The story of 2025 livestream: Digitalisation reshapes automotive supply chains
How digitalisation and intelligent automation are transforming supply-chain planning, data visibility and resilience across the automotive industry in 2025.
During our latest livestream, 'The story of 2025: Key events, impacts and lessons of disruption,' Emily Uwemedimo, managing editor at Automotive Logistics, sets out how real-time data, intelligent automation and new regulatory pressures are reshaping planning, compliance and day-to-day operations across global networks.
Digitalisation has moved from promise to practical deployment across the automotive supply chain in 2025, as manufacturers are now working through a “tsunami” of sustainability, trade and compliance requirements that demand secure data exchange and true end-to-end visibility, extending deep into tier-n supply bases. As Ford’s supply chain compliance team observed at the ALSC Digital Strategies North America conference, future mandates will make this level of transparency unavoidable.
At the same time, supply-chain organisations are being asked to balance resilience with cost and efficiency, building buffers while optimising transport, inventory and capacity. This has pushed digitalisation to the centre of strategy. Real-time data, advanced planning systems and AI-driven analytics are becoming essential tools for scenario modelling and operational decision-making.
Across Automotive Logistics events in 2025, companies demonstrated a clear shift toward practical AI pilots. John Rich, manager of data analytics & AI programmes at Mazda argued that the industry should think less about artificial intelligence and more about “intelligent automation”, focusing on concrete improvements to manual processes. Case studies showed how algorithms are already streamlining routine tasks such as freight booking, document processing and routing decisions.
At Automotive Logistics & Supply Chain Europe in Bonn, speakers highlighted how digitalisation is evolving beyond cost optimisation to support resilience, sustainability and service. Autoliv’s vice-president of global logistics, Gisela Linge, illustrated what a future AI-enabled supply-chain workflow could look like, describing a scenario in which digital twins, planning agents and chatbots collaborate across functions to anticipate tariff shifts, supplier risks and S&OP demands.
Although these sophisticated capabilities are still emerging, companies are already deploying more targeted tools. OEMs and suppliers are using digital twins to run “what-if” simulations, from port closures to capacity disruptions. Others have adopted practical AI-enabled chatbots for internal logistics queries and supplier support. Data analytics is further enhancing transport optimisation, warehouse layouts and inventory planning.
Digitalisation is not driven by AI alone. The wider ecosystem of tools, from compliance platforms to planning dashboards, is becoming essential infrastructure for maintaining competitiveness.
Automotive Logistics will continue this conversation at the 2026 ALSC Digital Strategies North America conference in Nashville, where the industry will explore deeper applications of AI, machine learning and connected supply-chain tools.
Watch the full livestream on demand here and make sure to register now for Automotive Logistics' first livestream of the new year – 'Building the automotive supply chain of 2026' – taking place online on January 29, 2026.
