AI in Procurement & Supply Chain Panel at PSC LIVE Singapore
Artificial intelligence continues to actively transform supply chains in an increasingly digital world.
At Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE Singapore, industry leaders discussed how AI is enhancing demand forecasting, optimising transportation logistics and driving autonomous decision-making.
Amit Garg, Head of APAC Pixel Supply Chain Planning & Operations at Google Asia, highlighted the impact of AI on demand forecasting: “We have seen double-digit improvement in our forecast accuracy where we have used AI and it's helping us a lot.”
Google has implemented AI-driven forecasting using its proprietary Vertex AI, reducing aging inventory and improving supply chain agility.
Atul Chandna, APAC Partner at EY, underscored the shift from AI as an assistant to AI as an autonomous decision-maker: “What I'm excited about is what are we going to negotiate with bots.
“So it's the efficiency. It's the insights. It's the decision-making. All these are the biggest benefits that I see.”
Benefits and real-world applications
AI is already delivering measurable benefits across various supply chain functions.
Predictive analytics is improving risk management, allowing companies to anticipate disruptions and adapt their strategies accordingly.
AI is also being used to automate procurement processes, reducing reliance on manual negotiation and contract management.
Sunny Mutreja, Head of Commercials at Lenskart India, pointed to the rising importance of AI: “AI is here to stay. And in future there will be two types of people who are, adopting AI, who are not adopting AI.
"A Deloitte report said that 83% of procurement leaders believe that digital transformation, including AI, will be pivotal in achieving their supply chain or procurement objectives.”
AI’s ability to process and analyse vast amounts of data is also a key advantage. Atul described the shift towards AI-powered workflows that allow supply chain managers to interact with bots for real-time insights.
“It's (AI) become the way of life and that's driving it. Before that, it was something which people used to experiment with in labs, but now it's no longer that,” he explained.
Challenges and the road ahead
While AI presents immense potential, its implementation comes with challenges. Amit warns against over-reliance on AI, stressing that human oversight remains essential.
“I think it's very important that we use AI but we don't forget the basics," he continues. "We need to understand how these things are. It should not be just used for getting the numbers, but also to understand what's going on."
As AI adoption accelerates, the role of supply chain leaders will evolve.
Instead of focusing on manual processes, future supply chain managers will need to focus on strategic decision-making, risk management, and AI oversight.
“The roles of managers would shift from monitoring to mentoring because they should be having more time to be able to build that capability, which requires the same workforce to be able to function as this in this new environment,” Atul predicts, emphasising the importance of upskilling supply chain professionals to work alongside AI.
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