A recent article in Logistics Management had a telling quote from CapGemini’s Shashank Mane: “The bandwidth constraint over the next few years will be human-AI interaction, training and change management for users.”
In other words, the technology for leveraging AI in the supply chain is there—but the actual implementation of it on the ground (i.e. where the humans involved in the process are) has been lagging. To wit, a study cited in that same article showed that more than half of companies who had deployed AI in the supply chain had yet to see any results.
That’s a pretty startling number, given how much the needle has moved recently in terms of AI in supply chain and logistics use cases. As with any new technology, there’s always the risk of a mismatch between what people are promising and what they can actually deliver when it comes to AI. But there are also unheralded success stories that show a real path forward for getting immediate value out of AI-powered technology.
That’s why we’re digging into the practical, immediate impacts that AI is having on logistics right now and how businesses can take advantage of it.
It seems like everywhere you turn, logistics technology providers are rebranding themselves as being powered by AI. And that phenomenon certainly isn’t limited to the world of logistics.
That can make it difficult to separate hype from reality, and it can make businesses (rightly) wary of AI logistics software that can’t live up to expectations. As a reality check, here’s a rundown of some of what AI can actually accomplish in logistics right now:
Until quite recently, you could have been forgiven for thinking that large language models (LLMs) weren’t up to the task of making your customers’ lives easier. But as LLMs have improved, generative AI has become easier to deploy in a low-risk way. That means it’s an ideal technology to leverage for handling simple customer inquiries (e.g. “when is my order scheduled for?”).
Customers can ask questions in a conversational way, and the AI-powered chat agent can respond with the correct information or escalate to a human who can help. Simple questions are answered almost instantly (to the delight of customers), and the overall volume that your team has to deal with shrinks.
This kind of AI logistics software is having a real impact on present-day supply chains. You can read here about businesses that have leveraged tools like this to decrease inbound customer calls by more than 70%.
This is one of the best-worn use cases for AI in logistics. Simply put, routing algorithms that rely on AI and machine learning to generate delivery routes are much more accurate and efficient than a human router could hope to be without these tools—and that’s been true for quite a while.
Here, AI does its work completely on the back end—it takes in huge quantities of delivery data and turns it into highly accurate ETA predictions. The result is that businesses can smooth out the entire logistics process by increasing on-time delivery performance without sacrificing capacity utilization.
Again, this is something that thousands of logistics professionals have been utilizing for years.
Like our CEO, Satish Natarajan, noted in a recent Forbes piece, delivery driver AI isn’t necessarily what you’re picturing. Autonomous vehicles can’t handle big and bulky last mile deliveries (yet), but AI can give drivers contextual intelligence at the level of individual stops on their delivery routes.
This doesn’t have to be complicated—and, in fact, it should be as unobtrusive as possible where the driver is concerned. The ideal here is to have an AI-generated voice note (similar to voice navigation) for each stop with information about the delivery site and the customer. This could help drivers figure out where it will be easiest to park, let them know how to access the building, etc.
This can help drivers to be more productive throughout the day and spend less time looking for parking and more time providing great service to customers. The extra stops and improved customer experience can add up quickly.
These are a few of the most practical applications that have arisen so far, but there are others on the horizon that are poised to make an impact fairly soon. Naturally, AI-powered customer experience management will be able to take on more and more robust questions over time. And LLMs will power faster responses in written communication between any and all stakeholders, from drivers to dispatchers to customers.
AI directly aimed at dispatchers is certainly on the horizon. And data analytics is another area where AI has the power to improve significantly on what’s already there in the world of logistics. In each of these cases, it will be the businesses that have already invested in AI and digitization that are able to take advantage the quickest.
At DispatchTrack, we pride ourselves on being pioneers in the field of AI in logistics—and our success is due in large part to the fact that we’re focused on giving our customers the capabilities they actually need.
Our AI-powered route optimization has been helping improve on-time delivery rates and ETA accuracy for years—with most customers achieving 98% accurate ETAs or better. At the same time, we help customers speed up the routing process by 50% or more.
Earlier this year, we rolled out DT Agent and Driver AI to expand our portfolio of AI-powered logistics offerings.
The roadmap for the rest of 2025 and beyond includes more investment in our AI capabilities, with a focus on ensuring actual ROI for our customers who leverage AI-based features.
We’re able to make that possible because our entire AI logistics software acts as a connected distribution logistics platform. DispatchTrack slots seamlessly into your technology stack and helps you digitize, standardize, and optimize the entire last mile logistics journey from end to end.
Our last mile delivery capabilities have helped customers decrease delivery costs, improve customer satisfaction, and significantly reduce manual effort and paperwork. The result is smarter, more efficient logistics and a strong foundation for growth.
As AI-powered logistics software becomes the norm rather than the exception—and as logistics businesses across the board begin to see real gains from these emerging technologies—the right technology foundation will be absolutely critical.
Wondering whether you’re poised to turn AI initiatives into actual impacts? Talk to one of our experts today about how you can future-proof your logistics technology.