Ares Acquisition II(US:AACT) Prnewswireยท2025-07-23 13:00Core Insights - Kodiak Robotics has appointed Mohamed "Mo" Elshenawy to its board of directors, enhancing its technology and self-driving leadership as it prepares for a public listing through a merger with Ares Acquisition Corporation II [1][6] - Elshenawy brings over two decades of experience in AI, product, and engineering across various sectors, including autonomous mobility and e-commerce, which will be crucial for Kodiak's growth [1][3] - The company aims to scale its autonomous trucking platform and has previously announced the addition of other experienced board members, Ken Goldman and Kristin Sverchek, to strengthen its leadership [5] Company Overview - Kodiak Robotics, founded in 2018, specializes in AI-powered autonomous vehicle technology, focusing on addressing supply chain challenges through driverless solutions [7] - The Kodiak Driver, a virtual driver, combines advanced AI software with modular hardware, and is already operational without a human driver [7] - Kodiak aims to become a leader in autonomous ground transportation, serving both commercial and public sector clients [7] Leadership Experience - Elshenawy previously served as President and CTO at Cruise LLC, where he led the launch of the first commercial driverless rideshare service in San Francisco [2][3] - His experience includes technology leadership roles at Amazon, where he managed global engineering for the ReCommerce business and developed a retail big data analytics platform [3][4] - Elshenawy holds over 10 patents in AI, robotics, and autonomous vehicles, and is involved with the Software Advisory Board at Mercedes-Benz [4] Business Combination - Kodiak's merger with Ares Acquisition Corporation II is expected to close in the second half of 2025, pending stockholder approval and customary closing conditions [6] - Upon completion, the combined entity will be named Kodiak AI, Inc., with its stock expected to trade under the ticker symbols KDK and KDK WS [6]