Ranking 5 'disruptive' technologies coming to freight transport

Feb. 2, 2016

It's only been eight years since the iPhone was introduced and "Apple changed the world,” explains Princeton Consultants CEO Steve Sashihara. Then he asks what's in store next for trucking: “What technologies are kicking around, in some kind of a raw form, that eight years from now we’ll say, ‘wow, the whole world changed?’” See what his survey reveals about the not too distant future.

Kevin Jones

Princeton Consultants CEO Steve Sashihara opened his discussion on emerging technologies by noting that it was only eight years ago that Apple introduced the iPhone.

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“Somehow, like a switch going off, Apple changed the world,” Sashihara said, “What technologies are kicking around now, in some kind of a raw form, that eight years from now we’ll say, ‘wow, the whole world changed?’”

The Jan. 29 Stifel conference call, “Digital Disruption in Freight Transportation: The Next 8 Years,” featured a Princeton survey regarding five “leading candidates” to disrupt the way freight is transported. Participants were asked to assess the degree of those technologies’ impact by 2024. The survey also asked which aspects of transportation were most likely to be disrupted by emerging technologies.

The results are summarized in the slides above.

About the Author

Kevin Jones | Editor

Kevin has served as editor-in-chief of Trailer/Body Builders magazine since 2017—just the third editor in the magazine’s 60 years. He is also editorial director for Endeavor Business Media’s Commercial Vehicle group, which includes FleetOwner, Bulk Transporter, Refrigerated Transporter, American Trucker, and Fleet Maintenance magazines and websites.

Working from Beaufort, S.C., Kevin has covered trucking and manufacturing for nearly 20 years. His writing and commentary about the trucking industry and, previously, business and government, has been recognized with numerous state, regional, and national journalism awards.