www.truckingdive.com/news/charger-logistics-plans-to-buy-500-autonomous-trucks-using-auroras-tech/833898/)
7. [Truck News, Charger Logistics plans to buy up to 500 Aurora driverless trucks, 26 October 2026](https://www.trucknews.com/business-management/charger-logistics-plans-to-buy-up-to-500-aurora-driverless-trucks/1003224048/)
8. [Seeking Alpha, Aurora inks deal with Charger to expand its autonomous truck program, 26 October 2026](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4657141-aurora-inks-deal-with-charger-to-expand-its-autonomous-truck-program)
9. [DC Velocity, Hirschbach Motor Lines will buy 500 autonomous truck systems, 30 April 2026](https://www.dcvelocity.com/transportation/trucking/autonomous-trucks/hirschbach-motor-lines-will-buy-500-autonomous-truck-systems)
10. [Kodiak AI via GlobeNewswire (Markets Insider), Kodiak AI and Charger USA Launch Autonomous Trucking Between Dallas and Laredo, 8 October 2026](https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/kodiak-ai-and-charger-usa-launch-autonomous-trucking-between-dallas-and-laredo-1036608702)
11. [Seeking Alpha, Earnings Call Insights: Aurora Innovation Q1 2026, 6 May 2026](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4587920-aurora-projects-over-200-driverless-trucks-by-end-of-2026-as-hirschbach-targets-500-truck)
12. [Aurora Innovation, quarterly figures from its SEC filings, retrieved 27 October 2026](https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001828108)


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Aurora's 500-truck Charger Logistics deal is non-binding, and the carrier also runs rival Kodiak — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/aurora-s-500-truck-charger-logistics-deal-is-non-binding-and-the-carrier-also-runs-rival-kodiak