Maritime procurement is emerging as one of the clearest signs that artificial intelligence is moving beyond pilot projects and into day-to-day business operations, even in an industry long viewed as cautious about digital change.
A survey of 2,805 organisations by Achilles found that marine transport recorded a 56% AI adoption rate for procurement, supplier risk and sustainability management, putting it second only to the technology sector and well ahead of the 37% average acro...
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ss all industries. Achilles said that while many firms are already experimenting with AI, only a small minority have fully embedded it into their procurement systems.
The findings sit alongside broader signs of momentum in Asia-Pacific. EY’s 2025 Global CPO survey said generative AI for procurement automation was a top priority for chief procurement officers in the region, while Deloitte has reported that procurement leaders are increasing investment in digital transformation and AI as they try to manage cost pressures, regulation and supply chain disruption. Research from IDC has also pointed to a heavy wave of AI and generative AI spending across Asia-Pacific over the coming years.
For shipping, the appeal is practical rather than abstract. Procurement in maritime operations has traditionally relied on manual workflows, email chains and ageing systems, leaving teams to manage everything from spare parts to compliance records with limited visibility. As a result, a back-office function is now becoming central to broader efforts to modernise fleet management.
The applications already being adopted are relatively narrow, but they are solving real pain points. Automated invoice matching can compare bills against purchase orders and delivery notes in seconds, reducing a task that once demanded lengthy manual checks. Compliance tracking for hazardous materials is helping operators keep pace with regulatory inventories as equipment is replaced across a vessel’s life. AI is also improving visibility over Scope 3 emissions by giving procurement teams a more immediate view of the indirect carbon impact of purchases.
Yet the Achilles survey also suggests that technology alone will not determine the pace of change. Poor supplier data, skill shortages and integration problems with legacy systems remain major obstacles. That reflects a wider issue across procurement: adoption is as much about trust, training and workflow redesign as it is about software.
In maritime, that means convincing shipowners, managers and procurement teams to work differently, and ensuring new tools complement rather than disrupt established operations. Industry observers say the most effective deployments are those that begin with specific problems and build confidence gradually, rather than trying to replace existing systems overnight.
Data quality remains the foundation of any serious AI rollout. With thousands of suppliers and constantly changing product specifications, procurement records can become outdated quickly. In that environment, keeping information clean and connected is not a technical detail but the basis for whether automation can add value at all.
For now, maritime procurement offers a useful case study in how conservative industries adopt AI: not through grand reinvention, but by using it to remove friction, reduce errors and improve visibility. If that approach continues to work, shipping may prove to be an early indicator of how other slow-moving sectors modernise in the years ahead.
Source: Noah Wire Services
