The Series B brings InstaLILY’s total funding to nearly $100 million as the AI provider expands technology designed to build and maintain customized software for distributors and other operationally complex businesses.
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At the company's annual TUG conference for distribution customers, CEO Kevin Samuelson and AI Innovation leader Rick Rider outlined how the company is positioning AI for distributors — not as a standalone product, but as an ongoing service built around industry context, co-innovation, process intelligence and governed automation. Here are our key takeaways.
The San Francisco-based startup said its seed funding will support hiring, product development and continued expansion of its machine learning models for distributor purchasing decisions.
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What if AI doesn’t replace Lean Six Sigma, but finally makes it scalable? The first in this four-part series from NAW Chief Innovation Officer Bart Tessel introduces LSS AI: a disciplined operating model to help distributors move beyond AI hype, close learning loops and build organizations that learn faster than volatility.
New Census Bureau data analysis suggests wholesale trade continues to report AI usage below the national average, indicating a more gradual pace of adoption. Meanwhile, the broader findings reflect MDM & NAW's industry AI research.
We kick off our new "The Hidden Majority" article series with one that focuses on the small- to mid-sized results from the latest Baird-MDM survey combined with our AI research from earlier this year. This piece explores why pricing and margin optimization remain the industry’s biggest untapped AI opportunity — especially for sub-$100M distributors.
Featured coverage from The Colorado Sun focused on how distributors are approaching artificial intelligence with practical, operations-driven strategies based on conversations at NAW's SHIFT Conference.
Distribution always had rich data on new construction — but almost nothing on the market that's already standing. The replacement and renovation market has been a data desert for decades. That's starting to change with AI.
Most distributors aren’t failing at AI — they’re failing at data. This piece unpacks why 95% of GenAI efforts deliver no ROI, how agentic AI is changing workflows, and why a unified data foundation is becoming the real competitive edge.
The administration is pushing for a single federal AI standard to replace a growing patchwork of state rules. If enacted, the framework could simplify compliance for distributors and accelerate AI adoption across the sector — with broad implications for software vendors and digital strategy. Here's what to know.
Unified commerce platforms paired with agentic AI are helping distributors eliminate “phantom margin loss,” optimize fulfillment and unlock real-time decision-making — shifting operations from reactive workflows to autonomous, profit-driven systems that boost growth, efficiency and customer experience at scale. This piece explores the work being done here and the factors at play that determine success rates.
Executives say AI is becoming mandatory at work, but that message isn’t fully reaching employees. A new survey highlights a growing perception gap between leadership expectations and how workers actually view and use AI.
Pepper said the Series C funding will expand its AI-powered platform for independent food distributors, accelerating product innovation, ERP integrations and go-to-market efforts across ordering, sales, receivables and embedded payments workflows.
AI is reshaping distributor CRM — but only when backed by the right platform strategy. In this episode of the MDM Amplify Podcast, LeadSmart's Kevin Brown breaks down smart AI adoption, data integration and how distributors can turn customer intelligence into measurable growth. We also touch on his 30 years of perspective in the industrial supply channel and share takeaways from NAW's 2026 Executive Summit.
Eric Hoplin, NAW CEO, testified to the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce’s Subcommittee on Workforce Protections on how the distribution industry is deploying AI.
AI can make room for the human connection that actually wins business. Read how artificial intelligence in distribution can reengineer highly manual processes into ones that are faster, more accurate, and yes, more human.
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Packer said the project represents a key step in the company's broader AI roadmap, which aims to expand automation and digital tools across the company.
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