Artificial Intelligence (AI)
February 3, 2026 at 12:58 pm
If technology matures at a pace closer to dog years than human, then we’ve already witnessed a century of conversational intelligence since Siri first appeared on our iPhones 15 years ago. As ChatGPT and a constellation of other large language models (LLMs) continue to evolve at an exponential speed and scale, legacy interactive voice response…
February 2, 2026 at 2:49 pm
The adoption of artificial intelligence has transformed digital marketing. Traditional search engine optimization efforts are now incorporating GEO (generative engine optimization) principles to reflect the rise of AI search, creating a new paradigm for online presence. Below are three key predictions about how brand discovery will be transformed in 2026. 1. AI engagement will become…
February 2, 2026 at 1:37 pm
The retail industry is already steeped in the nonstop buzz of artificial intelligence. While hype is high, action is lagging. The time is now to accelerate or be left at the bus stop. Yet the question remains: Is there a real return on investment in AI? A recent Google study, ROI of AI, found that…
February 2, 2026 at 1:10 pm
I once had a boss I thought was kind of ridiculous. A larger-than-life persona topped off with a pair of ludicrous luxury sneakers. You can imagine my surprise when, six months later, I bought the same pair. Those shoes, which I whimsically tried on following a small windfall at work, were comfortable and looked amazing.…
January 28, 2026 at 5:33 pm
At the National Retail Federation Big Show in New York City earlier this month, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviewed Tony Bacos, chief product and technology officer at Stitch Fix, an online personal styling service. Bacos detailed how Stitch Fix works to target common shopping challenges and change the way consumers discover style recommendations through the utilization…
January 28, 2026 at 12:15 pm
The way people shop during the holidays has shifted so dramatically that the old idea of a single “peak” moment no longer fits. What used to be a frantic sprint around Black Friday and Cyber Monday has stretched into something slower, more deliberate and, frankly, more interesting. Consumers are buying earlier, using artificial intelligence to…
January 28, 2026 at 9:34 am
Retailers have been hearing about “the future of AI” for years, but 2026 is the year it will become operational. Artificial intelligence is quickly moving from being a novelty that consumers test out with curiosity to a tool they turn to for comparisons, deal-finding, and full purchase-path orchestration. In PYMNTS’ 2025 Black Friday survey, 50.3…
January 27, 2026 at 1:10 pm
Shoppers today encounter ads almost everywhere — from social media feeds and TV commercials to grocery store displays. This creates tremendous opportunities for retail marketers, but also presents a growing challenge. Managing touchpoints across channels such as video, audio, display, and sponsored ads while keeping creatives timely and on-brand has become incredibly complex. Each new…
January 27, 2026 at 12:04 pm
Payments innovation is no longer about simply adopting artificial intelligence. It’s about pairing intelligent systems with human-in-the-loop accountability so that compliance, context and ethics evolve as quickly as the technology itself. In 2025, AI reshaped payments. In 2026, it will redefine them. Retailers, payment service providers, and the platforms that support them are entering a…
January 26, 2026 at 5:17 pm
At the National Retail Federation Big Show in New York City earlier this month, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviewed Dave Stevens, chief technology officer at Canadian women's fashion house Groupe Dynamite, and Kevin Bass, vice president of professional services at global supply chain technology leader Manhattan Associates. They covered topics such as the impact of agentic artificial…
