Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Supply chain professionals see potential in AI, but few have deployed it

Inspectorio survey shows that 77% of respondents indicated that AI is not yet integrated into their supply chains.

inspectorio Screenshot 2024-05-24 at 1.28.20 PM.png

Artificial intelligence (AI) has great potential to propel supply chain efficiencies, sustainability efforts, and regulatory compliance despite only limited use by companies today, according to research by Inspectorio.

The survey found that 82% of supply chain professionals indicate technology advancements will have a significant impact on the supply chain over the next five years. Specifically, innovations in AI and machine learning have led to notable advancements in quality assurance, predictive analytics, and operational efficiency, supporting improved decision-making and transparency. 


Despite this, 77% of respondents indicated that AI is not yet integrated into their supply chains. The current lack of AI-powered tools was cited by 47% of respondents as the primary barrier, highlighting a significant gap in the market for industry-specific AI solutions. Restrictive IT policies were cited as the second largest barrier to adoption (22%).

The data comes from a survey of 144 professionals throughout the supply chain industry, including the sectors of: apparel & footwear (56%), home & furniture (12%), food & beverage (6%), multi-category retail (6%), outdoor & sports (1%), and other (18%). They represented the various industry types of: factory (44%), brand (22%), supplier (19%), retailer (13%), and other (2%). 

The results were summarized in a report called “State of Supply Chain Report 2024” by Minneapolis-based Inspectorio, which provides an AI-powered supply chain platform optimizing performance across production chains for brands, retailers, and suppliers.

With risk management, compliance pressures, and budget constraints rated as the primary challenges facing the industry, many professionals are managing risk through supplier diversification, enabled by technology advancements. Diversifying supplier bases not only addresses compliance pressures and budget constraints, but it also acts as a pivotal strategy for risk mitigation. 

“As evidenced in the report, conflicting priorities exist between increasing operational efficiency and spearheading sustainability and traceability efforts at various points along the production chain,” Chirag Patel, CEO of Inspectorio, said in a release. “The current lack of AI adoption throughout operations highlights the need for tailored solutions to create an effective roadmap to navigate a dynamic and evolving supply chain.”

 

 

 

Recent

More Stories

AI image of a dinosaur in teacup

Amazon to release new generation of AI models in 2025

Logistics and e-commerce giant Amazon says it will release a new collection of AI tools in 2025 that could “simplify the lives of shoppers, sellers, advertisers, enterprises, and everyone in between.”

The launch is based on “Amazon Nova,” the company’s new generation of foundation models, the company said in a blog post. Data scientists use foundation models (FMs) to develop machine learning (ML) platforms more quickly than starting from scratch, allowing them to create artificial intelligence applications capable of performing a wide variety of general tasks, since they were trained on a broad spectrum of generalized data, Amazon says.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

Logistics economy continues on solid footing
Logistics Managers' Index

Logistics economy continues on solid footing

Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded in November, continuing a steady growth pattern that began earlier this year and signaling a return to seasonality after several years of fluctuating conditions, according to the latest Logistics Managers’ Index report (LMI), released today.

The November LMI registered 58.4, down slightly from October’s reading of 58.9, which was the highest level in two years. The LMI is a monthly gauge of business conditions across warehousing and logistics markets; a reading above 50 indicates growth and a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

Keep ReadingShow less
chart of top business concerns from descartes

Descartes: businesses say top concern is tariff hikes

Business leaders at companies of every size say that rising tariffs and trade barriers are the most significant global trade challenge facing logistics and supply chain leaders today, according to a survey from supply chain software provider Descartes.

Specifically, 48% of respondents identified rising tariffs and trade barriers as their top concern, followed by supply chain disruptions at 45% and geopolitical instability at 41%. Moreover, tariffs and trade barriers ranked as the priority issue regardless of company size, as respondents at companies with less than 250 employees, 251-500, 501-1,000, 1,001-50,000 and 50,000+ employees all cited it as the most significant issue they are currently facing.

Keep ReadingShow less
diagram of blue yonder software platforms

Blue Yonder users see supply chains rocked by hack

Grocers and retailers are struggling to get their systems back online just before the winter holiday peak, following a software hack that hit the supply chain software provider Blue Yonder this week.

The ransomware attack is snarling inventory distribution patterns because of its impact on systems such as the employee scheduling system for coffee stalwart Starbucks, according to a published report. Scottsdale, Arizona-based Blue Yonder provides a wide range of supply chain software, including warehouse management system (WMS), transportation management system (TMS), order management and commerce, network and control tower, returns management, and others.

Keep ReadingShow less
drawing of person using AI

Amazon invests another $4 billion in AI-maker Anthropic

Amazon has deepened its collaboration with the artificial intelligence (AI) developer Anthropic, investing another $4 billion in the San Francisco-based firm and agreeing to establish Amazon Web Services (AWS) as its primary training partner and to collaborate on developing its specialized machine learning (ML) chip called AWS Trainium.

The new funding brings Amazon's total investment in Anthropic to $8 billion, while maintaining the e-commerce giant’s position as a minority investor, according to Anthropic. The partnership was launched in 2023, when Amazon invested its first $4 billion round in the firm.

Keep ReadingShow less