Towards a Human-Centric Physical Internet: The Next Digital Transition

Abstract

Franco Maciariello*, Fabrizio Benelli and Redvin Marku

The coming wave of digital transformation will be defined less by technological acceleration in automation and more by the strategic convergence between physical infrastructures, human capabilities and explainable artificial intelligence. Over the past decade, industries have progressively implemented increasingly automated architectures, from smart manufacturing to predictive analytics and robotic platforms. Yet the macro-trend that now emerges across critical infrastructures suggests a shift toward a more distributed, interoperable and ethically driven ecosystem where the Physical Internet, originally conceived for logistics, evolves into a transversal organizational paradigm. In such a view, infrastructures become cognitive systems capable of enabling the secure exchange of information, energy, skills and operational decisions across heterogeneous domains. The Human-centric Physical Internet represents an evolution of digital infrastructures that moves beyond pure automation, aiming instead to preserve the centrality of human agency through transparent and explainable digital mechanisms. This evolution requires a revision of organizational models, business governance and cross-sector digital capabilities in order to ensure trustworthiness, resilience and compliance with emerging regulatory frameworks. Moreover, the need for distributed intelligence and interoperability across energy, public services and industrial ecosystems calls for new human-AI collaboration patterns, where decision-making is shared, explainable and auditable. The article proposes a conceptual framing of this transition, with particular emphasis on human-in-the-loop operational models, distributed infrastructures, and digital sovereignty across the European context

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