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“While we are going to go through some bumps in the early days, it is going to be so good for all of us in the long run,” Geotab founder Neil Cawse says of AI adoption. (Geotab)

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In the coming year, artificial intelligence will increasingly power not only chatbots, but core business operations in the commercial transportation industry, fleet telematics provider predicted.

The technology vendor expects emerging AI tools and data insights to help fleet operators manage tasks more efficiently, speed up decision making and remain competitive in a persistently challenging freight market.

“AI is going to run operations and not just conversations,” said Geotab , who recently outlined these and other company predictions for 2026 during a call with industry media.

Trucking will remain as essential as ever, but motor carriers will need to do more with less as they continue to face tight margins, the company said.

Cawse said he anticipates some degree of upheaval as AI automates certain functions and tasks that people perform manually today, but he predicted that businesses will find ways to repurpose many jobs as they retrain and upskill workers.

“While we are going to go through some bumps in the early days, it is going to be so good for all of us in the long run that people shouldn’t be too terrified of this,” he said. “They should be a little excited in a nervous way. The upside in the long run is really good.”

Shorter term, Cawse suggested that the proliferation of AI will exacerbate a “K-shaped economy” that could feel like a recession and a boom at the same time in the year ahead.

Businesses that become more efficient through AI implementation will gain an advantage, while those that fail to do so risk falling behind, he said.

In industries such as logistics and manufacturing, the larger companies that are already leaders in their space are likely to gain more power compared with smaller businesses that may struggle to adapt.

Powerful start to

Geotab's Neil Cawse () & delivered a keynote showing how AI is not just optimizing, but fundamentally reshaping organizations across Europe. — Geotab (@GEOTAB)

Longer term, Cawse said he is “absolutely convinced” that the global economy will gather a full head of steam three to five years from now as companies across the world benefit from AI-driven efficiency gains.

However, the rollout of AI will depend on accurate, real-world data to be effective. Companies that gather and process vast amounts of data will be among the early beneficiaries of the AI revolution, he said.

Geotab also anticipates that the adoption of autonomous driving technology will accelerate in 2026 after many years of testing. Cawse pointed to the growth of Waymo, which is ramping up its driverless ride-hailing service and expanding city by city.

“I do think it’s absolutely a fact that it works,” he said, adding that the costs of this technology will inevitably decline, enabling broader deployment.

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