DHL Supply Chain is committing £550 million ($737 million) to expand robotics and automation across its UK and Ireland network, betting that AI-enabled machines will deliver both productivity gains and safer working conditions. The move extends DHL’s long-running automation strategy and signals how e-commerce and healthcare logistics are driving a new wave of capital investment in the region.
Scaling Contract Logistics With AI and Automation
Under its Strategy 2030 roadmap, DHL will add 1,000 more robots to UK and Irish sites, building on its existing agreements with Locus Robotics, Robust.AI, and Boston Dynamics. Tobias Meyer, CEO of DHL Group, confirmed in a LinkedIn post that the investment is designed to “scale up contract logistics capabilities, particularly in e-commerce and healthcare supply chains, while enhancing both customer outcomes and employee experience.”
The Locus Origin robots, already in use since 2017, are collaborative mobile units that reduce unproductive walking time, boost picking accuracy, and more than double throughput. They support multi-level shelving, multiple container types, and operate without breaks or injury risk, freeing staff for tasks that require judgment and oversight. DHL’s deployment aligns with a broader logistics trend: according to recent industry data, collaborative mobile robots are on track to make up more than a third of warehouse automation spend by 2027, reflecting their rapid ROI and adaptability.
Expanding Partnerships for Smarter, Safer Warehousing
The investment also strengthens DHL’s newer partnership with Robust.AI, whose ‘Carter’ robots feature 360-degree AI vision, holonomic movement, and thousands of configurable shelving options. Carter can adapt to real-time warehouse conditions, streamlining workflows and reducing manual strain through automated goods movement and built-in barcode scanning.
Boston Dynamics’ Stretch robot, first introduced in DHL’s North American network in 2023, is also entering more UK and European facilities. Capable of unloading up to 700 packages per hour and lifting parcels up to 23 kilograms, Stretch is being deployed in roles that reduce repetitive strain injuries while accelerating truck and container unloading. DHL’s latest agreement with Boston Dynamics will see another 1,000 units added across its logistics network.
Automation as a Competitive Divider
While much of the sector is experimenting with robotics, DHL’s concentrated regional investment suggests it sees automation as a competitive differentiator in mature, high-cost markets. By targeting e-commerce and healthcare, two sectors with volatile demand patterns and low tolerance for error, DHL is positioning its UK and Ireland operations as testbeds for scalable, AI-driven logistics models that could be replicated globally. The longer-term strategic question will be how quickly such deployments shift from productivity enhancers to critical infrastructure, reshaping labor models and customer expectations in the process.