Graypool, formerly known as HOPTEK, has raised $5 million in pre-seed funding. The Atlanta-based startup announced the round and its rebrand at the American Trucking Associations' Management Conference & Exhibition in Charlotte. Investors include Werner Enterprises, Kearney, LPX Partners, Venture 53, and Jerk Ventures. Graypool's software helps truckload carriers decide which freight to take. It connects to existing transportation management systems and load boards, accepts profitable contract and spot loads, and routes exceptions for review. Werner, an investor and customer, books about $1.5 million in freight weekly through Graypool Source. Graypool says it has facilitated $150 million in annualized freight revenue across its customers. The company plans to expand its engineering teams and connect carriers to more sources of demand.

Beroe and Kearney have launched MAX, an AI-native decision engine for procurement, at DPW NYC. The platform connects intelligence and execution systems, continuously surfacing margin opportunities whilst optimising risk and ESG compliance. MAX addresses procurement's expanding mandate by providing real-time recommendations when market conditions shift, such as tariff changes or commodity price spikes. Built on a neurosymbolic framework, it combines Beroe's 30 million live market signals with Kearney's proprietary methodology and applies them against a company's own spend data. The product was developed with a Strategic Advisory Council of 13 global procurement organisations. It enables category managers to monitor every supplier and category continuously, rather than focusing selectively on the top 20% of spend. MAX will be available to select customers over the coming months.