Aeon implements physical AI to automate logistics hubs

Aeon, in collaboration with robot control software company Mujin, has unveiled a logistics hub in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, that utilizes physical AI to automate distribution tasks. The facility, known as Aeon Kawaguchi Higashi XD, currently achieves a 50 percent automation rate and aims to reach 80 percent across the group’s logistics bases by 2030.

The physical AI technology allows robots to autonomously recognize product weight and contents via sensors. This enables them to make real-time decisions, such as stacking items in a way that prevents collapses, a task previously difficult to automate. At the new facility, which serves approximately 200 My Basket supermarket stores, over 90 robots are operational, including 82 automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and various arm robots.

According to Hiroki Yamamoto, president of Aeon Global SCM, the productivity of these robots is three to four times higher than manual labor. The implementation has already resulted in a reduction of 39 workers per day at the site. This initiative is part of a broader effort to address severe labor shortages in Japan’s logistics sector caused by a declining working-age population.