Ares Acquisition Corp II false 0001853138 0001853138 2025-08-25 2025-08-25 0001853138 aactu:UnitsEachConsistingOfOneClassAOrdinaryShare00001ParValueAndOneHalfOfOneRedeemableWarrantMember 2025-08-25 2025-08-25 0001853138 us-gaap:CapitalUnitClassAMember 2025-08-25 2025-08-25 0001853138 aactu:RedeemableWarrantsIncludedAsPartOfTheUnitsEachWholeWarrantExercisableForOneClassAOrdinaryShareAtAnExercisePriceOf1150Member 2025-08-25 2025-08-25

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): August 25, 2025

ARES ACQUISITION CORPORATION II

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Cayman Islands |  | 001-41691 |  | 98-1592112
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) |  | (Commission File Number) |  | (IRS Employer Identification No.)

245 Park Avenue, 44th Floor |  |
New York, New York |  | 10167
(Address of principal executive offices) |  | (Zip Code)

(310) 201-4100

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

☒ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

☐ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class |  | Trading Symbol(s) |  | Name of each exchange on which registered
Units, each consisting of one Class A Ordinary Share, par value $0.0001 per share, and one-half of one redeemable warrant |  | AACT.U |  | New York Stock Exchange
Class A Ordinary Shares, par value $0.0001 per share |  | AACT |  | New York Stock Exchange
Redeemable warrants, each whole warrant exercisable for one Class A Ordinary Share at an exercise price of $11.50 |  | AACT WS |  | New York Stock Exchange

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company ☒

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Item 7.01 | Regulation FD Disclosure.

Furnished as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K (this “Current Report”) and incorporated by reference is an investor presentation dated August 25, 2025 (the “Investor Presentation”), which will be used by Ares Acquisition Corporation II, a Cayman Islands exempted company (the “Company” or “AACT”), and Kodiak Robotics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Kodiak”), from time to time, with respect to the previously announced proposed business combination (the “Proposed Business Combination”) between AACT and Kodiak. The information contained in the Investor Presentation is illustrative summary information that should be considered in the context of the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and other public announcements that the Company may make by press release or otherwise from time to time.

The foregoing (including Exhibit 99.1) is being furnished pursuant to Item 7.01 and will not be deemed to be filed for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise be subject to the liabilities of that section, nor will it be deemed to be incorporated by reference in any registration statement, report or other document filed by the Company or Kodiak pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or the Exchange Act.

Forward Looking Statements

This Current Report includes “forward-looking statements” including regarding AACT’s or Kodiak’s or their management teams’ expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: Kodiak’s and AACT’s expectations with respect to the future performance and the success of the combined company following the consummation of the Proposed Business Combination (the “combined company”); the expected benefits of the Proposed Business Combination; estimated total addressable markets for commercial trucking and public sector applications; estimated Kodiak Driver-as-a-Service Economics, including assumptions around costs per mile of a human driver, average cost of a human driver and expected customer cost savings; Kodiak’s operational and product roadmap, and its ability to produce and deploy the Kodiak Driver at scale; the regulatory landscape for the Kodiak Driver and complexities with compliance related to such landscape; the capitalization of the combined company after giving effect to the Proposed Business Combination; developments relating to Kodiak’s competitors and industry; Kodiak’s ability to successfully collaborate with business partners and customers; Kodiak’s future capital requirements and sources and uses of cash; expectations regarding Kodiak’s expansion plans and opportunities; and the completion of the $100.0 million contemplated PIPE investment. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this Current Report, and on the current expectations of Kodiak’s and AACT’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied upon by any investors as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of Kodiak and AACT. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including changes in business, market, financial, political and legal conditions; the rapid evolution of autonomous vehicle technology and flaws or errors in Kodiak’s solutions or flaws in or misuse of autonomous vehicle technology in general; the inability of the parties to successfully or timely consummate the Proposed Business Combination, including the risk that any regulatory approvals are not obtained, are delayed or are subject to unanticipated conditions that could adversely affect the combined company or the expected benefits of the Proposed Business Combination or that the approval of the equity holders of Kodiak or AACT is not obtained; failure to realize the anticipated benefits of the Proposed Business Combination; risks related to the rollout of Kodiak’s business and the timing of expected business milestones; the effects of competition on Kodiak’s business; supply shortages in the materials necessary for the production of the Kodiak Driver; risks related to working with third-party manufacturers for key components of the Kodiak Driver; risks related to the retrofitting of Kodiak’s vehicles by third parties; the termination or suspension of any of Kodiak’s contracts or the reduction in counterparty spending; delays in Kodiak’s operational roadmap with key partners and customers; the amount of redemption requests made by AACT’s public equity holders; and the ability of AACT or the combined company to issue equity or equity-linked securities in connection with the Proposed Business Combination or in the future. Additional information concerning these and other factors that may

impact such forward-looking statements can be found in filings and potential filings by Kodiak, AACT or the combined company resulting from the Proposed Business Combination with the SEC, including under the heading “Risk Factors.” If any of these risks materialize or any assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that neither Kodiak nor AACT presently know or that Kodiak and AACT currently believe are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as and must not be relied on by investors as a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction or a definitive statement of fact or probability.

In addition, forward-looking statements reflect Kodiak’s and AACT’s expectations, plans or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this Current Report. Kodiak and AACT anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause Kodiak’s and AACT’s assessments to change. However, while Kodiak and AACT may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, Kodiak and AACT specifically disclaim any obligation to do so, except as required by law. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing Kodiak’s or AACT’s assessments as of any date subsequent to the date of this Current Report. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements. Neither Kodiak, AACT, nor any of their respective affiliates have any obligation to update these forward-looking statements other than as required by law.

In addition, this Current Report contains certain information about the historical performance of Kodiak. You should not view information related to the past performance of Kodiak as indicative of future results. Certain information set forth in this Current Report includes estimates and targets and involves significant elements of subjective judgment and analysis. No representations are made as to the accuracy of such estimates or targets or that all assumptions relating to such estimates or targets have been considered or stated or that such estimates or targets will be realized.

Additional Information and Where to Find It

In connection with the Proposed Business Combination, AACT and Kodiak initially filed a registration statement on Form S-4 with the SEC on May 14, 2025 (File No. 333-287278) (as amended from time to time, the “Registration Statement”), which includes a prospectus with respect to the combined company’s securities to be issued in connection with the Proposed Business Combination and a preliminary proxy statement with respect to the shareholder meeting of AACT to vote on the Proposed Business Combination. AACT and Kodiak also plan to file other documents and relevant materials with the SEC regarding the Proposed Business Combination. After the Registration Statement is declared effective by the SEC, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus included in the Registration Statement will be mailed to the shareholders of AACT as of the record date to be established for voting on the Proposed Business Combination. SECURITY HOLDERS OF KODIAK AND AACT ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND OTHER DOCUMENTS AND RELEVANT MATERIALS RELATING TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING DECISION WITH RESPECT TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION AND THE PARTIES TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION. Shareholders are able to obtain free copies of the proxy statement/prospectus and other documents containing important information about Kodiak and AACT once such documents are filed with the SEC through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, the documents filed by AACT may be obtained free of charge from AACT at www.aresacquisitioncorporationii.com. Alternatively, these documents, when available, can be obtained free of charge from AACT upon written request to Ares Acquisition Corporation II, 245 Park Avenue, 44th Floor, New York, NY 10167, Attn: Secretary, or by calling (888) 818-5298. The information contained on, or that may be accessed through the websites referenced in this Current Report is not incorporated by reference into, and is not a part of, this Current Report.

Participants in the Solicitation

AACT, Kodiak and their respective directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the shareholders of AACT in connection with the Proposed Business Combination. Security holders may obtain more detailed information regarding the names, affiliations and interests of certain of AACT’s executive officers and directors in the solicitation by reading AACT’s final prospectus related to its initial public offering filed with the SEC on April 24, 2023, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus, which will become available after the Registration Statement has been declared effective by the SEC, and other relevant materials filed with the SEC in connection with the Proposed Business Combination when they become available. Information concerning the interests of AACT’s participants in the solicitation, which may, in some cases, be different from those of AACT’s shareholders generally, is set forth in the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus included in the Registration Statement.

No Offer or Solicitation

This Current Report shall not constitute a solicitation of any proxy, vote, consent or approval in any jurisdiction in connection with the Proposed Business Combination and shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the securities of AACT, Kodiak or the combined company resulting from the Proposed Business Combination, nor shall there be any sale of any such securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of the Securities Act.

Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

Exhibit No. |  | Description
99.1 |  | Investor Presentation dated August 25, 2025.
104 |  | Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document).

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

Dated: August 25, 2025

ARES ACQUISITION CORPORATION II
By: |  | /s/ Allyson Satin
Name: |  | Allyson Satin
Title: |  | Chief Operating Officer