Raj Subramaniam, chief executive of the global e-commerce and transportation company, spoke in an interview with The New York Times, published on Sunday, about his approach to technology. "Truck unloading and truck loading are a very difficult problem for robotics to solve — packages come in every size, shape, and weight," he said. He added, "We're not looking for humanoid robots — we're looking for super humanoid robots, because maybe they need to have a couple of elbows. More degrees of freedom." The executive said that FedEx is still in the pilot stage for these robots, and was "not ready for prime time yet." Beyond humanoid robots, he said, FedEx was drilling down on AI, training on data from its 17 million deliveries daily around the world to predict delivery times for its customers accurately.

The effects of the Iran war are being felt across the global supply chain, as container rates rise sharply on vital headhaul trade routes including to the United States, an analyst said.  “Five weeks into the Strait of Hormuz closure and spot rates on every major east-west trade lane have risen sharply, showing this is a conflict with global repercussions for ocean supply chains,” said Peter Sand, Xeneta chief analyst. “No shipper is insulated from financial or operational risk. Far East to U.S. West Coast – a trade which transits the Pacific thousands of miles from the epicenter of conflict – has seen spot rates climb 29% since the end of February.”