Splash247: Maersk pushes customs AI upstream

Published by Splash247

Maersk is combining AI-powered trade intelligence with its customs data platform as the Danish logistics group looks to automate more of the work involved in product classification, tariff exposure and import compliance.

The approach brings together Maersk’s Trade and Tariff Studio and Customs Navigator, linking product and regulatory analysis before cargo moves with data on customs entries, inspections, delays and duties once shipments are underway.

Users can upload documents, paste a product link or photograph an item, with AI extracting product attributes and proposing customs classifications. Results include confidence scores and links back to sources such as binding rulings and regulatory guidance.

The system also monitors tariff and regulatory changes, incorporates requirements from dozens of US government agencies and screens for forced-labour and wider supply chain risks. Customs teams can use natural-language queries to test sourcing and tariff scenarios before shipments move.

On the operational side, Customs Navigator uses transactional customs data to show where inspections, delays and duty exposure are occurring and compare performance between ports, government agencies and trade lanes. The platform traces its roots to Vandegrift, the US customs brokerage and trade compliance specialist acquired by Maersk in 2019.

Maersk demonstrated the combined approach at a recent customer forum held with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Center for Transportation & Logistics. The carrier said initial users had reduced time spent on data analysis, although no quantified savings or customer deployments were disclosed.

The move comes as shifting tariffs and tougher enforcement make customs technology a growing part of Maersk’s wider logistics offering. Trade and Tariff Studio can analyse product master data for potential misclassification, country-of-origin errors, unused free-trade agreement benefits and duty-saving opportunities. Maersk says some customers have identified six-figure annual savings through the service.

It is also part of a broader push by Maersk to apply AI to cross-border trade. SplashTech reported in April that the company had teamed with Altana to roll out product-level digital passports across Gemini trade lanes, giving customs authorities access to compliance data and AI-supported risk assessments before goods reach the border.