ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence software that mimics human interaction, has arrived. Have you tried it? It goes beyond searching to answering questions. Instead of going through each website, ChatGPT integrates that information and gives you what “you want.” That makes searching less tedious and more focused.
But the chatbot is limited in that it can’t handle opinions. And it is not updated with the latest information. Chatbots like ChatGPT will not replace our thinking, creativity, or innovation. They can only complement. We expect more chatbots, but Google and other search engines could slow their growth; they will lose their advertising revenues with the significant adoption of chatbots.
There will be integrity issues in academia, like writing research projects and plagiarism, which the same AI can reduce. Jobs, mostly in the service sector will be lost as more AI is adopted. Even areas that looked secure, like law, are now vulnerable.
How will chatbots like chatGPT affect logistics and supply chains?
The good thing about logistics and transport is that they are “real .” No matter what software you use, something tangible must be transported. You can use chatGPT to help you compile memos, and identify sources or even the shortest route or lowest cost route. But chatGPT can’t reduce weight and dimensions or fasten the ship’s speed. Technology has limits.
We expect to see chatGPT used to automate manual tasks like invoicing, accounting, billing, etc., but the actual logistics and transport will be improved by realities, like having faster trains, cars, ships, and airplanes.
Like farming, where the farmer must plant crops, weed, and harvest, so must someone load, transport, unload or store goods. We could argue that logistics and transport is insulated from AI like chatGPT.
That is good news for this industry. It shall suffer few disruptions. The last disruption was containers. Which other disruption have we witnessed in this sector in the last 60 years?
The last major disruption was not technological. It was health; Covid-19. What is clear is that we need more innovations in this sector, homegrown. The container has enjoyed dominance for too long.
