Flexport Targets AI Logistics as Tariff Uncertainty and Fuel Costs Reshape Global Freight

Flexport – a digital-first freight forwarder and logistics platform – featured prominently in industry discussions this week as it highlighted both macro trade disruptions and emerging growth niches. The company’s updates underscored its push into AI infrastructure logistics, its advisory role on tariff and duty developments, and its work supporting complex, multi-continent supply chains.

Flexport used a series of LinkedIn posts, webinars, and blog content to position itself around “Logistics for the AI Era,” focusing on air freight for AI data centers and clusters. Management pointed to internal or industry data indicating AI infrastructure accounted for roughly 15% of global air freight demand growth in 2025, with AI-related demand up 49% year over year and concentrated on select U.S.-bound and intra-Asia corridors.

The company stressed that AI clusters are expensive, fragile, and often involve dangerous goods in backup systems, requiring specialized handling, compliance, and precisely coordinated deliveries. By emphasizing capabilities in this high-stakes niche and promoting thought leadership from its Global Head of Air Freight, Flexport appears to be targeting higher-margin, barrier-to-entry segments tied to hyperscalers and data center operators.

Flexport also spotlighted its role in managing Evolution Power Tools’ expansion from a U.K. workshop into a multi-region business across Europe and North America. The case study highlighted data-driven logistics, real-time tracking, enhanced supplier accountability, and dedicated support teams, illustrating Flexport’s ability to orchestrate SKU-intensive flows from Asian manufacturing hubs to global retail channels.

On the regulatory front, Flexport repeatedly flagged uncertainty around the U.S. Court of Appeals’ temporary stay on the Court of International Trade’s ruling against the 10% Section 122 tariff. The company noted that tariffs continue to be collected while appeals proceed, with potential future refunds likely to run through existing Customs and Border Protection systems and timelines remaining unclear for impacted importers.

The firm further detailed progress on IEEPA duty refunds via the CAPE process, citing millions of entries accepted and a substantial share already liquidated without those duties, though only part has reached the Treasury for payment. This slow-moving refund pipeline, combined with tariff ambiguity, could influence importers’ working-capital planning and sustain demand for Flexport’s customs, compliance, and advisory services.

Operationally, Flexport pointed to constrained capacity on the Trans-Pacific Eastbound lane at roughly 78% of typical levels and congestion at European ocean hubs driven by low Rhine water levels, pilot strikes, and scheduling gaps. It also highlighted tight Trans-Atlantic Westbound conditions, selective air freight constraints out of South Asia, and generally stable or soft ex-Asia air demand, implying a mixed but capacity-sensitive rate environment.

Geopolitical developments added another layer of complexity, with CEO Ryan Petersen discussing on Bloomberg Surveillance the impact of the Strait of Hormuz closure, which has disrupted around 20% of global oil supply since March 1. While shipping volumes and network reliability remain relatively stable, Flexport reported that higher fuel costs are feeding through to ocean and air freight rates, pressuring shippers’ margins even as intermediaries see elevated demand for optimization and risk management.

Taken together, this week’s communications portray Flexport as navigating a freight landscape shaped by tariff risk, capacity bottlenecks, and fuel-driven cost pressures, while simultaneously moving into specialized AI infrastructure logistics and deepening relationships with global manufacturers. These dynamics could support its role as a data-driven logistics and advisory partner, though execution in complex, high-value segments and the evolution of trade policy and energy markets will remain key to its longer-term trajectory.