Running logistics as a labor-intensive business model is pretty much on its last legs. What separates the companies is their ability to fill the gap left by human labor with technology.

Hiratomo Miyata, the founder of Ground, whose software powers 79 robots at the distribution center of Nitori, Japan’s biggest furniture maker.  Robots are stepping in to fill vacancies amid Japan's worst labor shortage in more than 40 years.

© Bloomberg