Smart Tech Choices in 3PL: Navigating AI & Robotics at Promat 2025
In this special ProMat 2025 recap, Ninaad is joined by Will O’Donnell (Prologis Ventures), Marv Cunningham (Prologis), and Erhan Musaoglu (Logiwa) to unpack the real takeaways from this year’s fulfillment tech showcase. They cut through the noise to spotlight what actually matters for 3PLs - AI orchestration, realistic automation, and what it takes to scale from pilot to production.
eCom Logistics Podcast · Logiwa, Marv Cunningham, Will O'Donnell, Erhan Musaoglu, Fulfillment IQ, Prologis, Ninaad Acharya, eCom Logistics Podcast
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (cdn.simplecast.com) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
What You’ll Learn:
- Why orchestration platforms are the future of 3PLs, and how they outperform legacy WMS systems.
- The real ROI of small automation solutions for 3PLs with low upfront costs.
- How to evaluate fulfillment tech and avoid costly pilot mistakes.
- What the Greenfield vs. Brownfield debate means for your automation strategy.
- Why incremental scaling is the best approach for implementing automation in 3PLs.
- How AI and robotics are transforming the supply chain and fulfillment operations.
- Key takeaways from Promat and other industry conferences on next-gen warehouse tech.
Highlights:
- [00:00:00] – Introduction to the episode & guest introductions
- [00:06:13] – The evolution of decision-making with AI
- [00:10:30] – Why orchestration-first is replacing WMS in modern warehouses
- [00:13:52] – Evaluating fulfillment tech and avoiding common pitfalls
- [00:18:10] – The ROI of small-scale automation for 3PLs
- [00:30:00] – Greenfield vs. Brownfield for automation—where should you start?
- [00:34:32] – Closing thoughts on smart scaling and what’s next for 3PLs
Quotes:
- [00:06:39] “So I can spend 10%, 15% of my time compiling, and theoretically 80% of my time thinking. And that's going to be a game changer for us as an industry.” — Will O'Donnell
- [00:10:56] “The warehouse of the future is automation, robots, and an orchestrator. Not just a WMS.” — Erhan Musaoglu
- [00:19:18] “Innovation happens when you remove constraints. And a lot of constraints are self-imposed.” — Will O’Donnell\
- [00:27:00] “Don’t underestimate the simple solutions that are usually the best.” — Marv Cunningham
About the Guests:
Will O’Donnell — Global Head of Corporate Development at Prologis & Managing Partner of Prologis Ventures. Will leads investment into emerging supply chain tech with a macro lens on real estate and fulfillment convergence. https://www.linkedin.com/in/will-odonnell-553aa0a/
Marv Cunningham — Global Head of Operations, Essentials at Prologis. Formerly of Amazon and GXO, Marv brings deep operational expertise and a track record of warehouse optimization at scale. https://www.linkedin.com/in/marvcunningham/
Erhan Musaoglu — CEO of Logiwa. A serial WMS builder, Erhan now focuses on orchestration-first fulfillment software that integrates robotics, AI, and warehouse logic. https://www.linkedin.com/in/erhanmusaoglu/
Subscribe and Keep Learning!
If you’re a logistics leader looking to scale sustainably, don’t miss out! Subscribe for more expert strategies on tackling modern supply chain challenges.
Be sure to follow and tag the eCom Logistics Podcast on LinkedIn and YouTube