Route optimization looks perfect on paper, but real drivers live in a very different world.

In this episode of Your AI Injection, host Deep Dhillon sits down with Richard Savoie, founder and CEO of Adiona, to unpack the hidden human and economic costs behind fast shipping. Richard shares what he saw firsthand on ride-alongs with drivers, including brutally long days, routes so complex no one else can cover them, and an industry still reliant on tribal knowledge that disappears as experienced workers retire. They explore how traditional route optimization often fails in the real world, producing mathematically “perfect” plans that drivers reject. Richard explains how Adiona’s AI blends advanced optimization with real-world experience to create routes drivers actually follow, improving performance while reducing burnout and delivering solutions that work on the ground.

Deep and Richard also dive into the counterintuitive economics of sustainability. Most companies don’t have spare margin for “green,” so emissions reduction has to pay for itself. They break down how right-sizing fleets and cutting unnecessary miles can slash costs and carbon at the same time, often delivering bigger sustainability gains than buying electric vehicles alone. The conversation also examines why last-mile delivery is so expensive and raises an uncomfortable question about whether more efficient logistics are improving lives and sustainability or quietly accelerating the overconsumption behind modern e-commerce.

Learn more about Richard here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richsavoie/

and Adiona here: https://www.adionatech.com/

Check out our related episodes:

The Hidden Cost of Last-Mile Delivery Driver Burnout and the AI Fix with Richard Savoie of Adiona

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