Locus Robotics Helps HelloFresh Expand Temperature-Controlled SKU Capacity 5X

Walmart has officially opened its fifth high-tech fulfillment center, a 900,000 square foot facility in Stockton, California, that expands capacity for processing online orders and speeds shipping and delivery for customers across the West Coast. Walmart Fulfillment Services, the company's end-to-end third-party fulfillment service, will also use the space to fulfill items sold by merchants on Marketplace. The next-generation e-commerce center features advanced automation, technology and AI-powered systems, including a high-density storage and retrieval system that reduces the traditional 12-step fulfillment process to five steps, cutting repetitive manual tasks and increasing storage and order capacity compared with a traditional fulfillment center. Walmart said the Central Valley location adds significant fulfillment capacity closer to West Coast customers and takes pressure off other fulfillment centers in its network. Walmart operates four other next-gen fulfillment centers, in Joliet, Illinois; McCordsville, Indiana; Greencastle, Pennsylvania; and Lancaster, Texas, positioned to enable next-day or two-day shipping to 95% of the U.S. population. E-commerce sales now represent 23% of total sales at Walmart. In August, the company announced plans to build a sixth ultra-modern e-commerce logistics hub, covering 1.5 million square feet, in Carnesville, Georgia, with construction expected to begin towards the end of the year and a total investment in the project, including hiring, of $1.3 billion. Both the Stockton and Carnesville locations will employ more than 1,000 workers at full operation.

AOT Ground Aviation Services Company Limited, or AOTGA, in which Triple I Logistics Public Company Limited, or III, holds a stake and participates in management, signed a contract with Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited, or AOT, on October 8, 2026, to provide ground services and manage cargo warehouses at Suvarnabhumi Airport under a 25-year contract. Tip Dalal, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of III, said AOTGA will begin preparing tools, equipment and personnel after signing, and is expected to start services at Suvarnabhumi within December 2026 to handle rising flight and passenger volumes during the tourism season. On the cargo business side, AOTGA plans to build a new air cargo warehouse at Suvarnabhumi, with construction taking about 18 months before opening, aimed at handling time-sensitive, high-value goods, and will bring AI and robotics technology into the warehouse. III, meanwhile, will contribute its logistics and technology capabilities to support AOTGA, including linking transport between Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang and Phuket through the Airport Truck Link system. Yuanta Securities (Thailand) Company Limited said in an analysis that AOTGA will add about 18 million baht per year to III's profit share starting in 2027, and is expected to reach 337 million baht in 2036. It forecast net profit of 471 million baht in 2026, up 12% year on year, and continued growth of 10% year on year to 499 million baht in 2027, and therefore maintained a Buy recommendation while raising its end-2027 target price to 7.40 baht.

Kenbot Intelligent Technology announced that the company recently received a notice of award, confirming it has won the bid for a smart logistics automation project located in Poland, with a winning bid amount of approximately 75 million yuan including tax. The project is a supporting construction for an overseas warehousing hub of a globally renowned cross-border e-commerce company, and falls within the company's main business scope. The company has received the notice of award and is in the process of signing a formal contract with the tendering party. The timing of contract signing and performance arrangements remain uncertain.

A.P. Moller-Maersk has taken over management of Puma's three large, highly automated distribution centers in the United States and turned them into multi-client facilities, with Puma letting Maersk rent out unused space to other companies. Under the contract logistics agreement for North America, Maersk will operate warehouses in Torrance, California; Phoenix; and Whitestown, Indiana, outside Indianapolis, totaling about 2.3 million square feet. Puma said outsourcing its U.S. distribution network to Maersk will help maximize the performance of its automated facilities, speed up order processing and reduce costs while supporting retail stores, wholesale customers and online shoppers. The three centers are equipped with AutoStore robotic storage and retrieval systems, and the Torrance facility will become Maersk North America's first AutoStore deployment supporting multiple clients, with capacity for other brands starting in 2027 and the ability to handle roughly 20 million units of throughput each year. Maersk North America operates more than 70 warehouses covering about 22.5 million square feet, and globally Maersk has more than 500 warehouses under management.

Toyota Motor Corporation estimates that modernizing its factories could require about 1 trillion yen, or $6.4 billion, annually from 2028, covering Toyota, group companies, and major suppliers. The company told investors that roughly 400,000 robots, including humanoid and conventional machines, could be needed to replace existing equipment and add new automation capabilities, spanning industrial robots, automated logistics, and human-robot collaboration. Toyota has not committed to spending the full amount or specified how long the investment would continue. The figure would be roughly three times Toyota's FY2026 additions to fixed assets of 1.88 trillion yen, though it includes group companies and major suppliers and is therefore not directly comparable with Toyota's consolidated capital spending. Toyota generated 4.74 trillion yen in operating cash flow in FY2026, and its operating margin declined to 7.4% in FY2026 from 10.0% in FY2025 and 11.9% in FY2024. Hyundai plans to deploy humanoid robots at a U.S. plant from 2028, while Chinese automakers including BYD, Geely and Chery continue to pressure Toyota's joint ventures in China.