{"id":10581,"global_id":"distributionstrategy.com?id=10581","global_id_lineage":["distributionstrategy.com?id=10581"],"author":"26","status":"publish","date":"2026-05-20 14:23:22","date_utc":"2026-05-20 18:23:22","modified":"2026-06-02 14:20:27","modified_utc":"2026-06-02 18:20:27","url":"https:\/\/distributionstrategy.com\/event\/06-02-26-aing\/","rest_url":"https:\/\/distributionstrategy.com\/wp-json\/tribe\/events\/v1\/events\/10581","title":"AI News and Gurus: The Show for Intelligent Distributors","description":"
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AI News and Gurus<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AI News and Gurus: The Show for Intelligent Distributors<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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WATCH Now<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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The show that tells distribution leaders what AI actually changes for their business.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Distributors are operating in a fundamentally different environment, where AI is now embedded in how they source globally, build trust with suppliers, and make supply chain planning decisions under uncertainty. What used to take weeks of back-and-forth communication and gut-feel forecasting is being compressed into hours by AI-powered tools that handle supplier discovery, communication, demand sensing, and inventory optimization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this AI News and Gurus session, we examine what is changing across B2B sourcing and supply chain decision-making as AI moves from a back-office experiment to a core part of how distributors source, plan, and operate. Joining us are Justin Liu, U.S. Country Manager at Alibaba.com<\/strong>, to discuss how AI is reshaping supplier discovery, automated communication, and trust-building on one of the world’s largest B2B platforms; and Jeff Metersky, SVP of Innovation & Strategy at GAINS<\/strong>, to discuss how AI and advanced analytics are reshaping supply chain planning, design, and decision-making under variability and uncertainty. Together, we will explore where the real productivity gains are landing, what distributors should be paying attention to, and how AI is changing the economics of distribution from the supplier side through to the warehouse and customer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key Takeaways<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n