The artificial intelligence arms race has created a new target for cargo thieves, who have stolen more than $150 million in AI equipment this year, according to supply chain visibility provider Overhaul.
Overhaul’s AI Infrastructure Intel Report also found a 34% increase in the theft of data center equipment, chips, and computing components since 2024.
The methods thieves use to steal equipment are also changing from force to fraud, shaping what shippers need to watch for to stay vigilant. Overhaul’s report shows that deception was used to steal 92% of high-value technology shipments. Thieves used methods such as fraudulent carrier identities, double-brokering, spoofed communications, and falsified paperwork to slip inside legitimate freight transactions and steal loads.
According to Overhaul, a single flagship AI server rack costs roughly $3 million, so one truckload routinely carries eight figures of value, and all of it moves on ordinary roads before it is installed. Overhaul found that individual losses now regularly exceed $30 million, with such thefts occurring weekly.
“AI hardware is some of the most concentrated value moving through the supply chain right now, and it’s become the fastest-growing target for these criminal networks,” said Barry Conlon, CEO and Founder of Overhaul. “As thieves become increasingly deceptive, visibility into a shipment alone isn’t enough to stop it from being taken. Our findings give shippers the intelligence to know how crews take loads, where the equipment ends up, and what to put in place now so they can stop the next theft before it happens.”
