What is Arkestro Doing to Strengthen Nissan's Supply Chains?

Nissan Americas is partnering with predictive procurement platform Arkestro to modernise its supply chain operations and drive greater efficiency across its North American network.

The procurement function has evolved significantly in recent years, shifting from a transactional support role to a strategic pillar of supply chain resilience. This transformation has prompted organisations across sectors to re-evaluate their procurement strategies and invest in new capabilities.

As supply chains face mounting pressure from global volatility, Nissan is working with Arkestro to strengthen its sourcing operations and build greater agility into its procurement processes.

Arkestro is a provider of predictive procurement platforms, combining AI and game theory with proprietary technologies including Negotiation Science, Supplier Science and Process Science. The platform aims to transform traditional procurement into a more proactive, data-driven function.

Nissan Americas has adopted this technology to enhance data visibility, support competitive sourcing activities and improve operational efficiency across its US, Canada and Mexico operations.

The partnership could strengthen Arkestro's presence in the automotive sector while providing Nissan with tools to navigate supply chain complexity and cost pressures.

Automotive supply chains under pressure

The automotive industry is experiencing fundamental change, according to S&P Global. Procurement teams in the sector are grappling with fragmented global supply networks and increased complexity, particularly as many manufacturers have historically relied on just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing models.

This approach delivers materials and components precisely when needed to minimise inventory costs and improve efficiency.

JIT systems depend on close relationships with third-party vendors and require highly accurate demand forecasting to function effectively. However, supply chain disruptions throughout 2025 – including the cyberattack on JLR that halted production – have exposed vulnerabilities in this model.

These events have prompted some manufacturers to explore hybrid approaches that incorporate selective stockpiling of critical components alongside traditional JIT practices.

Beyond immediate operational challenges, procurement strategy across industries is shifting. Teams are seeking better capabilities to anticipate disruptions and respond to market volatility, moving away from purely cost-focused tactics towards more resilient, technology-enabled approaches.

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Deployment across North American operations

Nissan is implementing the Arkestro platform across its North American procurement teams, covering both indirect and direct spend categories, with the aim of enhancing efficiency, expanding competitive sourcing opportunities and providing greater consistency and transparency for suppliers.

"We are pleased to work with Nissan as they explore new tools to support their procurement transformation efforts," Rob DeSantis, CEO and Co-Founder of Arkestro, says.

"Our platform is built to help organisations create more efficient, transparent, and resilient sourcing processes."

The technology's game-theoretic capabilities and automation could address common procurement challenges related to data access, speed and event management by streamlining sourcing workflows. For Nissan, this could mean reduced cycle times for sourcing events and lower administrative burden on procurement teams.

This allows procurement professionals to allocate more time to strategic activities such as supplier relationship management and long-term sourcing strategy development.

Building supply chain resilience

Arkestro's predictive capabilities could support Nissan's efforts to build a more resilient supply chain. The platform's AI-powered supplier selection and risk assessment tools aim to identify vulnerable suppliers early and surface alternative sources quickly, which could prove valuable in navigating market volatility.

By combining data-driven strategies with predictive analytics, the technology seeks to move procurement teams from reactive problem-solving to proactive risk management. For automotive manufacturers operating complex, geographically dispersed supply networks, these capabilities could support both cost management and operational continuity.

The partnership reflects broader trends in automotive supply chain management, where organisations are increasingly investing in digital tools to enhance visibility, speed decision-making and strengthen supplier relationships.

As procurement continues to evolve as a strategic function, technology platforms like Arkestro could play a growing role in helping manufacturers balance efficiency with resilience.