San Francisco startup Oway has raised $4 million in seed funding to take on one of the trucking industry’s biggest inefficiencies: half-empty trailers on U.S. highways.
Backed by Y Combinator and General Catalyst, Oway is pitching itself as “Uber for freight,” matching underused truck space with shippers. Founder Phillip Nadjafov says the company’s system can reduce pallet shipping costs by up to 50%, using a mix of machine learning, automation, and federally mandated electronic logging devices (ELDs) that track trucks in real time.
By leveraging location data and unused space, Oway claims it can move a sub-2,000-pound pallet from Los Angeles to Dallas for as little as $140, compared to the current $350 average. The model blends the speed of full truckload shipping with the affordability of less-than-truckload, while reducing emissions and idle time.
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The startup, launched in 2023 with just 12 employees, is already working with major fleet operators under confidential agreements. Nadjafov believes Oway’s decentralized approach could transform U.S. logistics over the next decade.
“Trucking is a trillion-dollar industry, and empty space alone is a $100 billion problem,” he said. “This will be the de facto way most businesses move goods in the future.”
