Tomorrow’s Tech, Today: Innovation That Moves Us Forward
- Founding and leadership: Glīd Technologies founded by Kevin A. Damoa, with a cross-disciplinary executive team in autonomy and logistics.
- Dual-mode Glīders: Autonomous vehicles operate on both road and rail, moving standard containers without terminals or drayage.
- New products: Launch of GliderM for 20-foot containers and continued development of Rāden and EZRA-1SIX.
- Deployment plan: Field operations planned in California and Washington, shifting company focus from R&D to real-world implementation.
- Strategic goals: Reduce congestion, emissions, and labor needs while strengthening supply chains and US freight innovation leadership.
Glīd Technologies, an autonomous road-to-rail solutions company, has announced the close of its $3.1 million pre-seed funding round.
Outlander VC led the round with participation from Draper U Ventures, Antler, The Veteran Fund, M1C, and other mission-aligned angel investors.
The new investment will be used to launch new products, grow its engineering and business development teams, and deepen strategic partnerships.
What is Glīd Technologies
Glīd Technologies was founded in 2022 by Kevin A. Damoa, a former leader in logistics at SpaceX and the U.S. military. The company transforms static rail corridors into dynamic, high-throughput delivery networks, eliminating friction with its proprietary autonomous, dual-mode Glīders that operate on both road and rail.
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These vehicles transport standard containers directly onto the rail network, eliminating the need for terminals, drayage, or lift equipment, and enabling continuous, on-demand freight flow.
As the global freight market is expected to exceed $20 trillion by 2033, the need for intelligent infrastructure has never been more pressing. The first mile of freight movement—moving containers from ports to rail yards is the most congested and expensive part of the supply chain.
Currently, containers often sit idle for weeks while being transloaded between trucks, cranes, and storage yards, resulting in increased labor, emissions, and delays. Glīd addresses this issue by converting static rail corridors into dynamic, high-throughput delivery networks.
Its autonomous, dual-mode Glīders operate smoothly on both roads and rails, transporting standard containers directly onto the rail network. This approach eliminates the need for terminals, drayage, and lift equipment, enabling continuous, on-demand freight flow. See the Glīd difference.
“We’re building the logistics infrastructure of tomorrow—autonomous, resilient, and secure for both commercial and contested environments,” said Kevin A. Damoa, Founder and CEO of Glīd. “Whether it’s accelerating throughput at congested ports, operating across austere terrain, or strengthening supply chains for critical industries, Glīd delivers where legacy systems fail. This is not just automation. It’s sovereignty. It’s security. And it’s what American innovation is built for.”
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The Next Generation of Road-to-Rail Infrastructure
The management team is comprised of Kevin A. Damoa, CEO; Chaitali Narla, CTO; Tony Petraborg, Chief Engineer; and Matt Mueller. The cross-disciplinary team leads with deep expertise in aerospace, ground systems, autonomy, defense logistics, and manufacturing. Earlier in July at New Mobility Futures in Detroit, the firm unveiled two breakthrough technologies that redefine what’s possible in first-mile logistics.
Rāden is the world’s first unmanned, hybrid-electric vehicle that seamlessly transitions between road and rail, operating autonomously in both environments. Its low-profile design and clean LPG-based range extension enable deployment in complex, off-grid, and high-throughput settings where traditional logistics vehicles are limited.
Alongside Rāden, Glīd introduced EZRA-1SIX, its proprietary AI logistics platform that powers real-time dispatch, multimodal autonomy, and secure operations with human oversight, serving both commercial and defense applications.
Glīd offers a subscription-based Mobility-as-a-Service model that makes automation affordable and scalable. This model delivers benefits across industries, including reduced emissions, improved labor stability, enhanced supply chain visibility, and increased mobility in both everyday operations and crises.
How Glīd’s New Investment Will Be Deployed
This investment signals Glīd’s transition from a research and development firm to a company focused on real-world deployment. The new capital will enable the launch GliderM, the company’s staffed, hybrid-electric road-to-rail vehicle, into field operations in California and Washington in Q3 2025.
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GliderM is purpose-built to move 20-foot containers and heavy payloads directly from road to rail. It eliminates the need for forklifts or additional transloading steps, unlocking significant cost savings and labor efficiency.
Furthermore, the company will also accelerate development of the Rāden platform and expand EZRA-1SIX capabilities. The company would also grow its engineering and business development teams, and deepen strategic partnerships with ports, rail operators, and government agencies.
“The first mile of our supply chain hasn’t evolved since the advent of rail, and it’s now the biggest bottleneck for moving goods. Glīd offers the most timely and innovative solution we’ve seen to fix it, from commercial freight to critical defense logistics,” said Jordan Kretchmer, Senior Partner at Outlander VC and Glīd board member. “With decades of experience in rail and logistics, this team is uniquely positioned to lead the transformation.”
By revitalizing underused infrastructure, harnessing tech for human insight, and reclaiming US freight innovation leadership, the dual-use logistics company is reestablishing US dominance in freight innovation.
Main Image: From left to right: Chaitali Narla, CTO; Kevin A. Damoa, Founder and CEO; Tony Petraborg, Chief Engineer; and Matt Mueller, COO. Image Credit: Glīd Technologies
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