US Foods reported a 4.5% year-over-year rise in net sales for its fiscal second quarter, and executives linked part of that growth to accelerated investments in digital and AI tools aimed at boosting seller productivity and improving supply-chain efficiency.
Q2 performance and outlook
For the quarter ended June 27, US Foods posted net sales of $10.5 billion and gross profit of $1.9 billion—a gross-profit increase of 8.0% year over year. Total case volume rose 1.9%, while independent-restaurant case volume grew 5.1%.
Chief executive David Flitman said the results were “in line with our long-range plan” and reaffirmed the company’s 2026 full-year outlook, which calls for net sales growth in a 4% to 6% range. CFO Dirk Locascio attributed margin expansion to a mix of volume growth, gross-profit gains and cost-productivity improvements, and noted $174 million in capital expenditures year to date.
Embedding AI into sales and supply-chain workflows
US Foods describes AI as a practical, embedded capability across customer-facing and operational processes rather than an experimental add-on. Management framed the technology as a targeted investment meant to deliver measurable business outcomes.
On the sales side, the company rolled out an internally developed tool called Visit Assistant Insights. Management says the AI-enabled assistant produced more than 700,000 actionable insights in its first six weeks, helping sellers prioritize opportunities and prepare for customer calls. Those time savings, the company argues, can shift seller time from preparation to customer-facing activity.
US Foods is also piloting a generative AI sales assistant: a chatbot intended to deliver real-time answers, insights and recommendations within sellers’ daily workflows to further improve effectiveness.
Operations and logistics have been targeted as well. Management cited AI-based demand forecasting and labor planning, paired with Descartes routing software, as drivers of improved service and productivity and reduced working capital. Better forecasting is expected to support in-stock performance and reduce waste; more efficient routing should improve delivery execution and cut miles driven.
Implications for customers, vendors and competitors
For restaurant customers and other buyers, successful forecast and routing improvements could mean more consistent product availability and more reliable deliveries. For US Foods’ salesforce, AI-driven, customer-specific insights and a conversational assistant could change seller workflows by reallocating time toward more customer engagement.
Strategically, the company positions these technology investments as differentiation tools tied to measurable outcomes—higher seller productivity, tighter inventory control and lower logistics costs. Management emphasizes applying AI to high-return, core activities rather than to isolated experiments.
The company’s disclosures so far focus on internal adoption metrics and projected benefits; independent verification of long-term results—such as concrete margin improvements, waste reductions and fuel savings—has not been provided.
What to watch next
Near-term signals to track: whether the generative AI sales-assistant pilot leads to measurable changes in seller productivity and sales outcomes; whether forecast-accuracy gains are quantified in future reporting; and whether US Foods begins to disclose specific, technology-driven cost savings tied to routing or inventory improvements.
