Coca-Cola’s CIO Focuses on AI Pilots That Drive Real Business Impact

Coca-Cola’s CIO backs AI pilots that boost sales and efficiency while ensuring human oversight.

According to Coca-Cola CIO Neeraj Tolmare, the company will only approve AI pilot projects he funds if it can see significant cost savings or income generation after production is complete. According to Tolmare, this approach is in line with a directive from Coke CEO James Quincey and the larger leadership group, which asserts that AI research needs to be linked to a concrete outcome that helps the business.

Being ranked 97th on the Fortune 500, Coca-Cola operates on a tremendous scale. Every AI wager made by Tolmare must include the installation costs as well as the potential internal applications of the technology in a variety of departments, from sales to software development.

He must also take into account how emerging technologies like agentic AI could change workflows and data sharing both within Coca-Cola and with key external partners, including the 950 production plants and 200 bottlers that together support the company’s daily delivery of 2.2 billion beverages.

The creation of an algorithm by Coke to assist retail establishments in better anticipating demand and utilizing AI to guarantee that their shelves are consistently adequately stocked is one pilot that Tolmare is most enthusiastic about.

Sales representatives used to visit businesses every few weeks, and occasionally they would encounter coolers that were only partially filled. Coke was forced to rely on historical retail scan data in an attempt to forecast future demand. However, using AI, the business was able to develop an algorithm that more accurately forecasts future sales by combining historical data with weather patterns, a crucial factor when buying beverages, and Google geolocation data.