April 14 (Reuters) - Autonomous truck technology firm Kodiak Robotics said on Monday it plans to go public in the U.S. later this year through a merger with blank-check company Ares Acquisition Corp II AACT.N, valuing Kodiak at $2.5 billion.

The combined entity, which will be called Kodiak AI, would also receive about $551 million of cash held in Ares Acquisition's trust account upon closing, the companies said.

The deal has also secured commitments and investments of over $110 million from investors, including Soros Fund Management, ARK Investments and Ares Management ARES.N.

Founded in 2018, Kodiak specializes in developing self-driving technology for trucks and generates recurring revenue through autonomous trucking operations in the Permian Basin, delivering goods for U.S. customers.

Earlier this year, the company successfully delivered its first autonomous trucks, termed "RoboTrucks," to oilfield services firm Atlas Energy Solutions AESI.N, which has committed to an initial order of 100 trucks.

The Mountain View, California-based company said its self-driving software has logged over 2.6 million miles in real-world conditions.

Kodiak's growth comes at a time when companies are increasingly looking to reduce transportation and logistics costs amid driver shortages and heightened demand for expedited deliveries.

"Entering the public markets will ... expand our existing partner relationships, provide our technology to a broader customer base, and deliver enhanced solutions across the commercial trucking and public sector industries," Kodiak Founder and CEO Don Burnette said.

The merger is expected to close in the second half of 2025, and the company's common stock will trade under the ticker symbol "KDK". Kodiak did not specify which stock exchange it would be listed on.

Blank-check companies, also known as special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), allow private companies to go public through merger transactions, often with accelerated timelines.

(Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)

((DeborahMary.Sophia@thomsonreuters.com;))