NAW Institute, Texas A&M, and Ai Applied Consortium convene industry executives and federal policy advisors to address practical AI deployment across the $8.7 trillion distribution sector
COLLEGE STATION, Texas, June 17, 2026 — Wholesale distributors that have deployed AI are pulling ahead of competitors that haven’t. That was the consensus among senior executives, federal policy advisors, and AI practitioners at the inaugural Applied AI Symposium, held June 10, 2026, at Texas A&M University.
The symposium was co-hosted by the NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence, The Thomas and Joan Read Center for Distribution Research and Education at Texas A&M University, and the Ai Applied Consortium (AAIC), with InstaLILY AI and SAP Americas serving as presenting sponsors. Attendees included C-suite executives, chief digital and technology officers, federal and state policy officials, and researchers from wholesale distribution, manufacturing, energy, and defense.
“Distribution industry leaders are not waiting around for AI to be figured out somewhere else,” said Bart Tessel, Chief Innovation Officer at NAW. “They’re in the room, asking the right questions, building the practical knowledge our industry needs.”
Practitioners across sessions agreed that the technology and data foundations for AI adoption are largely in place, and the real barrier is organizational. Attendees ranked mid-layer management resistance and the absence of codified institutional knowledge as the primary hurdles, ahead of data readiness or technology selection. Panelists urged distributors to capture institutional knowledge while experienced staff are still in place.
“The distribution industry is hungry for AI strategies and solutions that can enhance their day-to-day operational efficiency without compromising the privacy or security of their data,” said Malini Natarajarathinam, Ph.D., Professor and Program Coordinator of the Industrial Distribution Program at Texas A&M University, and Director of The Thomas and Joan Read Center for Distribution Research and Education.
While workforce displacement concerns surfaced, speakers challenged them by identifying the benefit of AI as upskilling, not replacement. One executive described building an AI sales platform in two months and deploying it across an entire sales team within four months, without cutting headcount, by accelerating output inside existing workflows. The largest gains, panelists noted, come from bringing middle performers up to the level of top performers. Organizations furthest along in deployment are hiring for curiosity and learning agility over credentials.
“AI is changing how we work,” said Konrad Konarski, Trustee and Chairperson of AAIC. “The organizations that succeed will be those willing to challenge established ways of working and redesign how value is created, decisions are made, and work gets done.”
“The line between technical and business roles is collapsing,” said David Wascom, SAP Industry Executive Advisor, Wholesale Distribution, at SAP Americas. “Reliance on purely technical skills is shrinking. Problem solving and adaptability aren’t just valuable anymore, they’re mandatory.”
The symposium included a federal and state policy panel featuring representatives from Van Scoyoc Associates and the Texas Department of Information Resources. Panelists reviewed the Great American AI Act discussion draft and Texas’s enacted AI ethics framework, advising distributors not to wait for federal guidance before building governance practices. NAW is positioned to bring the wholesale distribution industry’s perspective directly into the federal AI policy process.
“Speed is becoming the dominant frame, more than most people acknowledge,” said Amit Shah, CEO of InstaLILY AI. “The gap between a leader expressing intent and a team delivering an outcome is collapsing. That changes what you look for in people.”
The Applied AI Symposium is the first in a planned series. The NAW Institute’s AI Adoption Index, the field’s first benchmark of AI adoption across wholesale distribution, sponsored by Infor, is scheduled for publication in September 2026.
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About the NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence:
The NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence, a division of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW), is the intelligence and innovation engine of wholesale distribution — translating industry signals into actionable insight, building platforms and tools that put knowledge to work, and equipping leaders to shape what the industry becomes.
About The Thomas and Joan Read Center for Distribution Research and Education at Texas A&M University:
The Thomas and Joan Read Center for Distribution Research and Education at Texas A&M University is the world’s only university-based distribution research center, dedicated solely to wholesale distribution research and education. For over 60 years, the Center has connected industry leaders, faculty, and students to advance productivity, profitability, and innovation across the distribution sector. Through applied research, professional development, and industry collaboration, the Read Center delivers actionable insights and best practices that drive operational excellence and workforce growth. Learn more at https://readcenter.tamu.edu.
About the Ai Applied Consortium (AAIC):
The Ai Applied Consortium (AAIC) is a cross-sector alliance advancing responsible, real-world adoption of artificial intelligence. AAIC delivers practical AI solutions through strategic research, industry advisory councils, and academic collaboration across key sectors including manufacturing, distribution, energy, financial services, and the public sector. Its Board of Trustees includes leaders from Fortune 500 and globally recognized organizations such as Visa, BP, BASF, Netflix, and TechnipFMC, alongside academic partners from Penn State, University of Kentucky, DePaul University, and University of Ottawa. Learn more at www.aaiconsortium.org.
