The new product, which is available now, provides shippers, carriers and logis- tics providers with a lower-cost option for shipment-level tracking compared with us- ing larger GPS and cellular devices. At the same time, the smart label offers much more consistent visibility than tradi- tional barcode scanning that only indicates when a package or shipment has departed or arrived at a facility. It’s also an alternative to RFID, or radio fre-
freight such as a copper wire reel to be- gin tracking it continuously. From there, businesses can closely moni- tor location status via the Shipment Center, which uses artificial intelligence to automati- cally flag shipments that require attention. The constant tracking makes it easier for managers to stay ahead of potential shipping delays and more difficult for bad actors to divert or steal cargo without being detected.
“AI can now start automating away some of the task work that has to happen every single day as part of your operation," Biswas says. (Seth Clevenger/Transport Topics)
quency identification, which provides updates when a tagged shipment passes elec- tronic readers at certain facili- ties or checkpoints. The disposable labels have no lithium or hazardous mate- rials so they can be used for air, ground and rail shipments. Businesses can print them using standard, off-the-shelf label printers. Fulfillment provider DCL Logistics is an early adopter of the smart tracking labels. Dave Tu, DCL’s president, hailed the technology as “revolutionary.” “You have as many track- ing updates as you want,” he said. “I think the industry is hungry for this.” Tu said this capability is particularly applicable for truckload and less-than- truckload shipments, where visibility typically is limited to updates when the freight departs a facility and when it arrives at its destination. “That’s counterintuitive, because those are your most valuable shipments,” Tu said. During a press conference, Samsara CEO Sanjit Biswas said pricing for the tracking labels varies based on volume but is designed to be in the “single-digit-dollars” range. The technology provides the clearest value for critical and time-sensitive shipments but could serve as a flexible tracking option across many use cases and types of goods. “We really are curious to find out where our customers want to take it,” Biswas said. Customers can manage the tracking labels within Samsara’s new Shipment Center and Shipment App. Workers can use the app to activate the tracking labels with their mobile phones or scanners. They can scan a bill of lading, carrier tracking number or warehouse license plate number and the app au- tomatically links the tracking label to the existing shipment ID. After printing out and ac- tivating a tracking label, a worker simply sticks it onto a box, pallet or high-value
Transport Topics • July 2026, Issue 1 11
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