Supply Chain Decoded | Feat. Aqil Naeem & Caleb Sirak, E3 Group

Aqil Naeem and Caleb Sirak entered the freight industry by convincing a conference to give them a student discount. There, one of the first technology leaders they met was Transfix co-founder Jonathan Salama. Now, the best friends and co-founders of E3 Group have come full circle as Transfix partners. In this episode of *Supply Chain Decoded*, Aqil and Caleb join Jenni Ruiz to discuss how E3 applies its “explore, experiment, expand” philosophy to some of freight’s hardest problems—beginning with cargo theft. They unpack Shield, E3’s driver-verification platform, and explain why preventing fraud requires knowing who actually arrives at the dock—not merely which carrier was onboarded. Their approach places legitimate drivers at the center, helping them establish trust while giving brokers and shippers better information before freight changes hands. The conversation also explores: - Why AI implementation must begin with an operation’s existing workflows and incentives - How E3 builds alongside drivers through an advisory group and 24/7 human support - Why companies must continuously evaluate AI tools instead of treating deployment as the finish line - How open-source models can offer businesses greater control and lower costs - Why brokers and shippers must collaborate more closely to combat cargo theft - How asking “ridiculous” questions can produce genuinely transformative technology It’s a conversation about friendship, experimentation, driver advocacy, and building AI that works beyond the demo—and at the dock. -- Disclaimer: All views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Transfix, Inc. or any parent companies or affiliates or the companies with which the participants are affiliated, and may have been previously disseminated by them. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are based upon information considered reliable, but neither Transfix, Inc. nor its affiliates, nor the companies with which such participants are affiliated, warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. All such views and opinions are subject to change.