German logistics startup NexDash has raised $5.8 million (5 million Euros) in seed funding to build a digitally connected fleet of electric trucks across the European continent. The round was led by Extantia Capital and Clean Energy Ventures.
Never heard of NexDash? You're not alone.
The Trucking-as-a-Service (TaaS) startup claims to be a new type of logistics operator, blending software, capital investment, and day-to-day operations to accelerate the electrification and digitalization of road freight. The company was founded by Michael Cassau, previously behind tech rental unicorn Grover, and later joined by Karsten Sachsenroder, a former executive at DB Schenker, as it targets structural inefficiencies in Europe's trucking market.
TaaS is a subscription-based model that lets operators access electric trucks with a fixed monthly fee, rather than owning the vehicles outright. The approach bundles vehicles with maintenance, charging, insurance, and digital fleet management. This can significantly reduce fleets' upfront costs and operational complexity as they transition to EVs.
U.S.-based TaaS companies include Zeem Solutions and WattEV.
A few weeks ago, NexDash announced plans to roll out a software-linked fleet of electric trucks in Germany as a first step toward scaling electric road freight across Europe. The company is targeting a sector that remains both economically critical and technologically lagging, with heavy-duty vehicles responsible for a large share of transport emissions.
It's also targeting the highly fragmented structure of European logistics, where the vast majority of operators manage fewer than 10 trucks, often older diesel vehicles, with limited capital and minimal use of digital systems. For now, NexDash is not operating in the U.S.
"We consolidate, transform, and electrify diesel fleets – building Trucking-as-a-Service (TaaS) made in Europe. The last decade was about neobanks; the next is about neo-carriers," stated Cassau.
"Electrification in heavy-duty transport doesn’t fail because of technology, but because of orchestration," added Joern-Carlos Kuntze, a NexDash board member. "NexDash integrates software, infrastructure and capital in a TaaS model and scales transformation where it matters most—in operations. This team has the potential to consolidate the fragmented market and build a robust, zero-emission logistics platform in Europe."
