Why Amazon is Turning to AI for Supply chain Transparency

Amazon's vast global supplier network faces mounting scrutiny over human rights risks, prompting the ecommerce giant to deploy AI tools that could transform how multinational corporations manage supply chain visibility and conduct due diligence across complex procurement operations.

The company is collaborating with the World Economic Forum to address systemic human rights issues spanning its ecommerce, logistics, cloud services and manufacturing operations.

Amazon has begun deploying machine learning systems designed to monitor supplier networks for forced labour indicators.

The AI models analyse millions of data points drawn from historical audit records, government reports and news signals to flag high-risk supplier facilities before traditional due diligence processes might detect problems.

Kara Hurst, Amazon's Chief Sustainability Officer, says: "The tool successfully identified about nine out of every 10 high-risk sites, with 85% overall accuracy."

This capability allows procurement and compliance teams to allocate due diligence resources more strategically across the company's sprawling supply chain operations.

The company has also developed AI technology that accelerates audit report processing.

Where manual review typically requires four hours per report, the automated system completes the task in minutes. Kara says early versions helped process audit reports "65% faster, a remarkable difference".

Supply chain due diligence evolution

Amazon formalised its enterprise-wide human rights commitment in 2019 with global human rights principles aligned to United Nations guiding principles on business and human rights. The company had published its first supplier code of conduct in 2014.

Leigh Anne DeWine, Amazon's Director of Human Rights & Social Impact, told Devex that meaningful progress has come from operationalising those principles through collaboration with individual business units.

The company moved from enterprise-wide human rights assessments to building tailored due diligence processes that reflect unique risk profiles across different sectors.

This approach acknowledges that supply chain risks vary considerably across Amazon's diverse operations. Logistics networks face different vulnerabilities than electronics manufacturing suppliers, requiring customised monitoring protocols rather than uniform compliance checklists.

The retailer has also expanded supplier transparency by publicly mapping suppliers on Open Supply Hub. In 2024, Amazon addressed 100% of the 826 complaints received through its human rights and environmental complaints form.

Data fragmentation barriers

Leigh Anne sees data fragmentation as the most persistent obstacle facing businesses attempting to advance human rights protections within supply chains.

She explains: "Human rights issues often remain hidden because information is incomplete, inconsistent, or siloed across owners, countries and systems."

Without shared data standards and trusted collaboration mechanisms, efforts to address risk remain siloed and reactive. This challenge prompted Amazon to join the World Economic Forum's Global Data Partnership Against Forced Labour, which aims to accelerate responsible data sharing across sectors.

Cross-industry supply chain collaboration

Amazon co-founded Tech Against Trafficking, a coalition that includes Google, Microsoft, Meta and TikTok. The initiative unites industry, civil society, technologists and survivors to scale technology solutions combating human trafficking within supply chains and beyond.

Amazon has contributed technical expertise and Amazon Web Services cloud solutions to support anti-trafficking NGOs. Another partnership with the International Organisation for Migration focuses on strengthening ethical recruitment practices, addressing worker-paid recruitment fees, deception and wage theft that can indicate forced labour.

Despite the promise of AI-powered risk detection, Leigh Anne emphasises that technology must complement rather than replace human judgement in supply chain due diligence. She says: "Even the most advanced models are only as strong as the data behind them."

Amazon collaborates with NGOs, research organisations and audit firms to improve data coverage and rigorously test its models before deployment across supplier networks. Workers' voices remain central to this approach.

As Amazon works to decarbonise operations, it aims to ensure the transition is just by integrating social considerations into environmental strategies. Leigh Anne defines long-term success as embedding human rights in every decision and creating conditions where forced labour becomes increasingly rare.