In 2013, five years after the project's inception, IBM researchers developed a platform for collecting and managing data on pharmaceutical distribution, making a significant advancement towards the technology's real application. Pharmaceutical companies, according to the program's general manager Lee Munyeon, are interested in learning "how to put data about shipments at the service of my procurement teams." The company thinks that this can prevent mistakes whether or not they are placed in the appropriate container. The foundation of IBM's business is a system for expediting product shipping routes through the seaports of China, Singapore, and Indonesia.