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CargoAi grows customer base and onboards larger forwarders

CargoAi has reported that its customer base has expanded to 31,900 users across 158 countries with more large, global freight forwarders now using its technology. The air cargo technology platform said that in addition to expanding its overall users, in the first half of this year reached 6,717 companies and 12,880 offices. CargoAI said that its bookable airline network expanded to more than 110 carriers worldwide, and Unique shipments (AWBs) going through the platform were up 64% year on year. One of the most notable developments, said the company, has been an increase in medium and large global freight forwarders that historically relied on legacy rate management systems or first-generation digital platforms - switching to CargoAi for digital procurement and booking. The market has also moved towards autonomous rate management - intelligent systems embedded deep in the forwarder's own workflow, where teams quote their shippers, manage the customer relationship, and let software orchestrate procurement in the background. "With Model Context Protocol (MCP) compatibility across its full API suite - rates, capacity, booking, tracking, and quality data, far beyond booking alone - CargoAi has become the infrastructure this new model runs on," said the company. The first half of 2026 also saw CargoAi further develop its products to offer more AI technology and TMS integration. CargoCONNECT has become the first air cargo API suite compatible with the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Through the "CargoAi MCP Connector", freight forwarders and airlines can connect live rates, capacity, booking and tracking capabilities directly to their own AI agents and copilots. Plus, building on its CargoAi AI Agent solution launched last year, CargoAi now supports end-to-end automation for quotation workflows, booking follow-up, shipment-status requests and operational communication. Designed for fast deployment, the solution can be used by operations teams without dedicated IT resources on any AI platform supporting the MCP standard, while maintaining human review and approval before operational actions are completed, explained CargoAi. The company has also commercially rolled out CargoQUALITY, offering objective, data-driven station performance and timing analytics for airlines, ground handlers, and airports. "The first half of 2026 proves the thesis we have been building towards since day one," said Matt Petot, chief executive of CargoAi. "When the largest and most demanding forwarders in the world switch to your platform - not as a pilot, but as their operating backbone - it tells you the market has reached its tipping point. We are ahead of our own plan on every line, we are fully profitable, and we are seeing massive traction precisely where it matters most. That is why we are not consolidating: we are accelerating."

Envirotainer opens 6th India station at new Navi Mumbai Airport

Pharma ULD firm Envirotainer has opened its sixth India station at the new Navi Mumbai International Airport to provide temperature-controlled solutions for air cargo shipments. The facility doubles the capacity of the company's existing Mumbai operations and has opened ahead of the launch of cargo operations at Navi Mumbai later this year. Pharmaceutical manufacturers have access to all the company's temperature-controlled packaging solutions to help ensure medicines and vaccines can be shipped safely, reliably and efficiently around the world, said Envirotainer. The company added that the facility also introduces local preconditioning capabilities for its parcel and ProofTainer solutions, improving preparation times and supporting stronger cold chain integrity from origin. A dedicated repair and service centre is also scheduled to open in the coming months, bringing full-cycle cold chain support closer to customers across the region. The station is strategically located to support the western India pharmaceutical corridor. Mumbai is one of the world's most important pharmaceutical manufacturing and export hubs and India supplies approximately 20% of the world's generic medicines and 55-60% of UNICEF's vaccine requirements, while pharmaceutical exports reached $30.5bn in 2024-25. Aymeric Chandavoine, chief executive, Envirotainer, said: "India is one of the world's most important pharmaceutical manufacturing and export hubs, and the responsibility that places on the cold chain is significant. "The opening of our Navi Mumbai station reflects our long-term commitment to supporting India's pharmaceutical industry and helping ensure that life-saving treatments reach patients safely, wherever they are." Edward Ng, vice president operations APAC, Envirotainer, added: "Our customers operate in a complex and fast-moving environment where reliability is critical. "By expanding our presence in Navi Mumbai, we are bringing greater capacity, local preconditioning capabilities and enhanced service support closer to one of India's most important pharmaceutical export corridors. "This investment helps ensure our customers have access to the solutions and support they need to keep critical shipments moving." Last week, Air Cargo India said it has transported the first international export shipment from Navi Mumbai.

Scale or specialisation? DSV and K+N chart different paths to forwarding success

The world's two largest freight forwarders appear to be pursuing increasingly different paths to growth. Acquisitive DSV has placed multi-billion-dollar bets on scale, and is now integrating DB Schenker into what it hopes will become an unrivalled global forwarding network. Kuehne+Nagel, meanwhile, favours targeted acquisitions that strengthen specific capabilities, with its results focused on operational efficiency, artificial intelligence, and higher-margin customers rather than sheer size. The latest half-year results suggest both strategies have merit. Air freight was strong for both, benefiting from demand for AI infrastructure and technology shipments, while ocean freight remained resilient, despite continuing market uncertainty. At DSV, the story is still one of integration. Air & Sea revenue rose 32% in the first half, as Schenker contributed additional volumes, while management said integration was now beginning to translate into improved profitability. The group continues to target Dkr9bn of annual synergies from the acquisition by 2027. CEO Jens Lund told analysts the benefits were only beginning to emerge. He said: "All in all, on the Air & Sea side, I think we are on the right track and the division is going to deliver continued progress also in the coming quarters, because we are very advanced on integration." First-half revenue in air was up 36%, with gross profit rising 24% on volumes up 28%. In Sea, revenue went up 21.6%, while gross profit rose 4.9%, on a volume rise of 24%. Mr Lund acknowledged ocean volumes had been weaker than expected, but said initiatives were under way to improve growth. Road Logistics continued to present operational challenges, he said, despite management changes and higher earnings following the Schenker acquisition. By contrast, K+N's results focused less on scale than on extracting more value from existing business. The Swiss forwarder's Air Logistics division produced one of its strongest quarters in recent years, with EBIT climbing 35%, to Sfr154m on revenues up 20%, while for the first half, air revenue was up 4.2%, with EBIT up 15%. Management attributed the improvement to market share gains and a stronger customer mix, particularly in technology. CEO Stefan Paul said simply: "Air Logistics delivered an excellent quarter, increasing profit by 35%." K+N highlighted specific growth opportunities, including the movement of cloud infrastructure equipment for Google between Asia and the US, illustrating how AI investment was becoming a significant driver of premium air cargo demand. In ocean freight, DSV highlighted the benefits of procurement scale and Schenker synergies, while K+N focused on execution. Its Sea Logistics division lifted its conversion ratio to 29%, despite subdued European export demand, helped by tighter cost control and market share gains on the Asia-Europe and transpacific trades. The difference extended well beyond air and sea: K+N repeatedly returned to themes of productivity, efficiency, and AI deployment, saying it was accelerating the roll-out of AI agents to optimise operational processes. Contract Logistics also benefited from new technology customers, with more than 300,000 sq metres of additional warehouse capacity dedicated to cloud infrastructure providers. DSV's AI ambitions are no less significant, but are more aimed at making an ever-larger global network more productive. Technology was discussed as an enabler of integration, standardisation, and scale. While DSV has been the poster boy for M&A in the sector, K+N has continued to acquire businesses, but largely through smaller, targeted deals. Loadstar Premium's exclusive report that K+N is considering a future separation of Apex would only reinforce that focus on portfolio optimisation rather than transformational expansion. The financial results suggest both strategies are delivering, albeit in different ways. DSV generated first-half revenue of Dkr147.1bn ($22.7bn) and EBIT before special items of Dkr11.1bn ($1.7bn), equating to an operating margin of 7.5%. K+N reported Sfr12.4bn ($15.4bn) in net turnover and recurring EBIT of Sfr726m ($900m), representing a margin of 5.9%. DSV's larger scale following the Schenker acquisition has enabled it to generate almost twice as much operating profit as its Swiss rival, while also producing a higher return on revenue. Whether that advantage proves sustainable, or whether K+N's more targeted, efficiency-led approach ultimately delivers better long-term returns may become one of the defining strategic questions for the forwarding industry.