AI and Packaging

AI, or artificial intelligence, is something that you’ve probably thought and heard about. While it has been dramatized in different ways, it’s actually something that some people are getting used to. While a lot of people are worried about using AI in their everyday lives, and also some worry about it possibly reducing the use of humans for jobs, it’s here to stay.  There are now even updates for writing stuff using AI! 

However, in the packaging industry, it’s actually been used for good, and while some are concerned, for this sector, it’s not the case. Here, we’ll go over how AI and packaging work together. 

Optimizing Packaging 

Some products need different types of packaging.  That’s why some companies are using AI to determine what’s going to be used. 

This actually reduces waste by a lot, and also further reduces the shipment damage by almost 25% in some cases. 

Utilizing machine learning is great for determining the packaging used for these products. It also reduced the shipping costs by around 5%! Pretty cool right? 

Reduces Delivery Costs 

You can put a whole lot more into every single shipment, and for some companies, they’re using it to optimize how stuff is packed.  It’s actually improved transportation, making the shipping supplies over 20% more efficient in a lot of cases. 

The AI is used to determine what type of packaging is ideal for every single product, such as mailers rather than boxes, you’ll be able to transport a lot more within each truck, which saves on delivery costs and money used for packaging. 

Being Eco Friendly 

Choosing the lightest, best packaging for safely transporting stuff can help as well with reducing the packaging that has to be recycled 

By minimizing this waste, it actually helps with supporting environmental, governmental and social goals. 

But you don’t need to rely on AI to be more eco-friendly.  try working on new ways to commit to less landfill waste and ensure that the pallets that you have get recycled or used as mulch.  Some companies are even looking to pay for pallets that are broken, so you’ll learn from the breakdown of these. 

Designing Packaging 

It’s being used to create a primary packaging that’s highly customized. 

This can create some cutting-edge designs for a lot of people. 

You can feed the ideas into AI, and they’ll give you a prototype.  It can create some eye-catching packaging, and it does a lot of the work. 

While it won’t replace getting the final say on the ideal types of packaging, it’s something that more companies are working towards, as they can get the most that they can through this. 

Better Customer Experience 

Finally, it does offer a better experience for customers. 

Have you ever browsed on by and seen the “recommended for you” part of their websites. 

You can thank AI for that one! 

They work directly with customer relationship management software, using data and efforts to determine the needs of customers. 

For instance, online retailers take the data that they get from you, whether it’s your browsing history or purchases in the past, and from there determine the products that you’re interested in. 

One company that’s using this is Ikea.  They give recommendations to customers, and it’s actually increased the average order by 2%, and also caused a 30% increase in the click through rates since they started to use it.

While some may not like AI, it is here to stay, and a lot of companies are looking for ways to use AI for good in their packaging and customer experience.