Medline Industries is expanding its use of artificial intelligence (AI) and warehouse robotics as it ramps up growth following its December initial public offering (IPO).

On its first earnings call as a public company, CEO James Boyle said Medline is preparing a broader midyear rollout of Mpower, an AI-based supply chain platform developed in collaboration with Microsoft. The system is designed as a digital “control tower” that helps hospital customers automate forecasting, manage inventory levels, streamline product substitutions and flag potential supply disruptions before they occur.

Medline said it is piloting Mpower with multiple health systems and expects to expand the rollout later this year.

Medline AI and automation at distribution centers

The company is also accelerating automation inside its distribution centers.

Medline said its Colorado facility received its first AutoStore installation and two California sites added second systems. AutoStore is a goods-to-person robotic picking system for individual-item orders. Medline said it now operates AutoStore in 19 U.S. facilities with more than 2,100 robots, aimed at improving order accuracy and speed.

The next phase is a pilot program for bulk picking at Medline’s Columbus, Ohio, distribution center. The company is partnering with Symbotic, marking what Medline described as Symbotic’s first customer deployment in the health care sector. Executives said the system uses AI-powered robotics to move high-volume goods more efficiently through complex supply chains.

Boyle said the goal is to increase throughput, reduce labor pressure and make existing warehouse space more productive without adding as much new square footage.

Medline’s expansion in 2025

The digital expansion comes as Medline absorbs a record year of new business. Executives said the company signed $2.4 billion in new customer contracts in 2025. That includes the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and a large faith-based health system that consolidated from five distributors to Medline to streamline supply across its care network.

Boyle said health systems are seeking “resilient, sustainable supply chain partners” as reimbursement pressures and policy uncertainty weigh on hospitals.

For its fiscal Q4 ending Dec. 31, 2025, Medline reported sales of $7.8 billion, up 14.8% from $6.8 billion a year earlier. Net earnings fell 37.7% to $180 million, compared with $289 million in Q4 2024.

For the full year, sales increased 11.5% to $28.4 billion, up from $25.5 billion in 2024. Net earnings declined 3.6% to $1.16 billion, compared with $1.20 billion the previous year.

Executives attributed pressure on earnings to higher costs, including tariffs, as well as continued investment in technology, distribution capacity and staffing to support growth.

Medline said it expects organic sales growth of 8% to 9% in 2026 as it rolls out new customer contracts and continues expanding its automation and AI capabilities.

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