2024 was a transformative year – reshaping how we view supply chain risk. Supply chains make the world go round – and can also bring it to a screeching halt.

Specifically, we saw the nonreversible merging of the physical and digital supply chain.
Supply chains are not simply the shipping of goods but the underpinning of sharing information. No one will forget how the Crowdstrike outage grounded flights, locked banking transactions and impeded business operations – showing it’s not just a physical supply chain that we need to be concerned with, or how the Hezbollah device attacks showed a sophisticated weaponization of the physical supply chain, signaling a new era of modern warfare.
interos.ai’s inaugural Predictions Report walks through key highlights from 2024 as well as markers to be on the lookout for as we move into 2025.
Geopolitical
2024 was the year of democracy – there were over 80 elections globally, and half of the world’s population voted bringing global election security to the forefront of cybersecurity and disinformation professionals, worldwide.
US Sanctions ramped up with more entities being added by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security ‘s Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) entity list, bringing the total to over 100 organizations and more than $3.4 billion worth of goods being reviewed in two years. Separately, though just as significant, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned the last of the top three Russian financial institutions as part of the U.S. efforts to aid Ukraine in the Russia-Ukraine war.
Trade, Ports and Labor Strikes
Labor strikes loomed in Canada, India and the US, with talks resuming for the International Longshoreman’s Association (ILA) in 2025. 40% of goods traded to the U.S. on any given day go through ILA controlled ports with trade increasing 25x since the last full ILA strike in 1977. The economic fallout of a full labor strike could be catastrophic.
The Baltimore bridge collapse added significant cost and congestion to the automobile, energy and manufacturing sectors as imports were diverted to other ports. Baltimore is the top port in the nation for automobile shipments and a crucial hub for coal exports.
The ripple effects of damage to just one U.S. port shows the fragility of supply chains and underscores the need for proactive risk management.
Climate-Induced Supply Chain Disruptions
Historic storms Hurricane Helene and Milton bore down on the U.S. in 2024 impacting core manufacturing, aerospace, agriculture and medical industries with extended supply chains comprised of over 2 million businesses.
Supply chains have seen the competitive rise of ESG and sustainability. Global legislation is requiring organizations to focus on ethical and environmental practices or face steep fines and reputational damage. The impending EU’s Deforestation Regulation has upped the ante for businesses to have visibility and eliminate ties to risky products in their supply chains. Globally governments continue to mandate ESG and climate reporting, such as Australia’s recent legislation for climate-related financial disclosures.
As we look ahead to 2025, two things are certain:
- Supply chains are the vast and sprawling connective tissue powering our economy
- Eliminating risks in supply chains is more than ad hoc risk management, it is a requirement for healthy business.
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