FedEx Asia Pacific President Hui Jialin: Make the future possible

In almost every region and in all walks of life, disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and blockchain are hailed as game-changing technologies. Organizations large and small are measuring their own questions about opportunity and risk.

At FedEx, we're also asking ourselves, "What are the right technologies we can develop and leverage today that have a tangible impact and benefit for our customers, our employees, and our communities?" The key is how we use new technological achievements to create more possibilities.

According to the latest projections, digital transformation will increase the GDP of the Asia-Pacific region by about $1.16 trillion by 2021. Although consumers are on the receiving end of these technologies, only a relatively small number of consumers truly understand the many changes that are taking place. The benefits of digital transformation are real, and in the case of FedEx, our customers and their customers learn about these benefits every day.

In addition to this growing amount of data, what really excites us is that life may become more convenient, efficient, secure and predictable.

Intuitive convenience

On the most human level, whether it's sending or receiving packages, technology will bring us conveniences and is making those conveniences possible.

Paperwork is time-consuming and tedious, and we've been looking at how to reduce it. We are developing an AI-powered Alexa application to initiate shipment shipments, and customers can communicate throughout the process in a manual and paperless way with a digital assistant who asks the appropriate questions to help them complete their tasks. The online virtual assistant on our website is already able to respond instantly to questions about FedEx. As more people use it, it will only get smarter.

Photo: Making the future possible Courtesy of FedEx

Increase efficiency and safety with automation

FedEx handles an average of more than 14 million shipments per day, which means we have countless opportunities to make operations faster, better, and safer.

Boxes as big as refrigerators simply didn't fit the conveyor belts inside our warehouse. So we use a set of mobile robots to carry these bulky items within the confines of the facility. We named them after characters from the movie Three Amigos, called Lucky, Dusty, and Ned. Unloading goods from trucks and transporting them to conveyor belts for sorting is tedious, so we're testing robotic automation to do this tedious job. In this way, we can free up labor to do jobs that require dexterity, such as loading irregularly shaped objects into tight spaces. At the same time, we are also investing in express delivery robots that can carry heavier loads and travel farther. In the next few years, these robots are likely to be used to deliver delivery pieces for home and company offices.

Every day, more than 180,000 FedEx vehicles are on the road, so logically, the next target is self-driving cars. Nine out of ten road traffic accidents are caused by human error. The use of big data and artificial intelligence technologies will greatly improve the efficiency and safety of our operations, especially for long-distance heavy trucks.

While self-driving trucks are expected to enter the freight industry within the next decade, we have set out to test cutting-edge technology to connect trucks into a small transport "fleet." Through a vehicle-to-vehicle wireless communication system, the driver on the first transport truck can control the acceleration and braking of the transport truck behind it. The technology is designed to reduce wind resistance and save fuel.

Build trust and transparency

Information has always been as important as the shipment and the parcel itself to build strong logistics. So it's not surprising that virtual worlds may be able to feel the most far-reaching impact of technology as IoT and blockchain become key enabling technologies.

For example, sometimes it's important not only to know the location of the package, but also to understand the status of the package. Medicines, life-saving human organs, fresh food and flowers, and other perishable foods all need to be transported under strict temperature control and conditions. We have developed an instrument that can be monitored in near real time from the inside of the package. SenseAware can alert shippers if the shipment is within a specified temperature and humidity range, or if it is affected by excessive light or other factors that may affect the quality of the shipment.

At the same time, blockchain provides greater transparency of information, which can alleviate some of the most common disputes that occur between a customer's shipment and receipt involving time, payment, and damage to goods.

Blockchain uses computer code to record every step of transactions and deliveries in a permanent digital ledger that cannot be altered unless all participants agree. It may even be the first time this information is available to anyone, taking trust and transparency in cross-border logistics to the next level. We are already testing blockchain to track large, high-value goods and working closely with the freight consortium BiTA or the blockchain within it to ensure that every player in the logistics ecosystem benefits from this technology.

The Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, automated transportation, and other technological advances have been giving people a glimpse of their disruptive promise for some time. While FedEx has a clear understanding of the future prospects, it is also in many ways realizing the future we expect by developing innovative technologies that directly benefit customers today. As a company, our goal is to create possibilities for businesses, and we know that the clever use of innovative technologies helps us achieve this in a profound and rewarding way.