Uber Debuts Freight Platform In Germany

Uber Freight is going after its second European market with the launch of its trucking platform in Germany.

Uber wants to expand elsewhere in Europe once Germany is up and running, Reuters reported on Wednesday (July 24).

Under Founder Travis Kalanick, the company’s bid to bring ridesharing to Germany was opposed by taxi companies, politicians and the courts.

Kalanick’s successor, Dara Khosrowshahi, met with German officials and the trucking industry to get support for its freight business, as Daniel Buczkowski, Uber Freight’s head of European expansion, told Reuters.

“After the change in leadership, we really engaged in doing the right thing,” Buczkowski said.

Digitizing the industry will improve efficiency with real-time tracking of consignments and payment automation, the article said.

“As a global company, we have the bandwidth to constantly innovate and create new products and features that support the entire marketplace,” Buczkowski noted.

The move puts Uber in direct competition with local startups like Berlin-based Sennder and the UK’s Zencargo and FreightHub. Sennder recently raised $70 million at a $300 million valuation and a wider presence in Europe. FreightHub raised $30 million in a Series B funding round.

Uber Freight started expanding its services in 2018 with a platform to help shippers reduce the time it takes to complete the process. It also launched autonomous truck deliveries, with the first hauls completed in Arizona.

The company teamed up with enterprise cloud company SAP in April to provide joint customers with on-demand logistics solutions. SAP’s Logistics Business Network enables companies to manage shipping and logistics needs by connecting shippers, freight forwarders, carriers and other players for seamless information and data sharing. Shippers can choose from a wider carrier base while obtaining real-time pricing. Carriers and drivers, meanwhile, can access and choose loads that work best with their needs and schedules.