AI development is moving at a breakneck pace. Just ask anyone who closely follows the tech space — what seemed cutting-edge last month might already be outdated.
This creates a genuine challenge for supply chain professionals, especially those without engineering or data science backgrounds. With a lean team and constant disruptions already demanding every hour of your day, how can you possibly track the continuous stream of new AI models, capabilities, and rapidly changing costs?
Many supply chain leaders are finding an effective approach: partnering with technology vendors who have committed significant resources to AI research and development. This relationship isn’t new — tech vendors have always provided specialized knowledge and solutions that wouldn’t make financial sense to develop in-house. But now, with the accelerating pace of AI innovations, the value these partnerships deliver has multiplied significantly. Specialized vendors offer a practical advantage to their customers, serving as both technology providers and guides through the rapidly changing AI capabilities.
The economics of AI have transformed dramatically in the past year. Consider DeepSeek, which made headlines in 2024 as a prime example.
The Chinese AI startup’s “R1” model demonstrated that powerful reasoning capabilities could be achieved at a fraction of traditional costs. Industry analysts found that DeepSeek’s $6 million AI model now competes with systems previously requiring investments nearly 1,000 times greater.
How? DeepSeek uses clever architectural approaches:
This approach slashed training costs by 10x and achieved a 40% reduction in computing power requirements compared to competitors.
For supply chain operations, these technical advances translate to practical benefits. Token processing costs (essentially the cost to handle units of text or data) have dropped from approximately $4.10 per million tokens with traditional models to just $0.10 per million using newer efficient architectures.
This 40-fold cost improvement means AI-powered processes become financially practical rather than prohibitively expensive.
With AI advancements coming so quickly, partnering with a supply chain technology provider that has a dedicated R&D team can provide a competitive advantage, helping you stay ahead of market changes.
When DeepSeek published their breakthrough paper, the tech community’s attention shifted so quickly that other recent AI advancements — like operator agents — seemed to disappear from the conversation. It was simply overshadowed in the news cycle. With so many developments happening simultaneously, even significant breakthroughs can get lost in the shuffle within days.
Supply chain tech vendors with strong R&D functions offer several key advantages:
When selecting a technology partner, the strength of their AI R&D commitment should be a key factor in your decision-making process.
Ask potential vendors:
The best vendors will have concrete examples of how their R&D efforts translate to customer value. They’ll be able to explain how they’ve already tested models like DeepSeek and applied the results to improve their products.
The pace of AI advancement isn’t slowing down. New models and techniques will continue to be released that dramatically improve performance while reducing costs. Supply chain leaders who partner with tech vendors that prioritize AI research will gain access to these innovations faster, improving their bottom-line results.
At FourKites, we’ve recognized this reality by investing in a dedicated AI R&D team that stays at the forefront of developments. Our commitment builds on our history of data science excellence, which has produced innovations like our patented ETA technology and Predictive Insights — and now, our Intelligent Control Tower and team of AI-powered Digital Workers.
When DeepSeek emerged, our R&D team immediately tested it, deployed it in our environment and began training it with supply chain data. This approach reflects our belief that in supply chain technology, where margins often run thin, quick adoption of cost-effective AI solutions allows our customers to implement these technologies across more processes without breaking the bank. It means continuously improving optimization instead of periodic adjustments.
Most importantly, it means you can focus on your core business while FourKites tackles the technical challenges of evaluating, implementing, and optimizing each AI breakthrough. As AI reshapes supply chain operations, vendors with robust research capabilities will increasingly pull ahead – and bring their customers with them.
Want to learn more about how AI can transform your supply chain? We’d love to show you.
