India’s logistics sector is entering a new phase. From integrated digital platforms that streamline freight movement to modern infrastructure connecting every corner of the country, a next-generation logistics ecosystem is steadily taking shape. Valued at $320 billion as of 2025, according to India Infrastructure Research, with logistics costs at 7.97 per cent of GDP and 9.09 per cent of non-services output for 2023 to 2024, the sector is evolving into a faster, smarter and globally competitive industry.

This has been enabled by the evolution of information and communication technologies that allow seamless data exchange, real-time connectivity and deeper integration of supply chains. Businesses are increasingly leveraging next-generation technologies to streamline logistics, improve demand forecasting and enable smarter decision-making.

A look at the key technology trends shaping the sector…

AI and ML continue to drive growth

While not new in 2026, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) continue to reshape how businesses interact with supply chain technology. AI algorithms are designed to perform tasks by learning patterns within data sets that cannot be identified by humans, helping reduce delays, inefficiencies and unpredictability across the supply chain. Stockouts in inventories, once a common challenge, are being addressed by AI-powered systems that predict when replenishment is needed and forecast demand based on consumer behaviour to avoid overstocking.

What is new now is that generative AI is transforming traditional processes at every stage of the customer journey. It optimises route planning, streamlines scheduling and predicts demand patterns with greater accuracy. It also provides real-time shipment visibility, improves load factors for carriers and anticipates asset maintenance needs before failures occur. AI-powered chatbots provide round-the-clock customer support, while predictive analytics improve operational efficiency across warehousing, transport and last-mile delivery.

Drones graduate from pilot to production

India recorded over 2 million commercial drone deliveries in 2025, positioning the country as the world’s fastest growing delivery drone market at a 50.4 per cent CAGR. The shift from experimental flights to logistics infrastructure accelerated on multiple fronts. Skye Air Mobility, the sector’s most active operator, completed 3.6 million cumulative autonomous deliveries by early 2026, running approximately 200,000 packages monthly in Gurugram alone through a fleet of 33 drones and 60 drop-off hubs. The company also raised $9 million in Series B funding and expanded to Bengaluru with a seven-minute delivery service, adding clients including Blue Dart, Flipkart, Tata 1MG and Zepto.

Healthcare emerged as a defining use case for drone logistics. TechEagle Innovations partnered with Apollo Hospitals to launch India’s first 10-minute diagnostic drone delivery service, flying liquid biopsy samples using 5G-connected drones. The company also won a bid for a 104 km drone corridor with AIIMS Guwahati, the longest among India’s national medical institutions.

On the regulatory front, the Ministry of Civil Aviation released the Draft Civil Drone Bill, 2025 in September 2025, creating standalone legislation covering the entire drone life cycle. A uniform 5 per cent GST rate replaced the earlier 18-28 per cent classifications, reducing cost barriers for operators. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation confirmed that Beyond Visual Line of Sight Rules are in the advanced stage of finalisation, and the release remains the single biggest driver for scaling drone logistics nationwide.

Electric fleets hit critical mass

The electrification of India’s logistics fleet crossed a decisive threshold during this period. Amazon India reached 10,000 electric vehicles (EVs) in its delivery fleet, a year ahead of schedule, spanning over 500 cities. Zomato now has 37,000 active EV-based delivery partners, while Swiggy announced a target of 100 per cent EV deliveries by 2030 and launched an electric three-wheeler bulk delivery service in Gurugram.

The PM e-DRIVE scheme, with its Rs 109 billion outlay, provided the policy backbone for this transition. A dedicated Rs 5 billion allocation for 5,600 electric trucks, announced in July 2025, marked India’s first targeted freight electrification programme, offering up to Rs 960,000 per vehicle, conditional on scrapping old diesel trucks. On the ground, Ashok Leyland delivered 180 electric trucks to Billion Electric Mobility for the Chennai-Bengaluru and Chennai-Vijayawada corridors, followed by 24 AVTR 55T trucks to Shree Cement’s logistics partner. Similarly, Omega Seiki Mobility launched Swayamgati Cargo in December 2025, India’s first autonomous electric cargo three-wheeler designed for airports, special economic zones and fulfilment centres.

The charging gap, however, remains a challenge. India’s EV-to-charger ratio stands at 1:235. In response, the PM e-DRIVE scheme has allocated Rs 20 billion for 72,000 public chargers across 50 highway corridors, which should ease pressure as fleet electrification scales further.

Digital platforms cross the billion transaction mark

The Unified Logistics Interface Platform surpassed 1 billion application programming interface (API) transactions in March 2025, a landmark for what has become the digital backbone of Indian freight. The platform now integrates 43 systems from 11 ministries through 129 APIs, with over 1,300 registered companies, including Asian Paints, Tata Steel, DHL and Maruti Suzuki, processing approximately 10 million API calls weekly.

A companion milestone arrived in September 2025 when the union minister of commerce launched Logistics Data Bank 2.0, introducing high-seas container tracking for exporters for the first time, enabling visibility of shipments after departure from Indian ports across international waters. The launch of E-Way Bill 2.0 in July 2025, followed by a December 2025 mandate requiring e-invoicing before e-way bill generation for businesses above Rs 50 million turnover, represented the most significant compliance tightening since the roll-out of GST.

The private platform landscape also saw consolidation. IKEA acquired Locus, the Bengaluru-born logistics optimisation firm, in October 2025, after the platform executed over 1 billion deliveries globally. Crucially, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade’s first bottom-up measurement placed India’s logistics cost at 7.97 per cent of GDP, closer to global benchmarks than the 13-14 per cent previously cited, with the World Bank Logistics Performance Index ranking improving to 38th from 44th.

Warehouse robots go mainstream

India’s warehouse automation market, valued at $560 million in 2025, is projected to reach $1.29 billion by 2030. A significant development was Daifuku’s April 2025 launch of a Rs 2.27 billion manufacturing plant in Hyderabad, producing India’s first locally made stacker crane and cutting lead times by 30 per cent. This quadrupled the Japanese firm’s production capacity in India for automated storage and retrieval systems, conveyors and rail-guided sorters.

Addverb Technologies, backed by Reliance Industries, also demonstrated its manufacturing scale with a 100,000-robot annual production capacity. The company unveiled three products at LogiMAT India 2025: Trakr 2.0, a quadruped robot with edge computing capability; HOCA, a horizontal carousel built for quick commerce fulfilment; and Brisk, a gesture-based picking interface.

Investment in automated capacity is also accelerating. FedEx committed over Rs 25 billion to India’s first fully automated air cargo hub at the Navi Mumbai International Airport, with 300,000 square feet of floor space featuring automated sorting and high-speed screening. Amazon India invested Rs 20 billion in 2025 across 12 new fulfilment centres and six sorting centres. India’s total warehousing stock reached 610 million square feet, with Grade A assets capturing 63 per cent of transactions, up from 54 per cent a year earlier.

5G and IoT build the nervous system for connected freight

India’s over 500,000 5G sites, covering nearly all districts, provide the connectivity layer for modern logistics. Enterprise adoption in freight, however, remains at an early stage, with fewer than 20 private 5G deployments nationwide. In response, Jio has launched 10 active 5G network slices for enterprise use and rolled out 26 GHz millimetre wave spectrum across 21 states, targeting warehousing, port operations and fleet management. Similarly, Airtel Business connected over 48 million internet of things (IoT) devices, with fleet and shipment visibility among its fastest growing product lines. Vodafone Idea Limited, on its part, launched India’s first telecom-backed IoT co-creation and certification lab in October 2025, built with Amazon Web Services and the Centre for Development of Telematics, capable of testing over 175 scenarios across connected vehicles, logistics and smart manufacturing.

The multimodal logistics park (MMLP) in Nagpur, India’s first MMLP, commenced commercial operations in April 2025, integrating road, rail and warehousing with digital systems. Meanwhile, Adani Ports launched Digital Smart Gates at Gangavaram port in March 2026, automating gate processing with FASTag-integrated, contactless systems.

Cold chain monitoring represents the most immediate IoT opportunity in logistics. India’s cold chain market is projected to grow from $4.7 billion in 2024 to $12.2 billion by 2030, yet the country operates only about 7,000 reefer vehicles, covering barely 12-15 per cent of needs. For telecom operators, cold chain logistics, with its requirements for continuous connectivity, real-time alerts and compliance documentation, may prove to be the highest-value entry point into India’s freight ecosystem.

Outlook

Industry estimates project India’s overall logistics market to reach over $520-$530 billion by 2030. A streamlined logistics network is essential for supporting the manufacturing sector, enhancing supply chain efficiencies and improving global trade participation.

Sustainability is another critical focus area. The adoption of green energy, e-waste management through circular economy principles and supportive regulations around carbon pricing could significantly help in mitigating the environmental impact of technology-led growth in the sector.

However, the future of India’s logistics sector will ultimately be shaped by its ability to integrate advanced technologies at scale. Innovations across AI, drones, EVs, digital platforms and connected infrastructure will define the next phase of transformation. Companies that embrace digitalisation and data-driven decision-making will not only enhance efficiency but also establish themselves as front runners in an era defined by agility and optimisation.

Shashwat Singh