IN Brief:
- GXO has launched a 12-week open innovation programme across the UK and Ireland.
- The first cohort will focus on defence and infrastructure logistics, digital transport, workforce tools, and a wildcard category.
- Selected companies will test technologies in live operational settings with scope to scale successful pilots.
GXO has launched a new open innovation programme across the UK and Ireland aimed at identifying, testing, and scaling logistics technologies in live operating environments. The GXO Accelerator is being delivered with innovation specialist L Marks and will bring together startups, scale-ups, and specialist technology providers in a 12-week cohort.
The programme will focus on four areas: defence and infrastructure logistics, digital transport, future workforce, and a wildcard category for tools that fall outside those themes but offer clear operational value. Paul Durkin, Chief Operating Officer, UK & Ireland at GXO, said: “Supply chains are evolving rapidly, and collaboration with innovative technology partners is essential to staying ahead of that change.” Selected participants will work directly with GXO teams in structured test-and-learn cycles designed to move promising ideas into practical deployment.
GXO said the initiative is intended to improve efficiency, resilience, and sustainability across supply chains. The company is targeting technologies that strengthen traceability, materials control, yard and delivery visibility, driver safety, workforce deployment, and AI-enabled HR processes, while also leaving room for applications that do not fit neatly into a single category.
The launch builds on the innovation activity GXO inherited through W2 Labs, the programme established before the Wincanton integration. GXO said 30 technology businesses had taken part in that earlier initiative, with projects spanning AI-powered vehicle damage detection, autonomous mobile robots, labour optimisation, freight and warehouse capacity tools, and asset visibility systems. Applications for the first GXO Accelerator cohort are now open.
