How UtilityPilot works
UtilityPilot is a Global Trade, Business & Commerce Problem Solver spanning goods, money and time. You describe a problem in plain language; Pilot interprets it, gathers the inputs it needs, selects the right deterministic engine, and connects one calculation to the next. Every number is produced by a verifiable engine — never invented by AI.
1. Understanding a commercial question
When you ask Pilot something like “duty on 500 cotton t-shirts from India into the US”, it first works out what kind of problem this is — a classification, a duty estimate, a landed-cost build-up, a deadline, or a money calculation. It identifies the commercial intent and the skill (or chain of skills) that can answer it, rather than matching keywords to a single page.
2. Extracting and confirming inputs
Pilot then extracts the concrete values already present in your wording — quantities, prices, dimensions, dates, materials, origin and destination — and shows them back to you in a “what I understood” summary. You can correct anything before a calculation runs, so the inputs driving the result are always visible and confirmable.
3. Requesting missing information, one decision at a time
If something required is missing — a destination country for a duty estimate, or a material for classification — Pilot asks a single, focused question rather than presenting a long form. Each answer narrows the problem, and the request is framed as one clear decision so you always know why it is being asked.
4. Deterministic calculation engines
Every numerical result is produced by a deterministic engine using standard, published formulas. The same inputs always produce the same output, and each result shows the formula and assumptions behind it. These examples are evidence of that determinism, not the identity of the product:
Import Duty
Customs value × Ad valorem duty rate ÷ 100
Customs value is typically CIF (goods + international freight + insurance) in most countries and FOB in the United States. The final rate is set by the destination customs authority based on the classified code, origin and applicable trade agreements.
Landed Cost
Goods + Freight + Insurance + Duty + Import taxes + Fees
Each component is either provided by you or computed by an upstream engine (for example duty from the classified code). Excluded costs are stated explicitly so the total is auditable.
VAT / GST (Add)
Net amount × (1 + rate ÷ 100)
Rates are user-entered or drawn from a referenced registry; the engine never guesses a jurisdiction’s rate. Confirm with the relevant tax authority before filing.
Chargeable Weight (Air Freight)
max(Actual weight, L × W × H cm³ ÷ 6,000)
Carriers charge the greater of actual and dimensional weight. IATA standard divisor is 6,000; couriers typically use 5,000.
Gross Margin
(Revenue − Cost of Goods Sold) ÷ Revenue × 100
Gross, not net — it excludes operating expenses, taxes and overheads. Used to show the commercial impact of a landed-cost result.
Business Days Between Dates
Calendar days excluding weekends and public holidays
Public holidays are defined per country from official schedules. Confirm against the official calendar for legal deadlines.
5. Where AI is used — and where it is not
AI is used only to interpret language and to assist with classification: understanding intent, pulling out the values you gave, and suggesting candidate codes. It is never the calculation authority. It does not perform arithmetic and never invents a rate, code, fee or figure. If AI interpretation is unavailable, Pilot falls back to its built-in deterministic understanding, and the engines still produce the numbers.
6. HS/HTS candidates and why classification is non-binding
For classification, Pilot proposes one or more candidate HS/HTS chapters and headings from your product description, explaining the attributes it used and what is still missing. It never fabricates a precise national code. Classification depends on rules, notes and rulings that only the destination customs authority can apply definitively, so every candidate is presented as guidance and marked non-binding, with a link to verify. See the HS & HTS Code Finder.
7. How we distinguish data sources
Not all inputs carry the same authority. Pilot keeps four layers distinct so you can judge how much to rely on a result:
8. Assumptions, exclusions, confidence and verification
Every answer is governed by explicit statements rather than hidden defaults:
- →Assumptions are listed on the result so you can see exactly what was taken as given (for example CIF vs FOB customs value).
- →Exclusions name the costs or factors not included, so a landed-cost total is never mistaken for an all-in figure.
- →A confidence level signals how firm the result is — high for pure arithmetic on your inputs, lower where classification or estimation is involved.
- →Verification warnings point to the official source to confirm against, especially for duty rates, tax rates and classification.
9. Connecting compound workflows
The flagship flow chains several engines so the output of one becomes the input of the next, with the chain visible end to end:
- 1Classify: a plain-language product description is mapped to candidate HS/HTS chapters and headings.
- 2Duty: the chosen code plus destination and origin drive an ad valorem duty estimate.
- 3Freight & insurance: dimensions and weights feed chargeable-weight and freight engines.
- 4Landed cost: goods, freight, insurance, duty and fees are combined into an auditable total.
- 5Margin & pricing: landed cost flows into margin, markup and target-price tools.
- 6Alternative sourcing: origin can be varied to compare duty and landed cost across trade agreements.
10. Privacy and server-side interpretation
The arithmetic runs deterministically in your browser. When you use Ask Pilot, the wording of your question may be sent to our servers so an AI service can interpret it; the maths still runs on the deterministic engine. We collect privacy-safe analytics that never include your question text, entered values, prices, or the codes and results produced. Please avoid entering confidential information. Full detail is in our Privacy Policy.