As more trucking technology companies incorporate artificial intelligence, one use case that is seemingly the most popular so far is using it to extract data from email.
Another transportation management system is applying this technology via a recent acquisition. AI-native TMS Rose Rocket has acquired Toronto-based Centro, whose core IP transforms unstructured email into structured data that feeds directly into supply chain software systems. Built from its experience in the manufacturing sector and expertise in training AI for exception management, Centro’s technology brings deep contextual understanding.
Rose Rocket Co-founder and CEO Justin Sky said Centro’s technology lends itself to solving the complex workflows in freight, and it has allowed Rose Rocket to accelerate its transition into the future generations of TMS platforms by years.
"All software will fundamentally change in the next five years, and the TMS category will look completely different than it does today,” Sky said. “With the coming fourth generation of TMS, the AI-Native TMS, on the horizon, vendors and transportation companies will have to adapt or be left behind."
This acquisition, he said, has allowed Rose Rocket to greatly improve its email large language model accuracy, enabling more reliable inbox-to-order workflows. As a result, Rose Rocket is also launching its AI-native email assistant TED out of beta.
[RELATED: Tech considerations in M&A transactions]
The email assistant automatically turns shipment emails and attachments into booked orders while keeping the TMS up to date without manually entering data. TED can detect changes in follow-up messages and suggest updates to ensure accuracy, while keeping all related communications, such as delays, instructions and documents, centralized with the corresponding load.
"TED completely changes the way we handle orders. We cut out hours of manual entry each week and eliminated costly errors," said Morgan Hartz, owner of Blue Eagle Logistics, a full-truckload operation in the Northeast U.S. "Having our inbox and TMS in sync means we can move faster and focus on customers instead of chasing data."
Centro helps businesses stay proactive and control their inventory. The same engine powers proactive exception management, triggering automated follow-ups and alerts when key milestones are missed and keeps inbox and TMS records synchronized in real time, allowing brokers, carriers and shippers to maintain complete shipment context, improve customer responsiveness and bridge digital gaps with partners who operate outside the Rose Rocket platform.
[RELATED: Fleetworthy acquires predictive tolling analytics platform]
Its acquisition of Centro gives Rose Rocket the ability to automatically monitor approvals, acknowledgments and delivery statuses, while escalating issues with tailored follow-ups and delivering real-time alerts on delays.
"Our mission at Centro has always been to eliminate the chaos in the supply chain by bringing insights from where operations work truly happens; the inbox," said Centro Co-founder and CEO Jamyang Tenzin. "By joining forces with Rose Rocket, we can bring that same superpower to the transportation industry at scale. Together, we will eliminate manual bottlenecks, keep inboxes and Rose Rocket in sync, and give brokers, carriers, and shippers the visibility and automation they need to move freight faster and smarter."
Tenzin and Centro Co-founder and CTO Andrew Liu join the Rose Rocket team as part of the transaction to lead the integration of the two company’s platforms.
