The text discusses the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) as significant trends for businesses aiming to enhance productivity and efficiency, with a focus on SWARM Engineering's innovative approach. SWARM Engineering has developed a SaaS platform for optimizing supply chains in the agri-food industry, which uses cognitive computing to provide solutions without requiring users to have coding or advanced AI knowledge. Their AI-powered digital assistant, AVA, aids businesses by capturing critical information and facilitating rapid decision-making, which is crucial for supply chain professionals who need to adapt quickly to changing conditions. SWARM's platform, supported by Couchbase's technological infrastructure, promises significant cost and time savings, such as enabling complex optimizations that save customers at least $1 million per optimization effort and reducing planning time significantly. Their system is particularly effective for multi-objective optimization problems, demonstrating its value in complex logistical scenarios like labor planning and transportation logistics in agriculture.