In the time-sensitive world of freight transportation, what was once science fiction is now reality—a single email can trigger an efficiency revolution. C.H. Robinson (CHR), a global leader in third-party logistics, is leveraging generative artificial intelligence (AI) to automate every phase of the freight lifecycle with unprecedented speed and precision.
AI-Powered Freight Automation: From Email to Order in 90 Seconds
CHR's generative AI technology automates multiple critical steps in freight processing. From receiving and interpreting emails to providing quotes, accepting orders, scheduling pickups and deliveries, and tracking shipments in real-time, AI handles nearly all routine tasks with remarkable efficiency.
The system's capabilities include:
- Rapid Quoting: Processes 2,600 email quote requests daily in just 32 seconds on average, covering both truckload and less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments.
- Efficient Order Processing: Converts 5,500 emails into freight orders daily, completing the entire process in 90 seconds.
- Smart Scheduling: When customers email pickup or delivery requests instead of using CHR's contactless system, AI extracts necessary information and completes appointments in 60 seconds, handling over 3,000 daily appointments across 26,000 locations.
- Real-Time Tracking: When carrier automated updates fail, AI interacts directly with carriers to obtain shipment status without human intervention.
Operational Impact: Cost Reduction and Enhanced Service
CHR reports that generative AI automates over 10,000 routine transactions daily—a dramatic improvement over traditional email processing. While platform-integrated clients already enjoyed instant automation, email-reliant customers now benefit from equal speed and cost advantages.
The efficiency gains are striking: tasks that previously required up to four hours of employee time now take just 90 seconds. This transformation allows CHR teams to focus on higher-value work, such as delivering personalized service and customized solutions.
"In May, we announced using this new technology for email quote requests. Within months, we developed additional models to automate more shipping steps at scale—a significant efficiency breakthrough for the industry and global supply chains," said Arun Rajan, CHR's Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer.
Industry Applications: Retail and Automotive Case Studies
Rajan illustrated the technology's practical value: "Consider retailers stocking hundreds of products or automakers relying on just-in-time delivery for 30,000 vehicle components. Saving even minutes per shipment becomes critical."
For retailers, faster shipments mean quicker shelf restocking, boosting sales and customer satisfaction. Automakers avoid production line stoppages and reduce inventory costs. In energy sectors, rapid freight movement accelerates power restoration after hurricanes.
Competitive Advantage: Data, Expertise, and Customer Insight
CHR's AI success stems from three strategic advantages:
- The industry's largest proprietary dataset
- Deep logistics expertise guiding AI through complex scenarios
- Granular customer understanding enabling personalized service
The AI system doesn't merely mimic human cognition—it executes traditionally human-performed tasks by applying CHR's accumulated knowledge of logistics, markets, and individual client requirements.
Human-AI Collaboration: Experts Train, Systems Execute
CHR emphasizes augmentation over replacement. When deploying AI tools, customer managers first review outputs and provide feedback. Once reliability is confirmed, AI operates independently while recognizing when to escalate exceptional cases to human specialists.
This collaborative model creates continuous learning—AI improves through both historical/real-time data and expert input, progressively enhancing service quality.
Future Outlook: Ongoing Innovation in Logistics AI
CHR's AI strategy represents an evolving innovation cycle. The company plans continued investment in AI applications, anticipating expanded roles for the technology across freight logistics while maintaining its industry leadership position.
"Generative AI enables speed and efficiency breakthroughs in automating transactions that resisted automation for decades. Our technology now reliably executes these tasks across the entire freight lifecycle," said Megan Orth, CHR's Director of Digital Connectivity.
Q&A: Inside CHR's AI Strategy
What drove CHR to develop this proprietary AI technology?
Global supply chains grow increasingly complex. Clients rely on us to solve critical challenges and mitigate frequent disruptions. Meanwhile, our new operating model prioritizes speed, agility, and focus. We continuously seek opportunities to automate repetitive tasks, freeing employees for strategic work.
How long was this technology in development?
We expanded our first tools in January, with others in development. By May-June, we launched them operationally. Today, they execute thousands of daily tasks for thousands of customers.
What are the primary benefits for shippers?
Our AI ecosystem enhances service through faster market response and competitive pricing. Where humans might spend hours processing emails, our automation delivers in seconds. Clients experience near-zero wait times while their representatives focus on strategic initiatives.
Speed-to-market remains crucial. Faster quotes enable quicker shipment notifications, ideal pickup scheduling, and optimal carrier matching—critical for supply chain fluidity. Retailers can't sell what's not stocked; automakers can't build without parts; utilities can't restore power without equipment.
Speed also affects costs. Our research shows shippers delaying spot market entries may pay 23%-35% premiums due to basic supply-demand dynamics—as available trucks diminish daily, prices rise.
What differentiates CHR's AI implementation?
Our advantage lies in combining the industry's largest dataset with employee expertise and individual client knowledge. Our AI mimics human cognition because we've taught it our logistics knowledge, market intelligence, and client-specific requirements.
Clients prioritize relationships with our people—some spanning decades. This means CHR teams deeply understand each company's supply chain and shipping needs. We're now leveraging that knowledge in new ways.
When building AI tools, we encode logistics logic—how different models operate under various conditions. We teach the system to determine optimal shipping methods and pricing based on freight attributes using real-time market intelligence. Employee knowledge about individual clients—locations, service specifications, unique requirements—is fundamentally integrated.
During implementation, customer teams review AI performance and provide feedback. Once reliability is confirmed, the technology operates autonomously while recognizing when to involve human specialists for exceptional cases. Thus, our AI learns continuously from both data and human experts.