Logistics Business asked Jim Donaldson, Chief Technology Officer at Hitachi ZeroCarbon, for his views on electric commercial vehicle developments in the year ahead.
“Looking ahead to 2026, breakthrough advances in AI will arrive almost daily, and the real opportunity for our industry will be applying those innovations to accelerate decarbonisation at scale.
“While fleet operators are unlikely to hand control of charging infrastructure to large language models like ChatGPT, data-driven optimisation and other forms of AI are set to become essential to achieving fully electric fleets. In real-world deployments today, automated approaches are already lifting effective power capacity by around 20% compared with standard setups – enabling faster charging and more vehicles without the need for new infrastructure.
“Technology and data are also expected to play an increasingly critical role in managing battery assets. Even as battery technology continues to improve, vehicle performance will still vary widely across fleets. Data-led insights will be key to maximising in-life and second-life value, while rapidly identifying emerging reliability issues.
“Beyond the depot, 2026 is also likely to mark a shift in how electric fleets interact with the wider energy system. As grids face growing pressure from electrification, fleet infrastructure will increasingly be designed as flexible energy assets – able to balance demand, integrate renewables and respond dynamically to network constraints. Platforms that coordinate vehicles, chargers, on-site generation and grid signals in real time will be critical, turning fleets from passive energy consumers into active participants in a more resilient, low-carbon energy ecosystem.
“Ultimately, delivering on the full promise of the EV transition will depend on operations optimised by data-led automation. The future of EV fleet management is likely to be AI-driven systems that draw on schedules, vehicles, chargers and energy networks to automate energy and charging operations – maximising reliability at the lowest possible cost.”
