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WiseTech AI charge plan raises questions over CargoWise Value Packs

WiseTech plans to charge separately for CargoWise AI agents, according to Citi, raising questions over what customers can expect their existing Value Packs (CVP) to cover. A 1 October research note said WiseTech would be "monetising the AI agents separately from the CVP", and identifies adoption of the agents as the biggest driver of expected second-half revenue weighting. Responding to questions from The Loadstar, WiseTech chief executive Zubin Appoo said six agentic capabilities remained available through CargoWise Value Packs, but he left pricing for more advanced offerings open. He explained: "Six powerful agentic capabilities are currently available to customers through CargoWise Value Packs. Use of those capabilities has increased substantially since initial launch in December 2025. "As we develop more advanced AI-powered workflow capabilities, any pricing would be aligned to the value those capabilities create for customers, including improvements in productivity, efficiency, and labour cost savings. Any decisions in this area will be guided by the customer outcomes achieved, and the value delivered." WiseTech did not specify which future capabilities might attract additional charges, how those charges would be calculated, or when they could begin. One industry source questioned how separate charges would fit with the way CVP had been presented. "If they've gone around saying 'one price for everything', then they should follow through and adjust the macro price, rather than add incremental charges," the source said. "Customers should be aware that future agents may not be included in current costing." Indeed, WiseTech's early public description of Value Packs emphasised a single, all-inclusive transaction price, covering core and many extended capabilities, including its AI workflow and management engine. However, the wording does not claim that every future agent would be included. Nor does Mr Appoo's response indicate that any of the six capabilities currently available through Value Packs will be moved to separate charging. But forwarders budgeting for automation need to know which capabilities their transaction charges cover, and which could add to the bill. A screenshot of CargoWise's freight forwarding Value Pack webpage supplied to The Loadstar shows an explicit exclusions list identifying products priced and billed separately. AI agents do not appear in the list. Citi's note also offers an insight into how WiseTech intends to link software revenue to customer savings. It reported that customers moving from fixed contracts onto Value Packs would have temporary pricing arrangements, with revenue increases linked to large forwarders beginning to achieve labour savings through AI. The bank estimated that price increases and contract conversions would leave more than $30m of the incremental second-half revenue needed to reach the lower end of CargoWise's growth guidance to come from AI agents and VerifyWise. However, Citi questioned whether the new offerings could generate that revenue quickly enough, noting that the agents were still in development. The note also reported that WiseTech did not intend to push pricing aggressively to meet its expected second-half revenue weighting, instead it was seeking to drive adoption and capture value over time. Mr Appoo argued that CargoWise's integration gave its AI capabilities an advantage over external tools. "As CargoWise AI capabilities are built into the core of the CargoWise Workflow Engine, they can work together, not just as standalone tools," he said. "The customer sees a single workflow with multiple AI agents working together behind the scenes across a sequence of decisions, actions, and interactions, embedded into the foundation of the system. This is not something external AI tools can replicate." For now, customers will have to wait for details of the next offerings to establish their full cost. "We continue to add capabilities to the CargoWise Value Packs. We will provide further details on future offerings when they are ready to be brought to market," said Mr Appoo.

A good month for Finnair Cargo

Helsinki-based Finnair Cargo enjoyed a successful September. It carried 4.5% more cargo tonnage last month than in the same month of 2025, moving a total of 12,275 tonnes. Volumes were up in all markets, the carrier said, but cargo traffic on the North Atlantic market saw particular growth (of 55.8%). Cargo volumes on Finnair's biggest market, Asia, rose by 6% year on year to reach 7,866 tonnes. Meanwhile, revenue cargo tonne kilometres across the network rose by 5.4% year on year to reach 75.4m. For the year to date (January to September), cargo traffic was up by 6.8% to reach 109,295 tonnes. Over that same year-to-date period, the revenue cargo tonne kilometres figure was up by 6.4% to 666m. Baltic representation This summer, it was confirmed that 4RCargo had been appointed by Finnair Cargo as its general sales agent (GSA) in the Baltics. The partnership, announced during the TIACA Executive Summit in Warsaw, sees 4RCargo represent Finnair Cargo across Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Putzger Perspective: Aircraft production speed bumps

The US aviation sector is chomping at the bit, impatient to speed up approval processes and aircraft production. US Transportation Secretary Duffy is bent on slashing the time required to certify an aircraft, blaming the lengthy process for lack of innovation and investment in the aerospace sector. Without a change in pace, the US would be beaten by China, he warned. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has been working on plans to streamline the process. Approving a new plane can take five or more years, during which it undergoes extensive testing and documentation. It took Boeing over eight ⁠years to get its 737 MAX 7 certified, and the certification of the 777X is nearly seven years behind Boeing's original schedule. Suppliers to plane manufacturers are also under the gun to up the tempo. At an industry event last month, Boeing's chief technology officer Lane Ballard urged suppliers in the aerospace sector to ramp up automation as the industry is moving away from the traditional "craftsman business" model. "Suppliers need to understand we've got to move away from craftsman thinking," he stressed. This comes from the company that gave the world the Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation System without telling anybody about it until it was found to have caused two Boeing 737 MAX crashes that killed 346 people altogether. This was the reason why the FAA's approval process for Boeing's processes and aircraft slowed down sharply. Interestingly, Boeing chief executive Kelly Ortberg recently said the manufacturer needed more time to stabilise 737 output at 47 planes per month, noting that in-house wing production presented challenges. According to Ballard, the industry will need approximately 40,000 commercial aeroplanes over the next 20 years, which explains his sense of urgency. Boeing and Airbus are hobbled by extensive backlogs caused in large part by bottlenecks in critical component supplies, especially aircraft engines. The Wall Street Journal reported in late September that Boeing had identified a previously undisclosed 737 MAX software glitch that could cause an automated navigation feature to fail during landing. In the same month, Airbus revealed a "quality issue" in the fuselage structure of its A321neo affecting about 500 planes, stressing that it did not constitute a safety issue. During the summer, the plane maker slowed down output of its A330neo after a tool had been found in a plane's tail structure. Perhaps the industry should hang on to its "craftsman thinking" a bit longer.