Inbound Logistics | July 2025

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98 % respondents who work for organizations that use AI say it’s useful, important, or vital, according to the recent Deep Analysis report AI Readiness in Transportation and Logistics Back-Office Operations . AI is seen as a transformative force that enhances efficiency and reduces operational costs, with only 2% not agreeing:

3. Keep People in the Loop AI can take on a lot of the repetitive work that slows teams down—but that doesn’t mean every decision should be fully automated. Some tasks—like updating sensitive payment information or reviewing exceptions—still benet from human oversight. That’s why it’s important to design systems that support people, not remove them from the process entirely. One helpful approach is to treat AI as a recommendation engine. It can process data, identify patterns, and handle the routine cases, while agging the ones that need a second look. For higher-impact actions, having a person make the nal call adds a layer of condence and accountability. 6 Actions for Responsible AI Balancing AI’s benets and environmental challenges requires governance, responsible investment, and strategic integration. Experts recommend 6 moves: 1. Ground corporate strategy and decision-making in the responsible implementation of AI and its sustainability impacts. Consider both short-term efciency and productivity gains and long-term ripple effects on corporate, human, and planetary health. 2. Track and report. Communicate the commitments from the executive team and board on how AI impacts will be measured and reported. This should include energy and water sources, usage trends, emissions, and offsets in other areas of operations. 3. Focus on systems Innovation. Deploy AI to accelerate internal innovation in electried manufacturing processes, optimized supply chain routes, evaluation of alternative transportation modes, and preferences for “clean” investment portfolios. 4. Ensure sustainability across suppliers. Demand the same level of sustainability commitments and disclosures by external suppliers, vendors, and partners to ensure alignment and continual progress toward strategic and sustainability goals. 5. Seek federal advocacy. Join with peers and industry associations to advocate for incentives, such as the extension and expansion of federal tax credits to accelerate and fund the widespread adoption of sustainable manufacturing and logistics practices. down—but that doesn’t that doesn’t tasks—like updating sensitive from human oversight.

2% REDUNDANT

13% VITAL

0% USELESS

19% USEFUL

66% IMPORTANT

For this research project, Hyperscience and the Council of Supply Chain Management

Professionals (CSCMP) worked with Deep Analysis to gather and analyze data to shed light on the impact of AI. Respondents use AI to:

6. Foster cross-industry networks. Engage in diverse and multi-disciplinary forums to broker explicit commitments that humans will drive the training of AI. Leaders across industries, utilities, governments, NGOs, and academics are best positioned to develop innovative solutions and a comprehensive approach that balances environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors.

AI is rapidly being integrated into SCM tech stacks across many workflow areas. Today, AI is digitizing and standardizing data, so trust is building quickly because the manual approach to processing data is slow and error prone. It will take time to trust AI to autonomously make decisions, such as rerouting freight, but that day is closer than we all think.

31% Improve decision-making

29% Meet regulatory and legal requirements

37% Enhance data quality

28% Reduce error

25% Process transactions faster

25% Email communication

25% Increase flexibility

Source: Balancing the Benefits of AI & the Health of Our Planet: How to Embrace the Benefits of AI Technology without Sacrificing Environmental Progress, a white paper spearheaded by

NOTE: Quantitative data for the AI Readiness in Transportation and Logistics Back-Office Operations survey was gathered via a set of panel questionnaires conducted anonymously within 300 enterprises located in the United States.

GREG KEFER , CMO, RAFT

the Women’s Leadership Center at Williams Bay.

116 Inbound Logistics • July 2025