Supply Chain Insights 2026
A shipper conversation on what gets checked between the carrier agreement and the invoice, and whether AI is finally useful there
Description
Freight is negotiated once a year, setting rates and terms such as fuel surcharges, accessorial schedules, and volume commitments. As invoices arrive, shippers often rely on internal teams or audit firms to verify them, usually after payment. This can lead to small charges compounding into significant losses due to unchecked errors. The market shift towards contracted capacity and rising costs in accessorials and surcharges makes this verification more crucial. This roundtable explores whether AI can transform invoice verification processes, aligning them with payment decisions and reducing financial leakage.
Background
As the freight market tightens and carriers gain leverage, shippers must navigate rising costs beyond base rates, including accessorials and surcharges. Traditional methods of invoice verification struggle with identifying charges outside agreements and unclaimed credits. AI presents a potential solution by enabling continuous, comprehensive checks against carrier agreements. This conversation com…
Date: 2026-11-18
Time (ET): 2:00 PM EST, Nov 18, 2026
Time (Local): 7:00 PM UTC, Nov 18, 2026
Agenda:
- 00:00-00:05: Introduction and event overview
- 00:05-00:15: Speaker introductions and initial thoughts
- 00:15-00:35: Moderated discussion on current invoice verification challenges
- 00:35-00:50: Exploring AI solutions in freight auditing
- 00:50-00:55: Audience Q&A
- 00:55-01:00: Closing remarks
Location: Zoom Events
Relevant Topics
Speakers
Ryan Mccourt
Director, Transportation Operations, CORT, a Berkshire Hathaway Company
Panelist
Steve Baer
Chief Logistics Officer, First Supply
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J Stacy Wedgeworth
Former Senior Manager, Walmart Global Logistics
Panelist
Divyabh Mishra
Founder & CEO, AllCaps
PanelistGuided Questions
Divyabh Mishra
AllCaps uses AI to check invoices against the agreements behind them, including truckload, LTL and hazmat freight for a chemical distributor. That means applying the agreement’s written terms to the charges on each bill. What is one type of carrier-agreement clause that AI still struggles to apply reliably, and what should send it for human review?
Ryan Mccourt
At CORT you run transportation operations, where some charges depend on what happened during a shipment: a driver who waited, a delivery attempted twice, or freight remeasured at the dock. The invoice can record the charge without fully explaining the event. Which of those charges, or another from your experience, is hardest to settle from the bill and the agreement alone, and why that one?
Steve Baer
Bringing up the greenfield distribution center in West Salem meant putting in a new transportation management system at the same time as the WMS and the goods-to-person automation. If a carrier charge looks wrong in a network built that way, which role should pick it up, and how much should they be able to settle on their own before it goes up the line?
J Stacy Wedgeworth
As Senior Manager for Walmart’s Gulf Market, you worked in import supply chain operations. Import freight brings charges from ocean carriers, terminals, chassis providers and drayage partners, and the terms behind them can sit in a service contract, a terminal tariff or a partner’s rate sheet rather than one agreement. When an import charge rests on terms nobody on the shipper’s side negotiated, what should it be checked against?