FreightWaves Today | November 11

In this episode, we kick things off by examining a massive federal fraud case that highlights how vulnerable fuel providers can be to identity impersonation schemes. Two Georgia men face federal charges in a $760,000 fuel-card fraud operation that exploited a legitimate Michigan trucking company's identity. The elaborate scheme involved altered documents, unauthorized credit applications, and eight Pacific Pride fuel cards that generated unpaid purchases across twenty-three states before prosecutors charged both defendants with wire fraud, mail fraud, and unauthorized access device crimes. Next, we explore Alphabet's Wing and its aggressive bet on the future of ultra-fast drone delivery as the company invests $125 million to build a major manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The fifteen-thousand-square-foot plant will produce tens of thousands of unmanned aircraft annually to support Wing's massive expansion through its Walmart partnership, which aims to bring drone delivery to nearly twenty U.S. markets and over forty million people next year. Finally, we cover Uber Freight's strategic workforce realignment that cuts eighty jobs while simultaneously hiring nearly three hundred employees in a growth push concentrated on its rapidly expanding managed transportation business. CEO Rebecca Tinucci emphasized that the restructuring is designed to simplify operations and eliminate overlapping responsibilities, positioning the company for future growth as managed transportation deal volume has surged two and a half times year over year. Follow the FreightWaves NOW Podcast Other FreightWaves Shows Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Truckload spot rates are up 52% year over year, October set an all-time intermodal record, and AI agents are now booking more than 40% of one broker’s loads. FreightWaves Today for November 11, 2026 covers the full freight market. In this episode, we cover the $760,000 fuel card fraud case, Wing’s $125 million drone factory, and Uber Freight’s restructuring. We also have the weekly SONAR freight market update, the new SONAR MCP connector for AI tools, rail traffic from Trains magazine, and interviews on AI in freight brokerage and fleet compliance. What’s in this episode: 📰 Top freight headlines Fuel card fraud: Two Georgia men face federal charges in a $760K scheme that used a Michigan carrier’s stolen identity to get Pacific Pride fuel cards, with charges across 23 states. Drone delivery: Wing will invest $125 million in a Fort Worth, Texas manufacturing facility and expand with Walmart to nearly 20 U.S. markets, ahead of the FAA’s beyond visual line of sight rule. Uber Freight: About 80 roles are cut while 290 positions are open, and managed transportation volume is up 2.5x year over year. 🤖 AI freight brokerage and M&A (Fura) Jeff Dangelo, CEO, discusses the acquisition of Road Dog Logistics (about $30M in revenue). He also covers the AI agent “Donna,” which now handles 40%+ of bookings with a goal of 90%, plus plans for 6–12 more acquisitions next year. We also cover how small brokers are handling the spot-versus-contract squeeze and what the Montgomery ruling on broker liability means for them. 📊 SONAR freight market update Outbound Tender Rejections are at 12.88%, roughly double last November. Tender volumes are up 12% year over year. Truckload spot rates are $3.56/mile, up 52%, and contract rates are $2.88/mile, up 25%. Diesel is $6.13/gallon. Road-to-rail cost savings are at 30.2%. Intermodal volumes are at 2026 highs, while inbound ocean bookings have cooled since July. We also introduce the SONAR MCP connector, which lets you query SONAR data in plain language inside Claude, Copilot, or other AI tools. 🔧 AI for fleet compliance (Fleet Worthy) Michael Precia, President and CRO, explains Radar, Fleet Worthy’s new AI tool for tolling, safety, and compliance data. He also covers toll leakage, the Hall acquisition, and what fleets want as enforcement tightens. 🚂 Rail and intermodal (Trains magazine) Bill Stephens breaks down week 44 rail traffic (U.S. intermodal +11%) and the AAR’s October report, with a third straight record month for U.S. intermodal. He also covers Genesee & Wyoming’s plan to split into three holding companies and BNSF earnings. 🎖️ Happy Veterans Day to the veterans who keep freight moving. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is peak season real? Truckload tender rejections hold near 12.9%, about double last year, and the Nvidia chip cargo theft shows how exposed freight is to fraud. FreightWaves Today for November 10, 2026 covers it. In this episode, we break down the freight market with data from FreightWaves SONAR. We cover truckload rejections, volumes, reefer capacity, diesel prices, air cargo, drone delivery, and the AI agents now booking freight. What’s in this episode: 📉 Truckload market and peak season outlook: Outbound Tender Rejections are flat at about 12.5–12.9%, roughly twice last year’s level. Tender volumes are up 12% year over year and 3% from October. We also look at whether rate relief before Thanksgiving will be limited this year. ❄️ Reefer market: Refrigerated tender rejections are near 21%, up from 12.6% a year ago. We also cover the strong El Niño’s potential impact on winter weather and protect-from-freeze capacity. 🚛 Spot rates by mode: We compare reefer, flatbed, and dry van spot rates. We also cover the Pacific Northwest seasonal surge and why flatbed demand tied to AI data center buildout remains strong. 📰 Top freight headlines: The RICO lawsuit against C.H. Robinson and TQL: jury selection isn’t expected until April 2028, and TQL is pushing for dismissal. COSCO Shipping Holdings reports an 81% jump in Q3 profit, with Trans-Pacific revenue up 61%. Six pallets of Nvidia hardware worth $11.4 million vanish on an Oakland-to-Fort Worth shipment, part of a wave of data center freight thefts. 🔐 Cargo theft and freight fraud: Why high-value freight needs stricter carrier vetting, security protocols, and counterparty checks. 🤖 AI agents in logistics: Joel Clum (Chief Commercial Officer) and Nick Ciubotariu(CTO) of ShipStation Global discuss the 250+ AI agents behind their platform, from email-to-quote-to-booking automation to sales tools. We also cover how small and mid-sized shippers can use AI to compete with enterprise shippers. ✈️ Air cargo and drone delivery: Eric Kulisch on why Air cargo rates are up about 30% year over year, with volumes up about 6%, driven by AI equipment shipments. Wing plans a $125 million Texas drone factory and expanded Walmart delivery, while Zipline raises new funding ahead of the FAA’s long-awaited drone rules. ⛽ Diesel prices and energy: John Kingston on the DOE average diesel price falling 16.5 cents, post-election moves in crude futures, Iran conflict risk, and the Strait of Hormuz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s Morning Minute, a massive RICO lawsuit filed by a coalition of carriers against brokerage giants C.H. Robinson and TQL won’t reach jury selection until April 3, 2028, 17 months away. TQL is pushing to move the case to state court in Ohio based on forum selection clauses, with a scheduling conference set for November 23. In ocean freight, China-based COSCO Shipping Holdings reported an 81% surge in third-quarter profit to about $2.58 billion, with revenue up 29% to $11.34 billion as geopolitical disruptions forced longer voyages and kept container rates elevated. Trans-Pacific revenue rose 61% on just 13% volume growth. Finally, six pallets of Nvidia hardware worth a reported $11.4 million vanished en route from Oakland to Fort Worth, part of a broader wave of data center freight thefts totaling nearly $111 million. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Monday’s freight edition of FreightWaves Today, the team reflects on a week at the Up Summit and Cape Week, then dives into the day’s top transportation and supply chain stories, guest interviews, and the latest freight market data from Sonar. In this episode: 🚀 Up Summit takeaways: Reflections on the future of aviation and aerospace, how autonomy, flying taxis, and drone delivery could reshape cargo and even where people choose to live, and why public-private partnerships and government-funded innovation matter 📰 Top headlines: BNSF’s third quarter earnings rise as revenue growth outpaces volume growth Walmart and Zipline expand drone delivery to hundreds of new store locations A major methamphetamine seizure in a South Texas produce truck highlights cargo security challenges 📦 Freight market check-in: Is the consumer pulling back, and what are rejections and demand telling us about peak season? Plus a look at the impact of the CSX tech outage and New Mexico flooding on rail volumes 🎙️ Guest interview: Heidi Wyle, founder and CEO of Venti (an MIT spinout), on autonomous trucks for ports, rail yards, and other supply chain facilities, how they’re deployed, and when over-the-road autonomy could arrive 📊 Sonar update: New flatbed and LTL data in Truckload National Insights, tender rejections, demand trends, spot and contract rates, and a preview of Sonar’s upcoming MCP for accessing data through your AI tools 🔒 Fraud Watch (brought to you by Highway): The latest on freight fraud and stolen load trends 🤖 Guest interview: Adrian Smith, co-founder and CEO of Ripple, on tariffs and trade after the midterms, doing logistics business in the Middle East, why customs work is a strong fit for AI, and how to deploy the right AI model for the right job 📅 Coming up: Tomorrow’s Fuel Tuesday episode with John Kingston on the state of the energy markets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we kick things off by examining a strong financial performance from one of the nation's largest Class I railroads. Listen in to learn how BNSF's third-quarter earnings rose 19.3% to $1.73 billion as higher freight volumes and improved operating efficiencies helped offset increased fuel costs. Operating revenue growth substantially exceeded shipment growth, demonstrating strong pricing power in the current market and providing a larger contribution to parent company Berkshire Hathaway during a period when its overall operating earnings declined. Next, we explore the retail sector where ultra-fast delivery is taking to the skies in a massive way. We discuss how Walmart is scaling up drone delivery in partnership with Zipline, which raised $1.5 billion in new funding to expand operations from 300 new store locations nationwide. With more than 2 million drone deliveries already completed since 2021, this expansion underscores the fierce race among big retailers to build out same-day and one-hour delivery networks. Finally, we cover a major narcotics seizure that highlights persistent cargo security challenges at the southern border. Federal authorities announced that CBP officers discovered over 1,000 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a produce truck hauling leeks as it entered South Texas on October 30th. The seizure, valued at nearly $1 million, was part of Operation Southern Surge, a federal initiative that had resulted in 89 arrests and more than 1,600 pounds of narcotics seized as of early November. Follow the FreightWaves NOW Podcast Other FreightWaves Shows Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Innovation is taking flight—and the future of freight, logistics, aviation and space is changing faster than ever. On this episode of FreightWaves Today, we're broadcasting from the Up Summit at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, where some of the world's most innovative companies and technology leaders are exploring what's next for transportation, robotics, autonomous systems and space commercialization. We sit down with Robert Rose, founder and CEO of Reliable Robotics, to discuss the future of autonomous aviation and what pilotless cargo aircraft could mean for the freight industry. From retrofitting existing aircraft with autonomous technology to improving collision avoidance, increasing safety and expanding regional air cargo networks, Rose explains how autonomous flight is moving closer to commercial reality. We also discuss the company's demonstration flights in Albuquerque and its plans for airport-to-airport cargo operations. We also talk with a NASA safety and mission assurance leader about the next generation of nuclear-powered spacecraft, NASA's plans for space nuclear propulsion, and the extraordinary engineering and safety challenges involved in sending nuclear technology to Mars. The conversation explores how these technologies could enable future deep-space missions and potentially influence nuclear power applications here on Earth. Plus, we explore the growing role of advanced robotics and automated manufacturing, and sit down with Harrison Shih, head of DoorDash Labs, to discuss drone delivery, autonomous ground robots and how multiple delivery methods can work together to make last-mile logistics faster and more accessible. From autonomous aircraft and drone delivery to space reactors and advanced manufacturing, this episode examines the technologies that could reshape how goods, people and information move. IN THIS EPISODE: Reliable Robotics and the future of autonomous cargo aviation How pilotless aircraft could improve air cargo efficiency and safety FAA certification and the challenges of integrating autonomous aircraft NASA's nuclear-powered propulsion and the mission to Mars Space exploration, nuclear safety and next-generation technology Advanced robotics and automated manufacturing DoorDash Labs and the future of drone delivery Why multimodal delivery networks will shape the future of logistics The future of transportation isn't limited to the road. We're exploring what comes next. Subscribe to FreightWaves for the latest news, analysis and conversations shaping freight, transportation and supply chain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join FreightWaves Today live from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at UP.Summit, where the innovators, founders, government leaders and defense industry executives shaping the future of aviation, aerospace and transportation are coming together.In this special episode, we explore how emerging technologies are transforming the way people and freight move — from autonomous aircraft and next-generation military aviation to electric cargo planes and the future of airfreight logistics.Our conversations include:• Merlin: Founder Matt George discusses building an autonomous pilot, how AI-powered flight systems could improve aviation safety, and the potential to bring autonomy to military and commercial cargo aircraft. We also explore Merlin’s work with the U.S. Air Force and its partnership with Textron.• Sorian Aerospace: We look at the Sandman, an autonomous supersonic training aircraft designed to help prepare military pilots for the next generation of aerial warfare, including the growing role of unmanned aircraft and collaborative combat systems.REGENT / Sea glider technology: Discover how electric, wing-in-ground-effect vehicles could create a new category of coastal transportation, connecting communities, ports and offshore operations with speed and efficiency.BETA Technologies: Head of Policy Chip Palamni explains the evolution of electric aviation, the economics of electric cargo aircraft, reduced maintenance costs and the opportunity to rethink regional airfreight networks. We also discuss BETA’s aircraft, medical cargo deliveries and potential hub-bypass routes.Defense, aviation and aerospace leadership: Conversations explore America’s defense innovation ecosystem, the importance of domestic manufacturing, emerging drone threats and the supply chains needed to maintain U.S. technological leadership.From drone delivery and autonomous flight to military readiness, domestic manufacturing and the aerospace supply chain, this episode examines the technologies and companies that could reshape aviation and freight transportation.The future of freight isn’t limited to highways, railroads and ocean shipping. A new era of aviation innovation is taking shape — and we’re on the ground at UP.Summit to explore what’s coming next. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Freight markets remain tight as shippers navigate rising transportation costs, rail disruptions, and uncertainty heading into the holiday peak season. Meanwhile, the rapid growth of autonomous vehicles is raising an important question: how do we measure whether self-driving trucks and vehicles are truly safe to operate? On this episode of FreightWaves Today, Julie Van de Kamp and Zach Strickland break down the latest freight market data, examine major transportation earnings, and welcome experts to discuss autonomous vehicle safety and the latest developments across North American rail. In this episode: 🤖 The Future of Autonomous Vehicle Safety with Luc Vincent, Special Advisor at Empiric Earth: Why autonomous vehicles need more than billions of routine driving miles to prove they are safe. Vincent explains how rare real-world events—such as near misses, road debris, flooding, severe weather, and unusual driver behavior—can help train and validate autonomous systems. He also introduces APEX, Empiric Earth's developing safety-testing framework designed to measure autonomous vehicle performance across different driving scenarios and potentially provide a standardized scorecard for regulators. 📊 SONAR Market Update with Zach Strickland: A look at truckload tender rejections, spot rates, and capacity trends as the market approaches the holiday season. Zach examines why the dry van market remains tight despite some softening in rejection rates, why refrigerated capacity is especially constrained, and which markets are showing the strongest rate increases. He also highlights Los Angeles as a market to watch amid potential port disruptions and shifting intermodal volumes. 🚂 Rail Market Update with Bill Stephens, Trains Magazine Editor: The latest Association of American Railroads traffic numbers, including North American rail traffic growth, intermodal volumes, carloads, and key commodity trends. Stephens explains how severe flooding in New Mexico disrupted BNSF's Southern Transcon and how a technology outage at CSX affected train operations and interchanges. The conversation also explores the ripple effects on Los Angeles and Long Beach port operations, railcar positioning, third-quarter railroad earnings, fuel surcharge revenue, and productivity. 📈 Transportation Earnings and Freight Headlines: A closer look at Expeditors International's strong third-quarter results, growth in airfreight and ocean volumes, and the impact of AI infrastructure demand. The hosts also discuss GXO Logistics' record new business wins and sales pipeline, along with ArcBest's latest LTL and brokerage results. They examine how heavier shipments, higher fuel costs, and fuel surcharge revenue are shaping transportation company performance. ⛽ Diesel Market Volatility: The latest movement in diesel and crude oil prices, including the sharp futures selloff tied to geopolitical headlines and the rapid rebound as uncertainty surrounding negotiations continued. Plus, the latest supply chain developments: Potential labor disruption at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and what a strike could mean for peak-season freight. Flooding-related service interruptions along a major BNSF intermodal corridor. The CSX technology outage and its impact on rail network operations. Tight refrigerated capacity and changing spot market conditions across key freight markets. The transportation industry is facing a complicated mix of tight capacity, rising costs, infrastructure challenges, and rapidly evolving technology. Get the latest data, analysis, and industry perspectives on FreightWaves Today. Subscribe to FreightWaves for the latest transportation news, freight market intelligence, and supply chain insights. #FreightWaves #FreightWavesToday #FreightMarket #Trucking #AutonomousVehicles #SONAR #RailFreight #Intermodal #SupplyChain #Logistics #DieselPrices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we kick things off by examining the stellar third-quarter performance at logistics giant Expeditors International, where revenue surged 42% year-over-year to $4.1 billion, heavily boosted by hyperscaler demand from tech giants building out AI infrastructure. The asset-light customs broker and freight forwarder saw diluted earnings per share climb 61% to $2.65, crushing Wall Street consensus by 42 cents, while airfreight volume accelerated throughout the quarter—rising 8% in July, 13% in August, and 19% in September. Next, we explore the warehousing sector where contract logistics provider GXO Logistics is riding a wave of momentum with third-quarter revenue of $3.59 billion and organic revenue growing 6.4%—the fastest pace in over three years. The company secured $375 million in new business wins during the quarter, a massive 34% year-over-year increase, while its sales pipeline swelled to a record $3.1 billion, signaling robust demand for outsourced warehousing and supply chain services. Finally, we cover the dramatic volatility gripping diesel markets as geopolitical headlines whipsaw oil traders. While the DOE's benchmark retail diesel price fell six cents to $6.29 per gallon, the December ultra low sulfur diesel futures contract plunged 25.45 cents on Monday to $4.42—the lowest level since October 6th. Brent crude crashed 10.94% on hopeful news about U.S.-Israel-Iran negotiations, only to rebound Tuesday when reports emerged that Iran and the U.S. were "far from a deal." Follow the FreightWaves NOW Podcast Other FreightWaves Shows Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices