The AI strategy is also intended to position Evri as a leader in AI adoption within the parcel delivery sector, focusing on several key areas: improving customer service by automating data collection and issue identification, enhancing parcel security through AI-powered tools to analyse delivery photos and claims data and optimising workforce planning by predicting future demands.
Speaking to Robotics & Automation Magazine, Marcus Hunter, chief technology officer, Evri, said: “The world is changing and we need to keep up with it. We want to disrupt and lower delivery costs to make services faster and more reliable and we need to maintain that.
“Models at the moment are good for today but may not be good for tomorrow, which is why we are investing in AI but feel we would like to disrupt the sector as well, change how we do things, we’ve been delivering the parcels in the UK for the past 200 years the same way, essentially.
“[What we should be saying is] can we deliver services faster, smarter, better, richer so we get good customer experiences and our colleagues are happy? And the AI is starting to do that, we are nibbling at that, parcel vision relies on data, relies on taking photos at the doorstep, big analysis through that and ensuring the right location from a developer to a customer agent.”
Hunter also outlined the company’s four key focuses in terms of automation for the parcel company, which included ultra-personalisation, digital twins, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) and robotics. He emphasised that the investment underscores Evri’s commitment to innovation, as it aims to deliver a best-in-class experience and solidify Evri as a tech-forward business.
The parcel firm has collaborated with AI consultancy Robiquity to create an ‘AI Centre of Excellence’ and recruit top talent, which it expects to result in tangible benefits and improved operations.
Hunter noted that AI would help colleagues work smarter by automating mundane tasks, while James Procter, COO at Robiquity, praised the partnership’s early successes and the transformative potential of AI in Evri’s operations.
