AI seen as solution to key supply chain challenges: report

AI technology is seen as a potential solution to ongoing supply chain challenges, according to a recent report by FourKites.

The report, "Why You Should Rethink Your Supply Chain Tech", surveyed 250 supply chain leaders in the United States to investigate the effectiveness of their current supply chain solutions and gather insights on emerging technologies.

The findings reveal that the average organisation utilises five systems to make supply chain decisions, often resulting in data blind spots and critical insight gaps. A substantial 75% of respondents reported the use of between three to ten systems to manage their operations.

Mathew Elenjickal, Founder and CEO of FourKites, commented on the challenges facing companies today, "Companies in every industry are telling us the same thing: they're drowning in data but starving for action. Too many companies have invested in multiple systems only to end up with low-quality data, limited insights, and inadequate decision-making capabilities. And it's costing them in network delays – the single largest contributor to unexpected supply chain expenses."

Further survey findings highlight that supply chain blind spots are a significant issue, with 38% of all respondents and 58% of the largest companies indicating it as the main limitation of their existing technology. Additionally, 80% of the respondents have less than 75% of their supply chain available in real-time data.

The report indicates that complex workflows across systems also hinder value extraction from supply chain technology stacks, cited by 30% of large organisations. The need for timely insights is acute, with two-thirds of respondents stating that they require four hours or more to understand the impact of a disruption.

An optimism about AI solutions was evident among respondents, with 75% believing AI can manage between 25% to 75% of their routine supply chain tasks. Respondents believe AI has the potential to address issues such as carrier communications, appointment scheduling, exception management, and administrative tasks, thereby enhancing customer satisfaction, improving on-time in-full (OTIF) performance, and potentially reducing labour costs.

Nevertheless, over 40% of respondents expressed concerns about AI-related data security, system reliability, and associated costs. Moreover, only 22% of shippers with revenues exceeding USD $1 billion considered their supply chain control towers highly effective in driving action.

In response to these industry challenges, FourKites has developed the FourKites Intelligent Control Tower, an advanced AI-driven system intended to replace outdated planning tools. This system leverages digital twins of shipments, orders, inventory, and assets to provide actionable insights, assess risks, deliver prescriptive recommendations, and autonomously execute solutions for complex supply chain challenges.

According to FourKites, this comprehensive supply chain solution, powered by AI agents within a single, integrated platform, offers end-to-end control and real-time data access through the industry's largest real-time network.