TruckSmarter
TruckSmarter is a San Francisco-based digital freight platform providing a free load board and AI-powered dispatch chat for U.S. truck owner-operators and small carriers, with 120,000+ active drivers as of late 2024.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What TruckSmarter does
TruckSmarter is a San Francisco-based digital logistics platform founded in 2021 by Daniel Kao (CEO) and Paolo Bernasconi (CTO) that targets truck owner-operators and small carriers in the United States. Its core product is a permanently free load board that aggregates more than 100,000 daily available loads from thousands of credit-checked brokers, accessible via iOS/Android apps with 500,000+ downloads and a 4.9 App Store rating, alongside a browser-based load board and a self-serve broker load-posting flow. The platform supports multi-broker account aggregation, in-app bidding and booking, backhaul recommendations, and a partner ecosystem spanning OTR Solutions factoring and the TCS Fuel card.
TruckSmarter firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- TruckSmarter
- Legal name
- TruckSmarter, Inc.
- Website
- https://trucksmarter.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- TruckSmarter is a San Francisco-based digital freight platform providing a free load board and AI-powered dispatch chat for U.S. truck owner-operators and small carriers, with 120,000+ active drivers as of late 2024.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
TruckSmarter industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Trucking Logistics Software
- NAICS
- Truck Transportation (484), Couriers and Express Delivery Services (492110), Freight Transportation Arrangement (4885)
- SIC
- Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731), Trucking & Courier Services (No Air) (4210)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Box Truck / Dry Van Truck Leasing & Rental (TLABABAF)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Utility / Service Body Truck Leasing & Rental (Bucket, Field Service, Telecom/Power) (TLABABAJ)
Keywords
Where TruckSmarter is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
TruckSmarter business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Dispatch AI Subscription: Monthly subscription fee of $49 for the unlimited Dispatch AI plan, billed monthly. Limited-usage tier available for free trial. Targets owner-operators seeking AI-powered load matching.
- Enterprise Dispatch: Custom-priced contracts for larger fleets with more complex AI needs. Sold via sales-assisted motion (Contact Sales).
- Freemium Load Board: Free load board access with unlimited search, broker account connection, in-app bidding and booking, and backhaul recommendations. Revenue is generated indirectly by funneling users to paid Dispatch and factoring services.
- Freight Factoring / Quick Pay: Transaction-based revenue from freight factoring and quick-pay services. As of November 2025, this division was divested to OTR Solutions, with management of TruckSmarter's financial operations transferred to OTR.
- Broker Load Posting Marketplace: Brokers post loads to the TruckSmarter platform; carriers see and bid on them. Two-sided marketplace model with no subscription fee for drivers.
- Banking Services: Banking services for drivers (lines of credit for fuel purchases planned per July 2024 funding). Banking division transferred to OTR Solutions as part of the November 2025 factoring and banking division acquisition.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free Loadboard - $0/month, unlimited search and booking |
| Subscription | Monthly | Dispatch Unlimited - $49/month |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Enterprise Dispatch - Custom pricing |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
TruckSmarter product offering
Product offeringCore offering
TruckSmarter operates a digital logistics platform for U.S. truck owner-operators and small carriers, anchored by a 100% free load board surfacing 100K+ daily loads from verified brokers and an AI-powered chat assistant ("Dispatch") that automates load search, broker calling, bidding, and booking. The company also historically offered freight factoring and banking services; following the November 2025 divestiture to OTR Solutions, TruckSmarter now focuses on its AI-driven Dispatch and load board technology.
Product overview
TruckSmarter operates as a unified platform for owner-operators and small carriers with multiple integrated products. The core platform centers on the Free Load Board (a 100% free load board with 100K+ daily loads, search/bid/book functionality, and backhaul recommendations) and Dispatch, the AI-powered chat assistant that automates load search, bidding, booking, and broker calls on top of the same load data. The TruckSmarter App is the mobile client delivering both products. Historically the company also offered TruckSmarter Factoring (freight factoring) and banking services; following the November 2025 OTR Solutions acquisition, those financial-services offerings were transferred to OTR Solutions so TruckSmarter can focus on its AI-driven Dispatch and Load Board technology. Adjacent partner offerings (OTR Factoring via OTR Solutions and the TCS Fuel Card) remain accessible to drivers as commercial integrations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Dispatch: AI chat-based dispatch assistant that helps truck drivers find loads, bid, book, and answer questions through conversation.
- TruckSmarter Load Board (Free Loadboard)
- TruckSmarter for Brokers
Products and services
- TruckSmarter Free Load Board A 100% free load board for owner-operators offering 100K+ daily available loads from verified brokers, with in-app search, filtering by rate/RPM/distance/equipment, compare and book, backhaul recommendations, and the ability to connect existing third-party broker load board accounts to bid and book.
- TruckSmarter Dispatch An AI-powered chat assistant for truck drivers that finds, bids on, and books loads conversationally; places autonomous calls to brokers; schedules recurring lane analysis tasks; and provides market and fuel insights. Offered in Limited (free weekly), Unlimited ($49/month), and Enterprise (custom pricing) tiers.
- TruckSmarter for Brokers A broker-side offering that lets freight brokers post loads, receive bids, and book carriers directly through TruckSmarter, with no subscription fees for drivers and a credit-checked broker network.
- TruckSmarter Mobile App The mobile application delivering the Free Load Board and Dispatch AI to drivers on iOS and Android, with a 4.9 App Store rating and 500K+ downloads.
- TCS Fuel Card (via partnership) Fuel savings partner offering providing point-of-sale diesel discounts averaging 51¢ per gallon at in-network truck stop locations, applied through TCS (TransConnect Services) via TruckSmarter's Partners program.
- OTR Factoring (via OTR Solutions partnership) Factoring partnership offered to drivers through TruckSmarter's Partners program, providing fast, reliable factoring with instant funding available 24/7/365 through OTR Solutions.
Quantifiable outcome
- 500K+ app downloads
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use TruckSmarter
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
TruckSmarter technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability10 records
Feature5 records
TruckSmarter partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- FreightWaves SONARflagshipIntegration of FreightWaves SONAR's TRAC Spot Rate data into TruckSmarter's Dispatch AI chat platform, giving carriers real-time spot market rate intelligence directly inside the chat interface. Described as the freight industry's first chat-based interface for truck drivers. Both companies' CEOs publicly endorsed the partnership as a step toward democratizing access to quality market information for independent truck drivers.
- TCS Fuel (TransConnect Services)coreThe TCS Fuel Card offers TruckSmarter drivers point-of-sale discounts at the pump, with average savings of 51¢ per gallon at in-network locations. Drivers apply through a TruckSmarter-branded referral link to TransConnect Services.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
TruckSmarter competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- DAT Freight & Analytics: The dominant U.S. freight load board and analytics provider for carriers and brokers; TruckSmarter's free load board and AI dispatch are positioned explicitly as alternatives to DAT's paid load board subscriptions.
- 123Loadboard: Subscription-based load board serving carriers and brokers; explicitly called out on TruckSmarter's SEO comparison pages as a direct competitor being displaced by the free load board offering.
- Truckstop.com: One of the largest U.S. freight matching marketplaces connecting carriers with brokers via load boards and a factoring offering; competes with TruckSmarter for both carrier and broker mindshare.
Broad incumbents
- Uber Freight: Digital freight brokerage from Uber serving shippers and carriers at scale; broader end-to-end offering but overlapping with TruckSmarter on digital load matching and carrier acquisition.
- Loadsmart: Digital freight broker combining AI-driven pricing and automated carrier booking; overlaps with TruckSmarter's AI dispatch and broker-side product, though Loadsmart skews shipper-led.
- Convoy: Former digital freight network that built a tech-driven brokerage for carriers; shaped the same category TruckSmarter operates in, providing useful precedent on both product patterns and unit economics challenges in the space.
- Samsara: Public IoT/fleet telematics and operations platform widely adopted by mid-market and enterprise carriers; overlaps with TruckSmarter on the fleet operations software stack but with a hardware-led model.
Emerging players
- NEXT Trucking: Digital freight marketplace focused on drayage and containerized freight, with a carrier-facing app; comparable in using mobile-first tools to engage owner-operators, though focused on a more specific segment.
- Motive (formerly KeepTruckin): AI-powered fleet management and ELD platform serving small-to-mid carriers; adjacent overlap with TruckSmarter's owner-operator segment and increasingly bundles software tools for the same buyers.
Others
- OTR Solutions: Freight factoring and financial services provider; previously a partner/channel of TruckSmarter and now acquirer of its factoring and banking division — closely connected ecosystem player.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
TruckSmarter social profiles
Digital presenceTruckSmarter financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
TruckSmarter leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
TruckSmarter subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
TruckSmarter funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
TruckSmarter M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about TruckSmarter
What does TruckSmarter do?
TruckSmarter operates a digital logistics platform for U.S. truck owner-operators and small carriers, anchored by a 100% free load board surfacing 100K+ daily loads from verified brokers and an AI-powered chat assistant ("Dispatch") that automates load search, broker calling, bidding, and booking. The company also historically offered freight factoring and banking services; following the November 2025 divestiture to OTR Solutions, TruckSmarter now focuses on its AI-driven Dispatch and load board technology.
Is TruckSmarter a public or private company?
TruckSmarter is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was TruckSmarter founded?
TruckSmarter was founded in 2021. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is TruckSmarter based?
TruckSmarter is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does TruckSmarter make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Dispatch AI Subscription is the primary driver. The others are enterprise Dispatch, freemium Load Board, freight Factoring / Quick Pay, broker Load Posting Marketplace and banking Services.
Who are TruckSmarter's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are DAT Freight & Analytics, 123Loadboard and Truckstop.com. Broad incumbents are Uber Freight, Loadsmart, Convoy and Samsara. Emerging players are NEXT Trucking and Motive (formerly KeepTruckin). OTR Solutions is listed as an others.
Does TruckSmarter have an API?
Yes. TruckSmarter provides a broker-facing API for load posting. The footer of the homepage links to API documentation hosted on Notion ("TruckSmarter API Load Posting Documentation"). Brokers can use it to programmatically post loads to TruckSmarter's load board. The website's free load board FAQ also indicates carriers can connect external broker load board accounts to view, bid, or book loads through TruckSmarter. Specific details on REST/GraphQL, auth methods, rate limits, or versioning are not described in the public sources. Developer documentation is at trucksmarter.notion.site/TruckSmarter-API-Load-Posting-Documentation-2014aa4e9bc580fe80cfe87e18516dea.
What industry is TruckSmarter in?
TruckSmarter's product category is Trucking Logistics Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is TLABABAF, Box Truck / Dry Van Truck Leasing & Rental, with a secondary code of TLABABAJ, Utility / Service Body Truck Leasing & Rental (Bucket, Field Service, Telecom/Power). Its NAICS code is 484 and its SIC code is 4731.