Over a 30-year career in the U.S. Navy, I’ve eaten many meals aboard ships of all sizes, from destroyers to nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. I know that few things can make or break the morale of a crew, a fleet or an entire armed service quite like the quality of food coming out of the mess. And when crew favorites are in short supply or delayed because of logistical bottlenecks, commanders are right to worry about combat readiness.

America’s military faces significant supply chain challenges. In November of last year, The Wall Street Journal reported how the U.S. armed services rely on bulky truck convoys or air resupply to provide critical goods to our men and women in uniform. Not just ammunition and equipment but, yes, even food. With so many threats in the geopolitical environment, these shortages pose very real threats to America’s national security. In short, our military’s food supply chain must be prepared for the challenge of an armed conflict.

That’s why I’m proud that my company, IBM, and our ecosystem partner, CubeWise, have stepped in to help our sailors at this critical moment. And we’re doing it with technology that is on everyone’s mind, from citizens to federal agencies to Capitol Hill: artificial intelligence (AI).

In January, the U.S. Navy announced a proof of concept that will harness the power of AI to improve food availability and fleet readiness. Organizations today use less than 10 percent of their supply chain data, and they’re totally blind to the 80 percent that is dark or unstructured. IBM will use the AI capabilities of Planning Analytics with Watson® to bring Navy food supply data together and harness its insights. This will allow U.S. Fleet Forces Command, together with its partners, to better plan, predict and balance food supplies while reducing supply chain risks.

The project (and the technology powering it) incorporates both internal and external data, and can adjust for resource constraints, sudden capacity changes and commodity pricing. It will improve forecasting and provide predictive capabilities across the fleet’s food supply chain. And this effort is just the beginning. The technology is product-agnostic, meaning it could easily help our military address supply chain issues on everything from medical supplies to fuel, munitions and beyond.

But that’s the future. Right now, our focus is on delivering for the dedicated sailors in the mess line, waiting for their well-deserved meal. IBM is proud to support them, and we salute their service.