Ares Acquisition Corporation II (AACT)

Ares Acquisition Corporation II was a special purpose acquisition company sponsored by an affiliate of Ares Management Corporation, the alternative investment manager. Like other blank-check companies, it had no operating business of its own. It raised cash from public investors, held that money in a trust account and set out to find a private company to take public through a merger. Its Class A shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AACT.

The SPAC's search ended with Kodiak Robotics, a developer of self-driving technology for heavy trucks. Kodiak was founded in 2018 and is based in Mountain View, California. Its system combines software, sensors and vehicle integration so that long-haul tractor-trailers and off-road industrial trucks can operate without a human driver. The company has run freight routes in Texas and supplied driverless trucks for work in the Permian Basin oil fields.

Shareholders of Ares Acquisition Corporation II approved the transaction on September 23, 2025, and it closed the following day. Many public holders redeemed their shares for cash, leaving about $62.9 million in the trust. Together with a private placement of roughly $145 million, Kodiak received more than $212 million in gross proceeds. The deal valued the combined business at about $2.5 billion.

With the closing, the SPAC changed its name to Kodiak AI, Inc. and moved its listing to the Nasdaq Stock Market. The common stock began trading as KDK on September 25, 2025, and the public warrants trade as KDKRW. Former AACT shares became Kodiak AI shares, so investors who held through the merger now own a stake in the autonomous trucking business rather than a cash shell.