Softlink Global, the logistics software firm behind the Logi-Sys freight ERP, has called for balanced AI adoption in the freight technology industry and pushed back against the wave of AI-linked layoffs hitting software companies. Founder and CEO Amit Maheshwari said his company is investing in artificial intelligence at the same time it raises salaries and expands its workforce, a direct counter to peers that have tied workforce reductions to AI-led efficiency.
What Softlink Just Said
Softlink Global published the position on June 29, framing it as a stance against industry-wide restructuring decisions that link layoffs to artificial intelligence. “AI will undoubtedly transform freight technology, and we are investing aggressively in it ourselves,” Maheshwari said in the company’s June 29 statement on balanced AI adoption. “But freight forwarding is built around uncertainty, exceptions, relationships, and decision-making under pressure. Technology can improve productivity, but it cannot fully replace operational understanding developed through years of logistics experience.”
Softlink has been building technology for freight forwarders, customs brokers, and supply-chain providers for more than three decades. Its Logi-Sys platform now serves more than 5,000 logistics businesses across more than 50 countries, per Softlink’s company background page.
The Layoffs Sitting Behind the Statement
The statement lands against an unusually heavy freight-tech layoff cycle. Australian logistics software maker WiseTech Global announced in February 2026 that it would cut about 2,000 jobs, roughly 29 per cent of its workforce across 40 countries, with chief executive Zubin Appoo calling the change a “deliberate AI transformation journey” and declaring that “the era of manually writing code as a core act of engineering is over.” Customer service and product-development teams face headcount reductions of up to 50 per cent, per WiseTech’s February 2026 announcement on AI-linked job cuts.
Softlink did not name WiseTech. The framing, though, matched questions freight-tech customers had been raising across the trade. “We continue investing in talent, expanding teams, and building long-term capability,” Maheshwari wrote in his June 2026 op-ed on the freight tech AI race.
The contrast makes Softlink’s position pointed. In a sector where AI is being used to justify headcount cuts, the company is using AI as the cover for pay raises and team expansion.
Why Freight Forwarding Is Built Differently
Maheshwari’s central argument is that freight forwarding is structurally unlike a standard SaaS vertical. “Freight forwarding is not a standard SaaS business operating in a predictable environment,” he wrote. “It is an industry built around uncertainty, exceptions, coordination, relationships, and real-time decision-making.”
A shipment held at customs, a missed transshipment, a billing dispute between partners in two countries, a vessel rollover, and a customer asking for answers at midnight are the moments that define the work, he said. Ports operate differently, customs regulations evolve continuously, and trade lanes shift overnight because of geopolitics. Customers themselves often work through disconnected systems and incomplete data, leaving operational intelligence as important as software intelligence in his framing.
Technology builds platforms. People build industries. The future of freight technology will belong to companies that successfully combine both.
Amit Maheshwari, founder and CEO of Softlink Global, wrote this in his June 2026 op-ed on the freight tech AI race.
He does not dispute the upside of AI. In the same piece he wrote that AI is already reducing repetitive data entry, speeding document processing, strengthening customer support, and sharpening visibility and forecasting inside freight operations. His objection is narrower than that. Using AI primarily as a reason to reduce people is a different decision than using AI to strengthen them, he argued. Over time, he wrote, excessive reduction in domain expertise, implementation capability, and customer-facing teams can weaken customer trust and long-term resilience.
The 15% to 25% Counter-Move
Softlink’s actions match the words. The company recently completed organization-wide appraisals with average salary increases ranging between 15% and 25%, while continuing to expand teams across technology, support, and product development functions.
The raises sit on top of more than three decades of freight-software history, dating to the early DOS era when Maheshwari wrote Softlink’s first customs program for a budget of Rs 5,000.
Sourced figures from the statement and Softlink’s corporate site:
- 15% and 25%: range of average salary increases from the recent appraisals
- over 5,000: logistics businesses running on Logi-Sys
- more than 50: countries in which Softlink serves customers
- over three decades: time Softlink has built freight software
- Rs 5,000: starting capital when Maheshwari founded Softlink
Where the Freight AI Race Stands
The freight technology industry does not dispute the underlying AI shift. Maheshwari himself lists concrete places where AI is already doing real work inside freight operations, and most operators across the field agree on the direction. Plenty of operators want to know how far the savings should go. The disagreement inside the industry is whether workforce reductions should follow the shift. Plenty of companies are betting the answer is yes.
Maheshwari’s running list of freight workflows AI is already changing covers five concrete areas inside day-to-day freight operations.
- Repetitive data entry shrinking as automation rises
- Document processing speeding up through intelligent extraction
- Customer support gaining AI-assisted triage
- Visibility and forecasting upgrading from batch to continuous
- Long workflows that once consumed entire teams compressing into a few clicks
Softlink, by contrast, is leaning into operational depth and bigger teams. WiseTech’s February 2026 announcement said it expected the cuts to deliver “a leaner, more efficient AI-led organisation supporting a structurally lower cost base and improved scalability.” Operators will judge both approaches by what happens to service quality the next time a major disruption hits.
AI is reshaping the edges of freight operations as well, from customs filings to fleet cameras. For one adjacent example, see how AI dashcams are now cutting Indian fleet fuel costs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Softlink Global’s stance on AI and freight tech layoffs?
Softlink Global’s founder and CEO, Amit Maheshwari, called on June 29, 2026 for balanced AI adoption in freight technology. The company said it is investing heavily in AI while continuing to expand its workforce and give salary raises averaging 15% to 25%, framing that approach as a counter to peers tying layoffs to AI-led efficiency.
Why is Softlink giving employees 15% to 25% raises right now?
Softlink said the raises come alongside ongoing team expansion in technology, support, and product development. The company’s stated framing is that AI should strengthen operational capability rather than justify workforce reductions in freight technology.
Which freight tech firm is cutting thousands of AI-linked jobs?
WiseTech Global announced in February 2026 that it would cut about 2,000 jobs, roughly 29 per cent of its workforce, with chief executive Zubin Appoo calling the change a deliberate AI transformation journey. The announcement tied the cuts to AI-led efficiency gains.
What does Softlink’s Logi-Sys platform do?
Logi-Sys is Softlink Global’s Intelligent Cloud ERP platform. It serves freight forwarders, customs brokers, logistics providers, and supply-chain companies, covering air, sea, and land freight plus warehouse, transport, and customs workflows.
How many countries and customers does Softlink Global serve?
Softlink Global currently serves customers in more than 50 countries through Logi-Sys, with over 5,000 logistics businesses running on the platform, per the company’s corporate site.
