Ryder System, Inc., one of the leaders in supply chain, dedicated transportation, and fleet management solutions, announces it has acquired Baton, a San Francisco-based start-up known for the development of a proprietary logistics technology focused on optimizing transportation networks. The acquisition, finalized on August 31, is an extension of Ryder’s collaboration with Baton, after Ryder’s corporate venture capital fund RyderVentures invested in the tech firm early last year.
“The acquisition of Baton is consistent with our strategic focus to continue to grow our supply chain and transportation solutions businesses, and part of that strategy is to bring new technology-driven solutions to market,” says Robert Sanchez, chairman and chief executive officer of Ryder. “With Baton, we gain the talent and the team of product developers and technologists behind the Baton logistics platform, who will lead the innovation and development of the next generation of customer-facing technologies at Ryder.”
Baton’s cofounders Andrew Berberick and Nate Robert join Ryder as co-chief product and technology officers for the supply chain and dedicated transportation businesses and remain based in Silicon Valley. They bring their core development team and, with the resources of a USD9.7 billion logistics company, will further develop Ryder’s portfolio of technology products.
“Baton’s technology is what initially caught our eye, but in working with Andrew and Nate over the past year and watching as they evolved their platform, I think we all realized that it was just the beginning of so much more. And, by joining forces, we can tackle a host of supply chain disruptions by building out a new suite of products leveraging their existing tech platform,” says Karen Jones, chief marketing officer and head of new product development for Ryder. “Andrew and Nate are exceptional talent, and we’re excited about the possibilities and the value we can create for Ryder customers.”
Ryder first invested in Baton through RyderVentures during the start-up’s Series A funding round in March 2021.
“We started this journey with Baton back in 2019 with a mission to apply cutting-edge technology to optimize transportation networks, and we’re proud of our success in that area,” says Andrew Berberick. “Now, in working for Ryder, we have the opportunity to broaden our scope and develop next-gen technologies to optimize supply chains from end-to-end.”
Andrew Berberick holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from Stanford University, and worked for Google, Accenture, and Mindtribe. Nate Robert holds a bachelor’s degree from MIT and a master’s degree from Stanford University, and worked for BuildZoom and Bain & Company, prior to cofounding Baton.
“We are excited to join forces with a logistics giant like Ryder that is equally focused on the future of the industry. We believe the opportunities for collaboration and innovation across the supply chain are exponential,” adds Nate Robert.
Also joining Ryder are several members of Baton’s core leadership team, including Erik Malin as a group director of operations. He brings experience from Loadsmart, AFN, and CarrierDirect. Ryan Houlihan will join Ryder as a director of engineering. He has worked for Apple, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and Kinema Systems (acquired by Boston Dynamics). Jason Liu will also join Ryder as a director of engineering. He brings experience from BuildZoom and as co-founder of 56, a website design-and-build agency.
