HCLTech has announced a significant expansion of its long-standing collaboration with SAP, this time focusing on Physical AI — a fast-emerging category of artificial intelligence that embeds intelligence directly into machines, industrial systems, and frontline operational processes. The companies aim to help global enterprises bring AI out of purely digital workflows and into physical environments such as warehouses, factories, logistics hubs, and supply chain networks.
The initiative comes at a time when industries worldwide are under pressure to increase automation, reduce operational complexity, and modernise aging infrastructure. Traditional process optimisation is no longer enough. As enterprises adopt multi-cloud architectures, deploy sensor-driven systems, and integrate robotics into their operations, the next leap requires AI that can understand, interact with, and respond to real-world conditions. This is the gap HCLTech and SAP are targeting together.
AI-Powered Use Cases Across Warehousing, Logistics and 3D Environments
The expanded collaboration will centre on three high-impact Physical AI domains that are critical for modern industrial ecosystems:
• Warehouse Operations:
HCLTech and SAP will co-develop AI-driven warehouse extensions capable of automating picking, sorting, routing, and exception handling. These use cases are designed to help enterprises deal with high-volume, high-variability warehouse environments while improving accuracy and reducing operational strain.
• Fleet Management:
The partnership will extend multi-agent AI frameworks to optimise fleet routing, asset utilisation, and logistics efficiency. The idea is to bring predictive intelligence to large-scale transportation networks so that routing, maintenance, and dispatch decisions can be made in real time.
• 3D Reality Capture and Embodied AI:
The companies will also explore embodied AI capabilities that combine 3D mapping, environment sensing, and automated analysis. These tools support everything from factory-floor safety monitoring to advanced asset tracking and real-time operational insights.
These Physical AI use cases are tailored for sectors such as manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, industrial engineering and automotive, where real-world processes need adaptive and responsive automation.
A Strategic Step Toward Intelligent, Autonomous Operations
According to HCLTech, the collaboration is designed to bring tangible automation outcomes at scale by tightly integrating enterprise systems with physical operations. By combining SAP’s digital core with HCLTech’s cognitive robotics and AI capabilities, enterprises will be able to build workflows where AI agents act across both digital and physical layers.
Vijay Guntur, CTO and Head of Ecosystems at HCLTech, said the partnership allows enterprises to accelerate innovation and “realise measurable value from automation at scale.” SAP CTO Dr. Philipp Herzig added that Physical AI represents the next step in advancing industrial AI capabilities, particularly in manufacturing and supply chain environments.
Positioning for the Next Wave of Enterprise Automation
This collaboration reflects a broader industry shift toward agent-based and embodied AI systems that can independently execute operational tasks. As factories and supply chains grow more complex, enterprises are seeking automation that goes beyond software-driven workflows and embeds intelligence into physical systems.
By combining their expertise, HCLTech and SAP aim to help organisations modernise industrial operations, improve reliability, reduce manual dependencies, and unlock new efficiencies as Physical AI adoption accelerates globally.
