Amazon is reportedly working on an app to connect truck drivers with shippers, giving the commerce giant a foothold in the lucrative road freight industry.
An anonymous source revealed details of the plan to US-based news site Business Insider. The app is expected to launch in summer 2017, offerings real-time pricing and driving directions, in the same style as the popular ride-hailing app Uber. Other rumoured features include tracking and payment options and truck stop recommendations and suggested load pick-up routes for drivers.
The appeal for Amazon is clear: A cheaper and more efficient delivery method means happy shareholders and happy customers. The Internet-based retailer has been rapidly acquiring planes and truck trailers in recent times, prompting speculation that they have ambitions of their own in the shipping field. Claims by the firm that their growing delivery fleet is designed to supplement, rather than replace, their current shipping partners have failed to quell suspicions.
According to the news site’s source, the team working on the project are located in Seattle, Minneapolis and Amazon’s offices in India. Over 100 engineers are reportedly expected to join the Minneapolis office over the next year. Business Insider has identified two current job postings for the Minneapolis office thought to be related to the project, for a principal product manager to join “an exciting and confidential initiative in middle mile transportation organisation” and a software development engineer to work in the company’s Transportation Technology division, optimising the “time and cost of getting the packages delivered.”
When approached by the news site, Amazon declined to comment on the rumours.
