CH Robinson Deploys AI Agents Across Global Freight Forwarding

CH Robinson has launched a significant expansion of its Lean AI platform into global freight forwarding, deploying interconnected AI agents across ocean shipping, air cargo, and customs brokerage operations. The technology represents a leap beyond previous automation efforts, with AI systems capable of handling complex tasks that typically require coordination across multiple human specialists and time zones. The company reports processing over 80,000 quotations for more than 3,600 customers, reducing air freight quotation times from one day to two to three minutes and ocean freight from two to three days to the same timeframe. This deployment addresses a critical operational bottleneck in international logistics: the time-intensive work of pricing shipments, managing bookings, and handling customs documentation.

By automating these tasks while maintaining human oversight, CH Robinson is improving speed, accuracy, and consistency across its customer base. The AI agents manage thousands of ocean booking requests weekly and handle more than four dozen document types in customs processes, achieving a 23 percent reduction in processing time. For customers shipping time-sensitive products such as pharmaceuticals, perishables, and automotive components, faster quotations and bookings directly improve their ability to secure suitable carriers and maintain supply chain predictability. The rollout strategy indicates this is a structural, long-term shift in how freight forwarding operates globally.

Initial deployments in North America and China are expanding to Europe, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific, with widespread deployment planned for 2026 and beyond. This signals that AI-driven automation in freight forwarding is moving from experimental to mainstream operations.