UPS is Combating Package Theft With Artificial Intelligence

260 million shipments were lost last year, with many stolen while recording incidents. Artificial Intelligence is being used to combat package theft during holiday season.

According to Safewise, an estimated 260 million shipments vanished in the US last year, with many of them being stolen while a camera was recording the incident. Package theft is a major problem as the holiday season gets underway, and one shipping company is utilizing artificial intelligence to fight porch pirates.

According to a Finder poll, over one in four respondents reported having a parcel stolen within the previous year. If those parcels include expensive or necessary goods, like medication, theft may become an even bigger issue.

This year, Tarek Saab, president of Texas Precious Metals, is employing a new UPS data software called DeliveryDefense, which he claims helps them identify addresses that are possible targets for theft. His company distributes things like gold coins and silver bars.

After receiving the recipient’s address, the AI-powered computer generates a score; a higher score denotes a higher chance of a successful delivery. Years’ worth of data from prior deliveries, together with additional variables, is used to calculate the scores.

With the customer’s consent, the merchant may reroute the goods to a UPS Store or other pickup sites for addresses with a low score.

Saab at Texas Precious Metals thinks the technique can lower those figures.

Read more about Artificial Intelligence here!