Industry guide

Freight brokerage records: what AI labs will pay to license

Freight brokers sell decisions, not trucks. Every load leaves behind a written chain: the rate offered to the shipper, the carriers tried and turned down, the status updates in transit and, now and then, a dispute over damage. AI labs training logistics agents have very few sources for that chain, and a brokerage with years of it is a strong candidate.

Most of it already sits in a TMS such as McLeod, Turvo or Aljex, Outlook or Gmail, and a shared drive. Buyers want the written trail of how your team actually does the work, so most owners lead with SOPs and training material, then add day-to-day records once personal details are dealt with.

AI Data Offers research deskChecked against our methodology Updated October 28, 2026 6 min read 12 sources

Key figure: $650,000
Buyers' published range: $100K to $2M+
Time to a written offer: Days to 2 weeks
Owner time, per buyers: 1 to 3 hours

In this guide

01 / What buyers value

Records a buyer will look for at a brokerage

Load email threads
Where it lives
Outlook or Gmail
Why a buyer wants it
One chain per load from rate request to delivery, with a known outcome
Raise first
Customer and carrier names, and rates
Rate quotes and confirmations
Where it lives
TMS and email
Why a buyer wants it
Lane pricing set against the actual cost of moving the freight
Raise first
Confidentiality terms in shipper contracts
Tracking and status notes
Where it lives
TMS load comments
Why a buyer wants it
Time-stamped updates showing what a rep spotted and how they reacted
Raise first
Driver contact details
Claims and exceptions
Where it lives
Claims log, email, shared drive
Why a buyer wants it
Disputes worked through several steps to a settled result
Raise first
Dollar amounts linked to named customers
Dispatch SOPs and training
Where it lives
Google Drive, SharePoint or a wiki
Why a buyer wants it
The playbook reps work from. Buyers tend to ask for it first
Raise first
Usually nothing

Record	Where it lives	Why a buyer wants it	Raise first
Load email threads	Outlook or Gmail	One chain per load from rate request to delivery, with a known outcome	Customer and carrier names, and rates
Rate quotes and confirmations	TMS and email	Lane pricing set against the actual cost of moving the freight	Confidentiality terms in shipper contracts
Tracking and status notes	TMS load comments	Time-stamped updates showing what a rep spotted and how they reacted	Driver contact details
Claims and exceptions	Claims log, email, shared drive	Disputes worked through several steps to a settled result	Dollar amounts linked to named customers
Dispatch SOPs and training	Google Drive, SharePoint or a wiki	The playbook reps work from. Buyers tend to ask for it first	Usually nothing

02 / Value

Putting a number on a brokerage's data

No buyer publishes a price list by industry. What they do publish is a range for a whole company: micro1, Polyshares and Ventra each advertise deals from roughly $100K to $2M or more, and Pewter's licensing partner cites examples between $350K and $650K. Read those as the buyers' own marketing figures, not offers.

For a brokerage of about 40 people, three things move the number most: how many years of history you have, how much of the work is written down in one place, and how cleanly client and employee details can be removed. Try the worth estimator for a range based on your size.

03 / Buyers

Which buyers take freight brokerages and 3PLs

On Troveo's intake form, the closest category ("logistics, field service or supply chain") sits in the second of its four demand tiers, which it describes as above-average demand. Polyshares accepts logistics and freight, though it does not mark it as premium.

micro1
Published size rule
Asks for at least 30 staff, with no upper limit
A 40-person brokerage
Fits at 40
Mode
Published size rule
At least 20 full-time US office employees, or 10 for accounting and 6 for law
A 40-person brokerage
Fits at 40
Nyne
Published size rule
At least 20 W-2 staff in the US and three years of history
A 40-person brokerage
Fits at 40
Pewter
Published size rule
At least 20 people and three years, with a higher bar in some sectors
A 40-person brokerage
Fits at 40
Ventra
Published size rule
At least 30 US staff and three years of data
A 40-person brokerage
Fits at 40
Endless
Published size rule
Around 30 people or more
A 40-person brokerage
Fits at 40
Polyshares
Published size rule
No headcount floor; it weighs how deep the record goes
A 40-person brokerage
No size floor
Mercor
Published size rule
Publishes no minimum
A 40-person brokerage
No size floor
Troveo
Published size rule
Publishes no minimum (its calculator begins at 20)
A 40-person brokerage
No size floor

Buyer	Published size rule	A 40-person brokerage
micro1	Asks for at least 30 staff, with no upper limit	Fits at 40
Mode	At least 20 full-time US office employees, or 10 for accounting and 6 for law	Fits at 40
Nyne	At least 20 W-2 staff in the US and three years of history	Fits at 40
Pewter	At least 20 people and three years, with a higher bar in some sectors	Fits at 40
Ventra	At least 30 US staff and three years of data	Fits at 40
Endless	Around 30 people or more	Fits at 40
Polyshares	No headcount floor; it weighs how deep the record goes	No size floor
Mercor	Publishes no minimum	No size floor
Troveo	Publishes no minimum (its calculator begins at 20)	No size floor

Checked against a typical brokerage of 40 people. Ask each buyer whether contractors and part-time staff count.

Some buyers pay us a referral fee. It never changes your price, and it never changes the order of our rankings.

04 / Typical week

What one ordinary week produces

Monday: rate requests pour in by email and each gets a price with an expiry date.
Tuesday: reps cover the booked loads, noting which carriers declined and their reasons.
Wednesday: carrier confirmations go out, come back signed and get attached to the load.
Thursday: status checks through the day, plus a temperature alarm on a refrigerated load.
Friday: delivery receipts collected, customers billed, open disputes updated.

Illustrative. Multiply one week by every year you have kept, and that is the record a buyer is looking at. The written decisions matter more than the totals.

05 / Segments

Segments within freight brokerages and 3PLs

Customs brokers: Classification notes, CBP responses and entry corrections show how trade compliance really works. What buyers want from customs brokers and how licensing works.
Truckload carriers: Dispatch records, breakdown logs and maintenance orders are what AI buyers want from carriers. Who buys trucking data and what to protect first.
Warehousing and fulfillment: Receiving discrepancies, mis-pick logs and client tickets show how a warehouse really runs. What AI buyers want from 3PL warehouses and how licensing works.

06 / Process

How a deal works

1
Check the fit
Answer a few questions about headcount, years of records and the systems you use. No files change hands.
2
Inventory call
A buyer walks through what you hold and what it wants. Most say the owner spends one to three hours in total.
3
Written offer
Buyers usually send terms within days to two weeks: price, scope, term and whether the deal is exclusive.
4
Clean and deliver
Personal details are removed under the agreed method, then a copy is exported. Your originals stay where they are.

micro1
What it asks for
Procedures, internal wikis, project and task history, CRM activity
Offer and payment
Up to 30 days to review, then paid within 30 days of invoice
Ask about
Its master terms describe a perpetual license. It says it strips personal details "when relevant", so ask exactly how.
Ventra
What it asks for
Mainly inboxes, recorded calls and helpdesk tickets
Offer and payment
Offer in 3 to 7 days, then net 30 or 60
Ask about
Its terms warn it may be unable to erase data after delivery.
Polyshares
What it asks for
Inboxes, recorded calls, helpdesk tickets and ERP extracts
Offer and payment
Offer in 1 to 2 weeks, paid in 30 to 60 days
Ask about
Licenses are exclusive by default.
Pewter
What it asks for
Operating records for the industries on its list
Offer and payment
No fee to the owner, it says
Ask about
Launched October 2026 by a Florida sales agency. Its licensing partner, not Pewter, signs and pays.

Buyer	What it asks for	Offer and payment	Ask about
micro1	Procedures, internal wikis, project and task history, CRM activity	Up to 30 days to review, then paid within 30 days of invoice	Its master terms describe a perpetual license. It says it strips personal details "when relevant", so ask exactly how.
Ventra	Mainly inboxes, recorded calls and helpdesk tickets	Offer in 3 to 7 days, then net 30 or 60	Its terms warn it may be unable to erase data after delivery.
Polyshares	Inboxes, recorded calls, helpdesk tickets and ERP extracts	Offer in 1 to 2 weeks, paid in 30 to 60 days	Licenses are exclusive by default.
Pewter	Operating records for the industries on its list	No fee to the owner, it says	Launched October 2026 by a Florida sales agency. Its licensing partner, not Pewter, signs and pays.

In each buyer's own published words. Terms change, so confirm them in writing before you sign.

07 / Timing

If you are selling or winding down

A data license can sit alongside a sale or a wind-down. If you are selling the business, agree with the acquirer who keeps the right to license the archive. If you are closing down, keep the workspace and inboxes alive until a buyer has seen them. A closed company is not out of options: SimpleClosure reports more than 150 completed sales of shut-down startups' archives.

FAQ

Questions, answered

Do buyers want brokerages that are asset-light?

Yes. The value is in the decisions and the paperwork around each load, which a brokerage produces whether or not it owns equipment. Pewter names freight brokers and 3PLs directly.

Can we leave our shipper rates out?

Usually. Most buyers accept a scoped export, and rates can be masked or excluded. Agree the method in writing before delivery.

Is a 40-person brokerage big enough?

9 of the 9 buyers in our size check take a brokerage that size, going by their own published rules. Below 20 people your options narrow to the buyers with no stated minimum.

Do we lose our records if we license them?

No. A license gives the buyer a copy for agreed uses and your originals stay put. Read the term and deletion clauses closely: micro1's master terms describe a perpetual license, and Ventra warns it may be unable to erase data after delivery.

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Sources

Every number on this page links back to one of these.

Spot something wrong? See our corrections policy. Some buyers pay us a referral fee. How we make money.