NEW OPPORTUNITIES
AI agents at work: the next leap forward
Agentic AI—software agents that monitor live data, make decisions and act within defined boundaries—represents the next leap toward more autonomous operations. Both shippers and carriers agree that ETA monitoring, tendering and routing are ideal starting points for these intelligent agents.
CARRIERS
ETA calculation and alerting
Route and fuel optimization
Spot quote negotiation
SHIPPERS
Real-time ETA monitoring and alerting
Route / network optimization
Integration with external systems
SHIPPERS
57% Real-time ETA monitoring and alerting
37% Route / network optimization
36% Integration with external systems
CARRIERS & LSPs
59% ETA calculation and alerting
40% Route and fuel optimization
26% Spot quote negotiation
In the autumn of 2025, Trimble's Jonah McIntire shared several early use cases already in production: AI agents that verify carrier credentials, ingest rate tables from contracts, schedule appointments, and resolve service tickets. These examples show that the future isn’t theoretical—agents are already working behind the scenes to create efficiencies and automate manual processes.
What benefits do you expect agentic AI could bring to your transportation operations?
Across both shippers, carriers and LSPs, the top benefits include reduced manual work, faster decision-making and better use of real-time data. While cost savings matter, the real gain lies in freeing human capacity and accelerating response times when disruptions occur.
SHIPPERS
Reduced manual work
CARRIERS & LSPs
Reduced manual work
SHIPPERS
Cost savings and increased revenue
CARRIERS & LSPs
Better use of real-time data and networks
SHIPPERS
Faster decisions and dispatch
CARRIERS & LSPs
Faster decisions and dispatch
What benefits do you expect agentic AI could bring to your transportation operations?
Across both shippers, carriers and LSPs, the top benefits include reduced manual work, faster decision-making and better use of real-time data. While cost savings matter, the real gain lies in freeing human capacity and accelerating response times when disruptions occur.
SHIPPERS
Reduced manual work
Cost savings and increased revenue
Faster decisions and dispatch
CARRIERS & LSPs
Reduced manual work
Better use of real-time data and networks
Faster decisions and dispatch
Empowered oversight
The coming phase of AI in transportation management will shift human roles from manual execution to supervision and orchestration. Dispatchers and planners will increasingly oversee intelligent agents that automate tasks, while retaining responsibility for guiding and validating machine-driven decisions.
Better with a network
As powerful as AI can be within a single company, its potential truly comes to life when it’s connected beyond the four walls of an organization. Data is the fuel of AI, but no company operates in isolation, especially in transportation, where every shipment depends on an ecosystem of carriers, brokers, and partners.
When AI has access to shared, real-time data across the network, it doesn’t just react faster, it learns faster too. And that’s why the future of AI in transportation will be better with a network.
As McIntire noted, “We’re not just building AI tools, we’re hiring AI colleagues.” For network-based technology, that means those “colleagues” learn faster together. The more connected the ecosystem, the more collective intelligence it can harness, lifting the entire network.
When asked how AI adds value in a network-based TMS, shippers first pointed to enhancing predictive capabilities, like ETA accuracy and disruption risk management (43%). Close behind were aggregating real-time data across the network (39%) and improving overall system learning through collective insights (34%).
Together, these responses highlight a shared vision: network-connected AI as a driver of foresight and faster, better decision-making.
However, collaborative planning across partners ranked near the bottom (23%), showing that most companies are still focused on optimizing internal performance before expanding outward to multi-party collaboration.
When asked how AI adds value when combined with a network-based TMS, carriers and LSPs appear to be reading from the same script, even if they emphasize slightly different angles. Their top priorities all point to one thing: using AI to make the network work harder, faster, and far more intelligently.
Most respondents highlighted enhanced load matching and prioritization (55%) as the standout benefit. With AI scanning patterns across the entire ecosystem, it becomes far easier to align the right loads with the right capacity, reduce empty running, and smooth out the daily operational chaos.
Another 43% pointed to the power of aggregating real-time freight opportunities. AI’s ability to pull together, interpret, and surface live network data means users can spot opportunities the moment they arise—and act on them before anyone else has even sharpened a pencil.
When asked how AI adds value when combined with a network-based TMS, carriers and LSPs appear to be reading from the same script, even if they emphasize slightly different angles. Their top priorities all point to one thing: using AI to make the network work harder, faster, and far more intelligently.
Most respondents highlighted enhanced load matching and prioritization (55%) as the standout benefit. With AI scanning patterns across the entire ecosystem, it becomes far easier to align the right loads with the right capacity, reduce empty running, and smooth out the daily operational chaos.
Another 43% pointed to the power of aggregating real-time freight opportunities. AI’s ability to pull together, interpret, and surface live network data means users can spot opportunities the moment they arise—and act on them before anyone else has even sharpened a pencil.
AI-powered networks
Shippers and carriers agreed that AI's power comes from connection across an entire ecosystem. Companies that embrace this collective intelligence will improve their own performance while making their network more efficient and resilient. Read on to see what you can do right now to get started.
© 2025 Trimble Inc.
© 2025 Trimble Inc.