SPS Commerce introduced MAX, a new set of agentic capabilities embedded within its supply chain network. The company said the technology places artificial intelligence directly inside day-to-day retail trading workflows.
MAX draws on the scale of SPS connections and transaction history to detect patterns, guide actions, and coordinate partners across fulfillment activity.
The release follows January automation and integration updates that expanded how SPS connects retailers, suppliers, and logistics providers. MAX initially rolls out to fulfillment customers in beta, with additional details expected during a March webinar.
What MAX Does
MAX inserts intelligence into operational flow. Three initial capabilities define how the system participates in daily work across the network.
- Chat provides direct access to SPS network knowledge about trading partners, highlights patterns that may signal emerging issues, and guides users through resolution steps intended to prevent chargebacks or shipment failures.
- Monitor reviews transactions, requirements, and exceptions across network activity, surfaces risks, and supports continuity of operations even when teams are offline.
- Connect extends those actions beyond the SPS environment through support for Model Context Protocol (MCP), allowing MAX to interact with external agents as well as enterprise systems such as ERP, CRM, and data platforms.
SPS executives describe the approach as moving beyond data exchange toward systems that understand process context and business intent within live workflows.
How MAX Extends SPS Strategy
The announcement follows a series of releases earlier this year. January updates introduced deeper ERP automation, PDF order ingestion, and expanded tools for shared performance visibility between retailers and suppliers.
Those moves reinforced how SPS sits inside daily trading operations. The company already manages onboarding, compliance alignment, and performance measurement across its network, combining software with structured processes and services.
MAX places automation inside that activity. Capabilities that relied on reports, alerts, or human follow-up now operate within the transaction flow.
Where MAX Sits in the Market
SPS’s announcement reflects an industry push toward embedding intelligence in execution itself. Advantage is accruing to platforms that align standardized data, automation, and coordinated response across partner networks.
Across retail technology, providers are pushing intelligence toward the point where orders are created, confirmed, shipped, and reconciled. ERP integration, shared performance metrics, and standardized data exchange form the base layer.
Financial markets are watching closely. Investors have questioned how quickly expanded product portfolios translate into revenue acceleration, margin improvement, and durable platform economics, even as SPS continues to report long records of growth.
MAX therefore enters an environment where innovation must demonstrate operational and commercial effect. The degree to which agentic capabilities reduce exceptions, compress cycle times, or increase network participation may shape how both customers and shareholders evaluate the next phase of the company’s strategy.
What This Means for ERP Insiders
Decision logic is shifting into the network. Systems are beginning to influence outcomes at the moment orders move between partners. Supply chain providers will increasingly compete on how effectively they prevent disruption inside live operations.
SPS is building an operating environment. Successive releases show the company expanding from connectivity into coordination, performance management, and now embedded intervention. The direction suggests a platform positioned at the center of trade.
Investors are scrutinizing how products perform. Broader capability raises expectations that integration depth translates into measurable efficiency, resilience, and margin strength. Valuation will follow evidence of repeatable advantage.
