Canals introduces end-to-end operating AI for distributors, automating repetitive workflows for customer-winning service

Canals, the leader in AI for wholesale distribution, today announced the launch of new offerings creating an end-to-end Operating AI for distributors. The expanded capabilities empower teams across Sales, Customer Service, Accounting, Purchasing, and Receiving to save time and get customers what they need sooner, leading to greater customer loyalty and sales at any scale.

Distributors today are inundated with customers reaching out not just for orders and quotes, but also questions about products, order status, billing, and more. Speed and visibility are more important than ever. With this suite of solutions, Canals expands automation to handle all types of inquiries and the cross-company workflows that enable accurate and timely answers. New functionality includes:

- AI PO-to-Receipt Tracking: Keeps your ERP updated with the latest ship dates and quantities from suppliers by automatically reading and uploading PO Acknowledgements, Advance Ship Notices, and packing slips, or integrating directly with vendor APIs. Purchasing and Receiving teams have seen up to 80% time savings, and customer-facing teams no longer waste time second guessing ERP data.

- AI Accounts Receivable: Accelerates cash application by automatically matching payments to invoices, auto-applying all matches, and flagging short pays and other mismatches with likely reasons. Early customers have achieved up to 99% match accuracy, helping save time, reduce posting errors, and streamline customer communication.

- AI Inquiry Handling: Generates suggested responses to customer questions about order status, products, and billing/account issues by identifying what’s asked and automatically pulling relevant context from your ERP and other sources. Less manual searching and typing leads to faster responses and more consistent customer service.

- Ask Canals Chatbot: Provides instant, cited answers to questions about product information, availability, specifications, policies, and more, reducing time spent searching for information across sources and reliance on experienced employees.

- Live Voice: Brings AI-powered order entry to spoken interactions by transcribing the audio and converting it into structured line items in real-time. Whether at the counter, in the field, on the phone, or processing voicemails, reps can create orders at the speed of conversation and reduce errors and follow-up calls.

“In wholesale distribution, winning business has always come down to operational execution —how quickly and accurately distributors can respond across thousands of daily interactions to deliver outstanding customer service,” said Michael Delgado, Co-Founder and CEO of Canals. “What’s changing now is the ability to automate the tedious, repetitive parts of that execution end-to-end. From Sales to Purchasing to Accounting, every team can move quickly to keep orders flowing and customers coming back.”