A new wave of organized cargo theft is targeting the hardware behind America’s artificial intelligence boom, with criminal networks stealing millions of dollars’ worth of data center equipment from trucks traveling across the country.
More than $100 million in data center equipment has reportedly been stolen in transit since June, according to NBC News. A separate industry report estimates that AI equipment thefts have exceeded $150 million so far in 2026.
The staggering losses come as criminals increasingly pursue the servers, computer chips and other high-value components required to build and operate AI infrastructure.
These are not simple smash-and-grab robberies involving a getaway car and a ski mask. Investigators say sophisticated international networks are using cybercrime, false identities and even staged traffic collisions to carry out multimillion-dollar heists.
In one especially audacious case in July, thieves allegedly stole $38 million worth of cables and cartridges in Reno, Nevada, using drivers with counterfeit licenses.
A month earlier, a shipment carrying $13 million in computer server equipment was attacked while traveling through California’s Mojave Desert. A car reportedly crashed deliberately into a vehicle escorting the truck.
The trailer was eventually found at a truck yard in Stockton, California, but its valuable cargo was gone.
Weeks later, another shipment carrying an estimated $10 million in server rack components disappeared while traveling from San Jose, California, to a data center project in Texas.
More than $100 million in data center equipment has reportedly been stolen in transit since June, while a separate industry report estimates that AI equipment thefts have topped $150 million in 2026
Keith Lewis, head of operations at risk-assessment firm Verisk CargoNet
The shipment’s security vehicle was hit by an SUV in a collision resembling a hit-and-run, while tracking technology apparently showed false coordinates to conceal the truck’s movements.
The stolen cargo has included servers, memory modules, storage drives, routers, fiber-optic cables, copper wiring and other specialized equipment.
As demand for AI infrastructure surges, even less glamorous components can command enormous prices. One trailer, for example, was carrying approximately $300,000 worth of copper wire.
“It’s like stealing pure gold bars,” Keith Lewis, head of operations at risk-assessment firm Verisk CargoNet, told NBC News. “It’s so much easier to steal this than to rob a bank.”
The most troubling element is that many of the thefts appear to be planned well before the trucks begin their journeys.
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Criminals have reportedly infiltrated the online accounts of freight brokers and transportation companies to obtain confidential shipping schedules, locate valuable loads and impersonate legitimate carriers.
Some groups allegedly use AI-generated driver’s licenses to help fraudulent drivers pass identity checks. GPS spoofing can then make a shipment appear to be traveling safely toward its destination.
The stolen cargo has included servers, memory modules, storage drives, routers, fiber-optic cables, copper wiring and other specialized data center equipment, such as the hardware used at Stargate AI in Abilene, Texas (pictured)
In other cases, investigators suspect that drivers themselves may be involved, exposing weaknesses in the screening of carriers and their employees.
Overhaul, a cargo risk management company, says reports involving stolen data center equipment, computing components and semiconductors have increased by 34 percent since 2024.
Fraud appeared in 92 percent of the high-value technology shipment thefts analyzed by the company, indicating that deception has become more common than brute force.
The stolen equipment does not always appear for sale on public online marketplaces.
Investigators say overseas buyers may already be arranged before a shipment is intercepted. Some of the stolen technology is believed to be destined for countries including China, where US export restrictions cover certain advanced AI equipment.
India, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Colombia and Moldova have also been associated with suspicious or fraudulent activity linked to US cargo theft, according to carrier-verification platform Verified Carrier.
Experts say the groups behind these crimes resemble international businesses more than opportunistic street gangs.
Scott Cornell, chair of the Transported Asset Protection Association’s Americas division, told NBC News that the networks are “planned,” “plotted” and “strategic,” exploiting vulnerabilities across the supply chain.
The impact could reach far beyond the value of the missing hardware. Stolen shipments can delay data center construction and disrupt costly technology projects.
Overhaul has warned that insurance may reimburse the value of stolen equipment while failing to cover indirect losses from missed deadlines or delayed customer contracts.
As companies compete to secure the hardware powering the AI revolution, the cost of protecting these increasingly valuable shipments is also likely to climb.
With billions of dollars flowing into data center construction, America’s highways have become a lucrative target for criminals seeking to profit from the technology boom.
