Tech Trends for 2025: How AI Will Continue to Shape the Retail Space

The retail industry is innovating, with artificial intelligence leading the way. In this article, I’ll explore the key tech trends set to shape the sector in 2025 — and how they will transform customer experiences and operations.

1. AI-Driven Personalization and Customer Service

In 2025, the retail landscape will see a new level of AI-driven personalization and clienteling. From product recommendations to dynamic pricing, retailers will be able to tailor their offer to customers at the individual level. Also thanks to the evolution in AI, customer data analysis will be more accurate than ever, enabling even better clienteling.

As for customer service, we expect to see significant improvements in user experience and problem resolution. AI-driven chatbots and virtual assistants will provide customized recommendations, answer queries, and even process transactions, offering better responses and faster resolutions.

2. Better Data Security and Transparency

As retailers implement AI to create more personalized experiences, they must address growing concerns around data security. Consumers are becoming more vigilant about how their personal information is used, especially as AI processes more sensitive data. Regulation, too, is tightening.

Therefore, retailers must put strong data protection measures into place — and communicate them transparently. Ensuring secure data capture, processing and storage will be essential to maintaining customer confidence and adoption of emerging technologies.

3. Smarter Self-Service Shopping

Technologies that let customers skip traditional checkout lines, like Scan & Go, have gained popularity over the past few years. More and more retailers are integrating the technology into their applications. Some are going even further, with Sam’s Club adopting a Scan & Go-only shopping policy in its new Texas store.

Furthermore, smart carts are about to become more prevalent, with retailers such as Intermarché and Coles running trials since 2024. The smart shopping cart market is expected to increase fourfold, reaching $9.74 billion by 2030. While challenges like high implementation costs and some consumer hesitation exist, the overall trend suggests that smart carts will achieve a significant presence in retail this year, particularly in large retail chains.

4. Frictionless, Digital Payments Everywhere

Consumers now expect frictionless shopping experiences, and the payments landscape will continue to evolve to meet this demand. Digital wallets, contactless payments, and biometric authentication will gain popularity, enabling faster and more secure transactions.

This applies both offline and online. In e-commerce, we expect to see a rise in credit card scanning functionalities integrated within apps. Eliminating the extra step of manually entering card details can help minimize cart abandonment.

5. Automation

Scanning technologies not only enhance the customer experience but also ensure accurate stock-level data. Leveraging such scan data helps AI-driven automation predict demand and streamline supply chains while minimizing errors and operational costs. For instance, automated demand forecasting tools analyze purchasing patterns and seasonal trends, helping retailers improve inventory management and reduce waste.

Max Stratmann is CRO of Scanbot SDK, which builds barcode scanning software for mobile apps and websites.