Target developed Proxima, a digital twin of its middle-mile inventory positioning system that determines how goods move between facilities to stores (Supply Chain Dive - Technology). Proxima uses the same data and logic as Target's inventory platform to simulate how decisions play out before teams implement them, allowing teams to correct issues or take alternative paths if potential problems surface (Supply Chain Dive - Technology).
During a small-scale pilot of 63 food items, Target's team simulated inventory flow changes and corrected issues prior to launch, which helped improve on-shelf availability of fresh food products by 2.5% (Supply Chain Dive - Technology). Proxima also played a role in the launch of Target's Houston Receive Center, where the tool simulated inventory movement in and out of the 1.2 million-square-foot facility with about 98% accuracy, enabling Target teams to lessen inventory flow issues after the facility opened (Supply Chain Dive - Technology).
Target plans to scale Proxima across more network functions and aims to develop AI-powered, agentic decision-support capabilities that could help teams evaluate options, prioritize actions, and automate operational responses (Supply Chain Dive - Technology). This reflects Target's broader focus on stronger inventory management through enhanced demand forecasting and machine learning to improve forecasting and decision-making across its supply chain.