Thousands of delivery decisions within the Aramex network are now supported in real time by smart planning and routing systems, but the next stage that the company is targeting is more complex in terms of using data and artificial intelligence to determine when shipments should be transferred from one route to another, or even from land to air or sea, before early signs of congestion, a lack of capacity, or a change in transit conditions turn into an operational crisis.
This move from optimizing the route after it has been identified to helping choose the route and means of transportation itself places technology at the heart of a new model for supply chain management, especially in a region where the turmoil of 2026 has shown the extent of the impact of over-reliance on a single corridor, gateway, or means of transportation.
Amadou Diallo, CEO of Aramex Group, says that the value of artificial intelligence is no longer limited to accelerating daily operations. He added during an exclusive interview with Asharq Al-Awsat that data related to demand, capacity, weather, congestion, and transit conditions can help operating teams detect changes earlier and begin evaluating alternatives before the problem becomes critical.
From reaction to proactive decision
Historically, logistics teams have in many cases only dealt with disruption after its effects began to appear on the movement of shipments. But Diallo believes that as data and analysis tools improve, it is possible to gradually move to a more proactive model.
According to him, Aramex uses planning systems supported by artificial intelligence and intelligent routing to support thousands of delivery-related decisions in real time. The next opportunity is to extend this capability from last mile and delivery routes to the wider network, with technology involved in assessing the right moment to move a shipment from road to flight or sea, or vice versa.
This intersects with a shift in customer behavior, as Aramex recorded revenues amounting to about 1.83 billion Saudi riyals in the second quarter of 2026, an increase of 22 percent year-on-year, the highest quarterly in its history, and the shipping activity also recorded its best quarterly performance.
Diallo links these results, along with demand and pricing, to a change in what companies demand from logistics service providers. In his opinion, the question is no longer limited to “What is the cheapest route?”, but rather includes the speed of changing the route, the ability to move between means of transportation, and the extent to which service continuity is maintained when conditions change.
Diallo explained that the record performance of the freight business was the result of a combination of strong demand, discipline in pricing and the high value of intermodal solutions to customers. He points out that many companies do not want to completely redesign their supply chains, as much as they want to ensure that their logistics partner can move quickly when a route is under pressure, and suggest a practical alternative via land, air or sea.
A physical network needs a digital layer
Algorithms alone are not enough if parts of the network operate in isolation from each other. According to Aramex, the ability of any alternative corridor depends on the availability of infrastructure, capacity, customs and border coordination, in addition to the data and people capable of transforming that information into an operational decision.
Here the importance of digital integration emerges as a complementary element to ports, airports, roads, railways and logistics areas. The more data is exchanged between these components, the better the visibility into the movement of goods and the easier it is to evaluate alternatives before bottlenecks occur.
Diallo points out that infrastructure forms the basis, but it is not sufficient alone to build a global logistics center. The next stage requires connecting ports to airports, roads, railways and logistics parks, along with simpler customs procedures, more reliable data exchange, and the ability to see the supply chain from one end to the other.
But integration does not depend on systems alone, as Diallo places human skills alongside infrastructure and data, pointing out the sector’s need for cadres who not only understand a single means of transportation, but can read the entire supply chain across different markets and corridors. From this perspective, the actual value of technology becomes tied to the ability of teams to use data and make decisions within a multi-party operational environment.
Saudi Arabia...from assets to connected network
This issue takes on a special dimension in Saudi Arabia, where investments in ports, airports, roads, logistics areas, and multimodal connectivity are expanding. Diallo believes that the Kingdom's location gives it an advantage in linking Asia with Europe and Africa, in parallel with a large and growing local market. He points out the continued importance of ties with Asia, in contrast to the rising importance of the corridors through the Red Sea towards Europe and Africa, as well as the paths heading north through the Gulf states towards Türkiye and Europe. But the biggest opportunity, from his point of view, is not in each asset alone, but rather in the ability of these assets to operate as a single network.
Ports, airports, roads, railways and logistics parks can serve multiple markets if they are connected operationally and digitally, rather than operating as separate islands. He notes that Saudi progress includes expanded logistics areas, new corridors, digital services, and stronger transportation connectivity, while the next step is to combine these assets, technology, skills, governance, and operational accountability.
Data does not eliminate the need for alternatives
Predictability does not mean that technology can remove risk from the network. The recent unrest, according to Diallo, revealed that the greatest weakness is excessive reliance, whether on a single path, gateway, resource, or means of transportation. That's why the company uses the concept of "selective resilience" instead of building expensive backups everywhere. The principle is to identify the most sensitive parts of the supply chain, and then prepare workable alternatives for them so that they can be activated when conditions change.
During the turmoil witnessed in 2026, Aramex activated alternative routes through its network of gateways in the Middle East, including land transportation solutions between Europe and the region, and also expanded the leased capacity by air and sea.
Diallo does not expect all of these measures to turn into fixed capacities, but he believes that the ability to quickly operate alternatives will become a permanent part of network design.
He stresses that building resilience does not mean maintaining excess capacity everywhere, but rather developing reliable operational relationships, a network of partners, and clear procedures and specific responsibilities that can be activated when needed. He stresses that the value is not in having an alternative option on paper, but rather in ensuring that this option is actually operable when circumstances change.
Overland trails enter the digital equation
The turmoil also demonstrated the importance of land routes between Europe and the Middle East, but Diallo does not expect land routes to replace sea transport. He believes that the most scalable model is based on making land, rail, sea and air parts of one system, with the possibility of choosing between them according to capacity, time and cost conditions.
But reaching this model requires more than the path itself; It requires predictable transit times, more efficient border and customs procedures, adequate infrastructure and operational capacity, and a higher degree of digital integration between participating entities.
Even in the case of a vital sea lane like the Strait of Hormuz, Diallo does not believe that the solution lies in doubling capacity in anticipation of every scenario, but rather in having a group of gates, means of transportation, and partners that can be operated when needed. Technology helps detect shifts in demand, capacity, and transit conditions, but these options must be prepared in advance before the crisis occurs, he said.
Is historical data enough?
Diallo sets clear limits on what AI can do, especially when the crisis is unfamiliar. Systems can process large volumes of information, recognize patterns, and construct possible scenarios, but geopolitical turbulence may create situations for which historical data does not provide sufficient indicators.
In these cases, factors come into play that are difficult to separate from local reality, such as customer knowledge, market conditions, operational relationships, regulatory rules, and what can actually be implemented on the ground. That is why he believes that the next model will not be a network managed by algorithms alone, but rather will be a combination of the speed of analysis and vision provided by smart systems, and the context, judgment, and human responsibility.
Smarter network
As for the impact of the lessons of 2026 on the design of the Aramex network in the coming years, Diallo does not expect it to be a complete revolution in its structure, as much as it will be a transition to a more diverse, flexible, and information-based network.
This includes stronger regional gateways, broader multimodal transport capabilities, alternative routes, selective use of land transport, more flexible air and sea capacities, as well as faster decision-making supported by technology.
Diallo also links this flexibility to the expansion of Aramex's presence across Europe, Asia, Africa and other markets, considering that the depth of the international network gives the company additional options when part of the system is under pressure. The continuity of the flow depends not only on what happens within the Middle East, but also on the ability of the broader network to redistribute traffic and benefit from alternative corridors and energies outside the region.
In this model, the technical question becomes not only about the best algorithm for delivering a shipment, but about how to build a network that can read what is happening around it early, evaluate alternatives, and then turn that knowledge into an operational decision before the disruptions turn into an actual halt in the movement of trade.
Users and companies no longer have much time between discovering a vulnerability and attackers starting to exploit it. This is what Microsoft reveals in its new Digital Defense Report for 2026, which paints a picture of a security landscape that is moving at an increasing speed, and in which artificial intelligence plays a role in accelerating the capabilities of attackers and defenders alike. One of the most prominent findings of the report is that the intermediate time between actually discovering the vulnerability and converting it into an exploitable method has become much less than 24 hours.
This number alone changes the way security updates should be viewed. If an attacker can go from learning about the vulnerability to exploiting it within a few hours, then delaying the security update for days may mean leaving the device exposed to a vulnerability that has become possible to exploit.
About 40 thousand vulnerabilities in 6 months
Microsoft's report also reveals the increasing size of the problem. About 40,000 recorded security vulnerabilities were published during the first half of 2026 alone, while the company expects the number to reach about 72,000 vulnerabilities during the current year. The problem does not lie only in the number of vulnerabilities, but in the speed with which some of these vulnerabilities become actual tools for attack. Microsoft indicates that it may take organizations between 30 and 60 days to address some critical vulnerabilities in Internet-connected systems, while attackers can move in a much shorter period. Between these two numbers appears one of the most dangerous gaps in cybersecurity: an attacker may move within hours, while repair within some organizations may take weeks.
Artificial intelligence accelerates attacks
The 2026 Report devotes significant space to the growing role of artificial intelligence in cyberattacks. According to Microsoft, the use of artificial intelligence is no longer limited to writing phishing messages or creating fake content, but rather is involved in various stages of the attack, starting from collecting information and reconnaissance, through searching for weak points in systems, all the way to helping develop malware and tools to exploit vulnerabilities.
The company points out a gradual development from using artificial intelligence as an auxiliary tool for the human attacker, to systems that can direct and implement sequential parts of offensive activity.
In an experiment conducted by Microsoft within a controlled environment, an advanced system was able to implement an attack chain consisting of 32 interconnected stages. But the company stresses at the same time that complex electronic attacks in the real world still require human intervention and guidance in most cases, which means that we are not talking about “automated hackers” who work completely independently, but rather about tools that make the attacker’s work faster and more capable of expansion.
The attack may begin within 5 hours
Microsoft's report provides another number that reveals the speed of the new landscape. The company found that exposed cloud workloads can be attacked on average within about 5.3 hours. The company's data also indicates that 63 percent of the hacking operations it monitored involved data theft, which reflects that accessing and seizing information is still one of the most prominent targets of attacks and hackers. Microsoft bases its vision of the security landscape on a huge network of data, which it says processes more than 165 trillion security signals daily, in addition to monitoring and blocking millions of new malicious software files.
A race between the attacker and the modernizer
These numbers make one of the report's findings very relevant to the average user: the speed of installing updates has become an essential part of protection. When a company like Apple, Microsoft, or Google discovers a vulnerability and issues an update to close it, an invisible race begins. On one side are users and companies trying to install the fix, and on the other side are attackers searching for devices that haven't gotten it yet. The faster vulnerability analysis and exploit development tools become, the shorter the safe period for a user to delay an update. This is why updates that companies describe as security or urgent become increasingly important, especially when they announce that a vulnerability is actually being exploited.
What does the report mean to the user?
Perhaps the most important message to the user from Microsoft's 2026 report is the need not to postpone security updates, as the update may include a fix for a known vulnerability that attackers are already working to exploit. With the time needed to turn some vulnerabilities into exploitable tools down to less than 24 hours, the speed of installing updates has become more important than ever; Updating the device as soon as a security fix is available is no longer just technical advice, but rather one of the simplest and most important lines of defense against electronic attacks.
