At the start of the new year, telematics provider Geotab looks to the future and asks what will drive fleet managers in the new year. These five major trends have crystallized:
- AI becomes an active work partner
AI evolves from a chatbot to a proactive, industry-specific partner in daily business. - Logistics under pressure – Modernization as a way out
Recession, cost pressure, and sustainability goals burden the transportation industry. - Autonomous driving rapidly gains importance
Autonomous vehicles promise cost reduction and relief in personnel shortages, but require powerful data and fleet infrastructures. - New rules for electric service vehicles
Flat-rate reimbursements for home charging are no longer allowed from 2026. Instead, the actual electricity consumption must be precisely recorded. - Open platforms and partnerships are decisive
Cooperations and system integrations in the industry will be central. Open platforms bundle vehicle data and allow the integration of specialized solutions.
Fabian Seithel, Associate Vice President Sales and Business Development EMEA at Geotab, comments on the trends:
“When we look at the world of logistics and mobility in 2026, a divided picture emerges: On one hand, the industry faces major challenges as the challenging situation of the overall economy also affects here. On the other hand, there are exciting technological developments that can help to ease the cost pressure. Like almost everywhere, AI is also a central theme for us in the new year:
Artificial intelligence is finally bidding farewell to the role of a mere tool. It becomes an active player in everyday work – but only where companies have done their homework. Without clean, high-quality data, the hoped-for progress remains purely theoretical. However, those who rely on a solid data foundation and industry-specific AI gain an advantage that is hard to catch up with. An AI assistant could, for example, proactively suggest which routes are best suited for electrification or independently plan fleet maintenance. I believe companies will have no choice but to use AI if they want to remain competitive in the future.
This is particularly evident in logistics. The industry is currently under massive pressure: recession, rising costs, and political requirements meet the indispensable role of stable supply chains. It is clear: those who do not invest in modern technologies now risk losing connection. Telematics is no longer just an optional extra, but a basic technology and a central factor for efficiency, cost discipline, and sustainability.
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Autonomous driving is also moving from a promise of the future towards reality. In view of the acute shortage of skilled workers, self-driving vehicles could become a real competitive advantage in the industry. But even here, progress does not come for free. Without powerful data and communication infrastructure, autonomous transport concepts cannot be put into practice.
At the same time, the framework conditions for electromobility are changing. The elimination of flat-rate reimbursements for private charging of electric service vehicles forces companies to be more precise. This can quickly become a problem for employees, after all, not everyone has their own meter for their charging station. Furthermore, the question of transmitting this data would need to be clarified, which also involves effort. To avoid this, companies should rely on the vehicle’s internal recording of charging electricity. The consumption values can be directly transmitted to the company via modern telematics systems and transferred to ERP systems, significantly simplifying accounting.
Another topic that is particularly important to me is collaboration in our industry with OEMs and software partners. Solo efforts are losing significance and collaborations and open platforms are gaining ground, because they can bundle data and integrate specialized solutions. In this connected ecosystem, the foundation for future-proof, digital fleet management is created. This is exactly what we need now, because we can only meet future challenges, such as CO2-neutral fleets, together.”
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