Whenever anyone brings up AI, which in today's world is a lot, they almost always talk about it in terms of technology, which makes sense because AI is the latest wave of cutting-edge technology. Which tools are being used? What can be automated? Where exactly is AI being implemented? Who's using it?

But after looking through the results of our latest research into how trucking fleets are actually using AI, two findings really stood out from everything else, and both had surprisingly little to do with the technology itself. They had to do with people.

Do I have your attention yet? Good, because we're going to dive in and talk about it on this edition of the Recruiting Roundup. And at the end, I'll tell you how you can get your hands on all of the research itself.

So let's start with where fleets are actually seeing results. We asked fleet leaders about AI use across a number of different areas of their businesses, and of every category we tested, recruiting shows the highest reported positive ROI. That's good to know. Good to know.

And that may be at least a little bit surprising to hear for some of you. When you think about AI in trucking, you might expect the biggest returns to come from some highly technical or operational application. But instead, right now, recruiting leads the way.

But let's take a minute and think about some of the problems recruiters are dealing with every day. Missed calls. Slow response times. Repetitive administrative work. Not having enough time to actually talk to every interested driver.

Those are exactly the kinds of problems where AI can really help. Not by replacing the recruiter, but by handling some of the work around them and giving them more opportunities to do what people still do best: talk to other people.

And that's where the second finding gets really interesting, because while people may be part of AI's biggest opportunity, they're also creating one of its biggest obstacles.

When we asked fleets what's holding them back from greater AI adoption, 58% cited distrust of AI within their own teams as the top obstacle. Not cost. Not lack of available technology. A lack of trust within their own teams.

And if you really think about it, it kind of makes sense. People are constantly bombarded with stories about how AI is coming for their jobs. And if you're a recruiter hearing that message over and over and over again, you're probably not going to be eager to embrace a technology you think could eventually replace you. Don't do that. We don't like that.

And that should tell us something about where AI adoption in trucking needs to go from here. Successful adoption may not come down to which fleet uses the most AI or who adopts the newest tool first. It may come down to something much simpler: Do your people trust it enough to actually use it?

Because AI doesn't create value just because it's AI. It creates value when you find the right problem, the right application, and the right balance between technology and the people using it.

And to reach that balance, the first step is illustrating to people that AI is a tool — a powerful tool that can help them in their efforts — and not just a low-cost replacement for them altogether.

And these are only two of the findings from our new Fleet AI Usage Report, “Fleets’ AI Adoption Gap: You May Be Falling Behind.” We looked at where fleets are using AI today, where they're seeing ROI, which tools they're using, how their attitudes compare with drivers, and what's still standing in the way.

We'll be back next month with another topic to discuss and data to share on the Recruiting Roundup. Thanks for watching.