While the Covid-19 pandemic put our physical lives on hold, it only added fuel to the fire of technological innovation. In fact, Axios recently dubbed the 2020s the “exponential decade” as industries strive to keep pace with unprecedented transformation induced by technological advancements.
The automotive and supply chain industries are two among the many that are primed for major shifts. Once a poster child of resistance to technology, the supply chain industry has been making strides fueled by “a surge” in the need for visibility according to Allied Market Research. Meanwhile, carmakers have been feverishly accelerating toward artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles.
Built In talked to two technologists from these industries for an inside look at the momentum of change and how they are innovating to keep their companies on the bleeding edge.
CCC Intelligent Solutions is an automotive technology company connecting insurers with car repair providers.
What’s the coolest project you’ve worked on recently?
The most exciting project I have worked on recently is definitely the work on straight through processing (STP). To give some context, STP is the next step towards fulfilling the industry’s vision of an end-to-end pipeline. For example, an insurance claim could be automated from the point the claim is filed to writing the entire estimate without any human intervention. What makes this endeavor particularly intriguing is not only the use of state-of-the-art models to solve the problem (a multi-modal network combining computer vision and natural language models), but also the engineering ingenuity required at each step of the process. We had to start with determining the variables to optimize for, as well as the operational metrics on which the model will be evaluated. This project has exposed me to the full lifecycle of a data science project and I am excited to see it being used in production.
The future of the automotive industry is very exciting.”
What do you envision for the future of your industry, and how is your work helping to shape that future and bring it to life?
The future of the automotive industry is very exciting given the new advancements of electric vehicles and automotive driving. More and more, AI is being injected into these vehicles (as well as into many other industries) and I wish for the auto insurance industry to not only keep up with, but also be at the forefront of this AI revolution. As our technology advances, CCC hopes to create an instantaneous, hassle-free procedure for filing an accident claim and getting your vehicle repaired, whether it be for an antique gas-guzzler or a self-driving vehicle of the future.
Fourkites is a supply chain visibility platform.
What’s the coolest project you’re working on at the moment?
I specifically work on solutions related to our yard management platform, which leverages real-time visibility of in-transit and in-yard freight to give customers unmatched flexibility and actionable data insights. This helps them improve operational efficiency and reduce costs in a way that’s never been possible before.
One of my favorite parts of my job is that I get to collaborate with customers on cool solutions that make their lives easier. One recent enhancement we’ve made to Dynamic Yard is hyper-configuration, which gives users in warehouses and shipping yards the ability to completely customize their arrival and departure forms. No yard operation is exactly the same; while many have the same building blocks, operations for each customer are unique to meet their business objectives. This level of customization serves that longer-term vision of automation by removing friction that might arise from irrelevant or cumbersome workflows.
This strategy for user-defined customization has laid the groundwork for a new approach to data display that we plan to leverage heavily as we continue to scale our platform and streamline rollout for large groups of users.
While many have the same building blocks, operations for each customer are unique to meet their business objectives.”
What do you envision for the future of your industry, and how is your work helping to shape that future and bring it to life?
Specifically in the yard, future innovation lies in automation and exception management. Our vision for Dynamic Yard is a fully automated platform where workers don’t have to live in it day in and day out, but rather apply their attention only when disruptions occur, freeing up massive amounts of time for them to focus on higher-priority tasks and streamline operations. Ultimately, the platform is not the reason they exist, but rather it allows them to serve their customers better and lower their operational costs across the board.
Being able to proactively identify and offer solutions, and prompt action when disruptions do occur, is so critical to helping organizations when a shipment is placed in an unplanned location, or when a trailer is dropped on the opposite side of the yard, or when a door is reserved for a trailer that won’t arrive until two hours after it is scheduled. Leveraging the industry’s largest data network and broadest customer base, combined with an unwavering commitment to collaborating alongside our customers to alleviate their biggest pain points, is what drives our continued innovation in the space.
