C.H. Robinson now uses artificial intelligence (AI) agents to work in ocean shipping, air freight, and customs brokerage. The company says the technology delivers substantial speed-to-market gains, precision, and agility to customers' supply chains without sacrificing human oversight or personal attention.




According to the company, the deployment expands its "Lean AI" capabilities into freight forwarding. The work is complex enough that a single shipping task can require more than a dozen AI agents working in tandem. The expansion also extends the company's AI benefits to a broader customer base.


C.H. Robinson has assigned its new AI agents to three core areas of the forwarding workflow: price quoting for ocean and air cargo. Quotes that previously took a day for an air shipment and two to three days for an ocean shipment now take two to three minutes. Ocean booking: AI has begun managing the thousands of booking requests the company receives each week. Customs: AI assists with the dozens of documents and highly detailed processes required for an international shipment to clear U.S. Customs. This work has become more labor-intensive as new trade agreements, additional tariffs, and stricter compliance rules add layers of complexity.


The customs application arrives as importers and their forwarding partners face a heavier documentation burden. Shifting tariff schedules and evolving trade agreements have raised both the volume and the precision required for each clearance. Automated support in this area positions the company to absorb regulatory complexity while maintaining accuracy for customers.


Mike Short, President of Global Forwarding at C.H. Robinson, said the gains build on one another as the company applies its AI approach across the forwarding business.


"As we've brought our AI playbook to global forwarding, the benefits keep compounding," Short said. "Customers have information they need sooner. Data is more consistent. Processes are more predictable. When plans change or disruptions occur, customers can more quickly evaluate new routing, shipping mode, schedule, or price. The faster we get you a quote and handle your booking, the faster you get the ideal carrier and the ideal sailing or flight."


For shippers managing disruption risk and delivery commitments, faster quotes shorten the time between a decision and secured capacity. That speed allows cargo owners to compare routings, modes, and schedules while options remain open.


C.H. Robinson uses one dedicated set of AI agents to manage ocean booking requests. The agents launched in China in August, will roll out to the rest of Asia in the fourth quarter, and are expected to be live globally in the first quarter of 2027.


One agent within this group enriches booking requests with customer-specific context. That step lets the other agents operate with maximum efficiency while still accounting for each customer's preferences, requirements, and shipment procedures. The design pairs automation with tailored service rather than replacing it.


Mike Neill, Chief Technology Officer at C.H. Robinson, said the company's earlier digital tools made only limited progress on booking automation. He explained that the core difficulty lies in the structure of forwarding relationships. A forwarder quotes the customer, but the customer's suppliers submit the bookings.


"We have more work to do automating all the steps for booking, but this is already a major leap forward," Neill said. "Before agentic AI, we'd developed digital booking forms and data exchange setups with customers, but over the course of about 10 years achieved only about 5% automation for ocean and air booking requests. Why was that such a tough hill to climb? Primarily because you quote your customer, then it's their suppliers booking with you. A customer might have 50 suppliers. With our agentic AI, all those booking requests no longer need to be handled manually."