Artificial Intelligence (AI)

OpenAI, maker of artificial intelligence large language model ChatGPT, announced on Friday it would begin testing ads in the U.S. to users on the free and low-cost tier ($8 a month) of ChatGPT. In a note on openai.com detailing its "ads principles," CEO of Applications Fidji Simo said the ads would appear at the bottom…

While at the National Retail Federation Big Show in New York City last week, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviewed Shirley Gao, chief digital and information officer at Pacsun, a purpose-driven, leading specialty retailer, and Sharon Gee, head of AI at Commerce, an open, AI-driven commerce ecosystem and parent company of BigCommerce, Feedonomics, and Makeswift. They discuss…

Retail has never been more technologically advanced and yet never more overwhelming. Over the last decade, marketing tools multiplied, customer journeys fragmented, and artificial intelligence became the new buzzword stamped on every dashboard. Yet if you strip all that noise away, retailers, especially small ones, want the same thing they’ve always wanted — to build…

Retail marketing is moving through a period of realignment. Privacy expectations, rapid artificial intelligence adoption, and the demand for accountable performance are reshaping how retailers plan, execute and evaluate campaigns. Tools are advancing quickly, yet the shift in how teams think about data, measurement and activation will matter even more. In 2026, retailers will move…

Retail is entering a new phase of digital maturity, one where artificial intelligence isn’t just a tool to optimize processes, but the engine behind new business models. From retail media networks to concept creation within R&D, AI is redefining how brands create value, engage consumers, and scale innovation. In 2025, we saw retailers moving from…

If 2025 was the year retailers experimented with artificial intelligence, 2026 will be the year the industry is forced to confront a harder truth: AI will absolutely reshuffle the power dynamics across discovery, media and onsite experience. And most retailers aren’t ready. The industry is fascinated with the idea of end-to-end AI shopping agents making…

In the past year, at least a dozen major tech firms and retailers have launched artificial intelligence shopping agents. AI is no longer operating quietly behind the scenes; it's taking an active role in how people shop, compare and decide. Over the coming months, this shift will make life much better for consumers and much…

The future of shopping is no longer about searching. It’s about delegating. Soon, consumers won’t need to sift through pages of products or toggle between tabs comparing prices. Instead, artificial intelligence (AI) agents will handle much of the shopping journey on their behalf, from product discovery to purchase, ushering in a new, frictionless era of…

Walmart and Google announced on Sunday that consumers will soon be able to use Google’s artificial intelligence assistant Gemini to more easily discover and buy products from the retail giant and its warehouse club, Sam’s Club. Incoming Walmart CEO John Furner and Google CEO Sundar Pichai made the announcement on stage at the National Retail…

Surviving on an average net profit of just 1.6 percent, grocers haven’t typically had much room to experiment with new ways of doing business. At the same time, advanced data analytics and machine learning have rapidly disrupted how retailers operate and raised the bar for consumer expectations, including other low-margin retail sectors. Why has grocery…