Munich-based startup 5U AI has raised more than 2.7 million euros ($3.2 million) in a pre-seed financing round. The capital is intended to fund the scaling of an AI platform whose digital employees handle operational tasks in European freight forwarding companies while simultaneously documenting decision-making knowledge.
Unlike many other AI solutions for logistics, 5U AI does not rely on purely assistance functions or chatbots, but rather on agentic AI that autonomously executes entire workflows. The approach combines process automation with documentation of decision-making logic – an aspect designed to help companies safeguard knowledge over the long term and continuously improve operational processes.
Despite increasing digitalization, this sector continues to be heavily characterized by manual processes. This is precisely where the Munich-based startup, founded in 2025, comes in. In air, sea, and road logistics in particular, numerous operational decisions are made every day, the rationale for which is often documented only in emails, spreadsheets, or the tacit knowledge of individual employees.
Agentic AI takes on operational tasks in day-to-day freight forwarding
5U AI’s platform employs so-called digital workers who operate within existing freight systems. Among other things, they handle tasks such as generating quotes, bookings, shipment tracking, invoice reconciliation, data entry, and recurring administrative tasks.
In addition, each digital employee documents the rationale behind its decisions. This enables operations teams to understand which steps were carried out, why they took place, and how comparable processes can be optimized in the future.
“Freight forwarding is full of decisions; relevant information is still lost in inboxes, spreadsheets, and the heads of employees,”
says co-founder and CEO Yagiz Abik.
Instead of merely answering questions, the AI agents are designed to execute operational tasks independently while simultaneously building company-wide process knowledge.
Emerge Capital leads pre-seed round
The financing round was led by London-based venture capital investor Emerge Capital. The fresh capital will mainly go towards the further development of the product platform and the expansion of the European go-to-market program. In parallel, the company plans to expand its team. New positions are planned in areas including product development, engineering, operations, sales, and customer success.
Multi-agent AI to automate complex logistics processes
According to the company, the platform is based on a multi-agent architecture specifically developed for logistics workflows. The focus is particularly on processes that have so far been difficult to map using traditional automation tools or generic AI models due to numerous exceptions. The software integrates into existing transport management systems and is designed to complement them rather than replace them.
Already in use at European freight forwarders
According to 5U AI, the solution is already being used by freight forwarders and carriers in Europe. Customers listed include TCI International Logistics, where digital workers support air and sea freight processes.
The target audience includes freight forwarders, carriers, and third-party logistics providers (3PLs). The platform is designed to help them reduce manual administrative work, accelerate operational decisions, and scale customer service.
