Are Supply Chains More Shock Resilient by Using AI?

Procurement teams using AI are 3.7 times more resilient to market volatility, according to research highlighting the critical role of technology in supply chain stability.

Global market volatility has reshaped supply chain operations, with procurement emerging as critical for building operational resilience.

According to Keelvar's annual report, procurement teams using AI are significantly more likely to develop resilience when facing market shocks, with profound implications for supply chain stability.

Since 2020, procurement has become more prominent within business operations. With this comes higher demand for teams to act, which cannot be met without significant changes.

To meet this demand without burning out, procurement teams are turning to AI more than ever.

AI adoption drives operational stability

Keelvar is an agentic sourcing platform which helps procurement teams meet operational demands through automation that transforms practices into scalable workflows with machine-learning optimisation.

The company's annual survey, Procurement at an Inflection Point, gathered insights from procurement leaders across North America, Europe and beyond, including responses from C-suite and managerial professionals across automotive, food and drink, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and retail.

The findings reveal that organisations which have adopted AI or sourcing automation in the past 12 months are 3.7 times less likely to suffer during volatility. These companies are more likely to avoid demand contraction during tariff-driven disruption and maintain growing or stable demand regardless of disruption source.

This demonstrates a structural advantage rather than a situational one. For supply chain networks, this resilience translates into more predictable material flows and reduced risk across the entire value chain.

Conversely, companies which fail to implement AI are more likely to face disruption to demand, with the inability to mitigate risk cascading throughout supply chain networks.

"The data this year is the clearest signal we've seen that procurement technology adoption isn't a nice-to-have — it's what separates organisations that absorb volatility from those that get hurt by it," says Alan Holland, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Keelvar.

"What is most concerning in the data is how many organisations are sitting out not because they lack budget or capability, but because they've convinced themselves they already understand AI well enough to conclude it's not for them. That's a dangerous position to be in."

Market pressures compound supply challenges

In the Keelvar report, 65% of procurement leaders cite inflation and rising costs as their top external concern to business stability. This is followed by geopolitical instability (44%), supply chain disruption (41%), tariff volatility (40%) and growing supply chain complexity (38%).

Alongside these pressures, 69% of leaders reported that decision-making speed and quality is a leading internal obstacle, demonstrating structural concerns about keeping pace. This creates a growing gap between market change speed and organisational response.

According to the survey, 53% of businesses without procurement technology are in a constant state of reactive fire-fighting, unable to build resilience. Companies that have adopted both AI and automation have resolved collaboration and process friction and now focus on cost management (59%).

The convergence of external market pressures and internal operational constraints creates a challenging environment for procurement teams. Those without technological support find themselves increasingly unable to respond effectively to rapid market changes, whilst AI-enabled teams can process data and adjust strategies in real time.

The top priorities for 2026 are cost savings and cost avoidance, with 50% of respondents putting them in their top three, according to the report. Risk mitigation closely followed, whereas sustainability ranked in the bottom three for 53% of respondents.

Governance models determine technology success

A significant finding is that governance model acts as a stronger predictor of technology adoption than organisational size or industry. Organisations with top-down mandates were twice as likely to have deployed AI and automation together, according to the Keelvar survey.

In companies that have already adopted both technologies, 80% plan to pursue advanced sourcing optimisation as their next investment, compared to 35-43% in other groups.

More than 60% of leaders who cited 'bad' reasons for not adopting AI – such as concerns about job loss or beliefs that the technology is immature – say they have a strong understanding of the technology. However, of those citing structural barriers such as budget constraints, only 17% said they have a strong understanding.

"Confidence is not the same as readiness," the report concludes. "The biggest blocker to progress is not ignorance, but overconfidence."

Procurement leaders want better market understanding, with 43% wanting access to pilots or trials before committing, according to the survey. As less than 15% cite upfront technology cost as a barrier, adoption failures mostly occur due to issues in scaling, governance and change management.

To avoid being left behind, supply chain leaders need to become more open to modernisation.