Kodiak AI, Inc. specializes in engineering sophisticated software solutions that deliver AI-powered ground autonomy. This technology enables various vehicles to navigate independently ...
Kodiak AI, Inc. (KDK) is a technology company focused on building software for autonomous driving and ground autonomy. The company’s core positioning centers on enabling vehicles to operate with an “AI-powered ground autonomy” stack that can perceive the environment and make driving decisions across a range of terrains—from controlled highway ...Kodiak AI, Inc. (KDK) is a technology company focused on building software for autonomous driving and ground autonomy. The company’s core positioning centers on enabling vehicles to operate with an “AI-powered ground autonomy” stack that can perceive the environment and make driving decisions across a range of terrains—from controlled highway driving to complex urban streets and more rugged off-road conditions. As reflected in its industry classification (“Software - Infrastructure”), Kodiak’s emphasis is less on traditional vehicle hardware manufacturing and more on the software/autonomy intelligence layer that can be integrated with vehicle systems.
A key product referenced in the provided material is “Kodiak Driver,” described as a virtual driver that combines AI capabilities to support autonomous vehicle operation. In practice, solutions like Kodiak Driver typically rely on a multi-sensor architecture (e.g., combining data from multiple sensor modalities) to improve robustness in real-world conditions. This multi-sensor emphasis is important for autonomy because it helps the system handle variable lighting, weather, and differing road geometries, while maintaining reliability for safety-critical driving tasks.
From a business perspective, Kodiak targets vertically relevant markets where autonomy can create measurable operational value. The company’s stated focus includes trucking (where autonomy can potentially reduce labor constraints and improve utilization), defense (where mission requirements may demand autonomous or semi-autonomous ground platforms), and broader industrial environments (which can include logistics, fleet operations, and other repeatable routes or complex operational settings).
Regarding scale and execution, the provided data indicates approximately 341 full-time employees, placing Kodiak in the 201–500 employee range. Leadership is headed by founder and CEO Don Burnette, who has served as CEO since the company’s founding.
On financial/cost context, the supplied trailing-twelve-month metrics show profitability pressure: margins are negative (e.g., net profit margin and operating-related margins are substantially below zero), while operating and research spending intensity is notable relative to revenue (SG&A to revenue and R&D to revenue figures are both provided as elevated). The company also shows negative free cash flow measures in the dataset, consistent with an early-growth, development-heavy technology business model.
In terms of market context, the provided market capitalization is on the order of hundreds of millions of USD (e.g., roughly ~$761M in the supplied snapshot), and the stock is traded on NASDAQ Global Select. Kodiak’s recent public-market pathway includes becoming publicly traded via a business combination in September 2025, following its earlier SPAC-related structure.
Overall, Kodiak AI’s “wishes” as a company, inferred from its mission and focus, center on advancing and deploying reliable autonomy at scale—turning complex driving intelligence into software capabilities that can be adopted by fleet operators and specialized mission customers—while continuing to reduce cost per unit of performance, expand operational coverage, and improve financial outcomes as commercialization expands.
YoYYoY means Year-over-Year. It compares the latest annual value with the previous annual value to show long-term trend strength.
QoQQoQ means Quarter-over-Quarter. It compares the latest quarter with the immediately previous quarter to show short-term momentum changes.
RevenueThe total money that came through the front door from selling things, before paying a single bill. Think of it as the grand total of every credit card swipe from customers. (YoY compares this year to last year's performance, while QoQ compares the current three months to the previous three).
$3.8M
-74.6%
+91.2%
Net IncomeThe absolute bottom line. If the company paid every single supplier, employee, banker, and tax collector, this is the actual money left in their pocket at the end of the day.
$-585.5M
-743.0%
-52.9%
Gross MarginThe basic markup. If they sell a $100 pair of sneakers, this percentage tells you how much of that price tag is profit right after paying for the rubber and shoelaces, but before paying for things like store rent or TV commercials.
-552.4%
-652.4%
+42.2%
Operating MarginThe 'day job' efficiency score. Out of every dollar a customer spends, this shows how many cents the company keeps after making the product AND paying for all the everyday corporate overhead (like salaries, marketing, and keeping the lights on).
-2966.2%
-617.7%
+39.6%
Net MarginThe final take-home percentage. When you strip away every conceivable cost, tax, and interest payment, this is the exact number of cents the company truly gets to keep from every dollar in sales.
-15420.7%
-3215.3%
-75.4%
Free Cash FlowThe holy grail of corporate cash. It's the spendable, physical money left over after the business pays for its daily operations AND buys the big, expensive upgrades (like new factories or servers) it needs to survive. This is the 'free' money they can use to pay dividends or buy back stock.
$-116.5M
-115.1%
-8.7%
FCF MarginThe ultimate cash conversion rate. It shows how good the company is at turning regular sales directly into cold, hard, spendable cash. A high percentage means the business is an absolute cash-printing machine.
-3067.4%
-745.8%
+43.2%
Debt / EquityThe financial risk gauge. It compares how much of the company's empire was built using borrowed money (loans) versus the owners' own money (shareholders). A high number means they are heavily leveraged and playing a riskier game; a low number means they are playing it safe.
-60.9%
-265.9%
+167.4%
Current RatioThe 12-month survival check. It simply compares the cash they have right now (plus things they can quickly turn into cash) against the immediate bills they absolutely must pay this year. A score above 1 means they have enough in the wallet to cover the upcoming bills without panicking.
4.73x
+628.7%
+50.2%
Total AssetsThe absolute size of the company's empire. It bundles together absolutely everything of value they own—from the cash in the register and the inventory in the warehouse, to the software patents in the vault and the factories on the ground.
Operator: Thank you for standing by. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Kodiak AI, Inc. Common Stock first quarter 2026 earnings conference call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speakers’ remarks, there will be a question-and-answer session. Today, we ask you to limit to one question and one follow-up. If you would like to ask a question during this time, simply press star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, simply press star one again. Thank you. I would now like to turn the call over to Daniel Goff, Vice President of External Affairs. You may begin.
Daniel Goff: Thank you, and welcome to Kodiak AI, Inc. Common Stock’s first quarter 2026 earnings call. On the call today are Don Burnette, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kodiak AI, Inc. Common Stock, and Surajit Datta, Chief Financial Officer of Kodiak AI, Inc. Common Stock. A press release and an earnings presentation were issued earlier today and are posted on the Investor Relations section of our website. This call is being broadcast live via a webcast and a replay will be available on our website after the call. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that during today’s call, Kodiak AI, Inc. Common Stock will be making forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws about financial performance and future events, including our guidance for fiscal second quarter and full fiscal year 2026, as well as our long-term goals. Actual events or results could differ materially. Please refer to our SEC filings, including our most recent Form 10-K and the Form 8-K filed with today’s press release, for important risks and other factors that may cause our actual results to differ from those in our forward-looking statements. Additional information will also be set forth in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 03/31/2026. We disclaim any obligation, except as required by law, to update or revise any financial or operational guidance and long-term goals or our other forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events, or otherwise. Any forward-looking statements made on this call speak only as of the date of this call. Further, in addition to discussing results that are calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, we also refer to certain non-GAAP financial measures. For more detailed information on our non-GAAP financial disclosures, including reconciliations to the most comparable GAAP measures, please refer to our earnings release, which can be found on our Investor Relations website. I will now turn the call over to Don. Please go ahead.
Don Burnette: Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us. Before getting into our Q1 results, I am excited to highlight that today we announced a $100 million capital raise. With our strengthened balance sheet, we believe we have …
