Routing solution borrows smarts from bees

VANCOUVER, BeeC—Routific, widely considered to be a new breakthrough in tackling the vehicle routing problem, has revealed they have borrowed a little wisdom from honey bees in developing their route optimization algorithm. Routific is a smart logistics platform that optimizes routes for last-mile delivery fleets, saving businesses time and fuel.

Routific engineers drew inspiration from the “Bees Algorithm” – a heuristic in computer science that mimics the food foraging behavior of swarms of honey bees. A colony of honey bees must cover long distances in multiple directions to harvest nectar and pollen from multiple flower patches. Scout bees must not only evaluate the quality of the food sources but also find the quickest route from flower-to-flower.

Similar to how bees optimize their flight paths, Routific has developed a proprietary solution that draws on some of the smartest and fastest-performing heuristics. As a result, optimization is quick, flexible, and performant, enabling delivery businesses to save on operating costs and reduce their carbon footprint by nearly 40 percent.

“We’re leveraging the age-old wisdom of honey bees in order to help delivery businesses work smarter and more efficiently,” said Routific founder and CEO Marc Kuo. “Bees are some of the hardest working creatures on the planet, and they’re amazing team players. I can’t think of better inspiration for our team at Routific.”

Routific is also getting hands-on beekeeping experience with Hives for Humanity, a non-profit that works with at-risk populations in Vancouver. “We are thrilled Routific is raising awareness around pollinators and people in the city,” said chief beekeeper Julia Common. “Bees have experienced a drastic population decline around the world, but the good news is that we can all support pollinator health in our communities by planting gardens and supporting local beekeepers.”