This month, Google Shopping was "rebuilt from the ground up with AI" and Amazon started rolling out its AI Shopping Guides to all US customers. An RMIT expert comments on the future of AI-assisted shopping.
Dr Jason Pallant, Senior Lecturer in Marketing
"Retailers have already been using AI in many ways behind the scenes to plan and make purchasing decisions, optimise supply chain decisions, and even update pricing. Yet the rise and easy access of generative AI tools has unlocked many new possibilities, for both retailers and consumers.
"Retailers are exploring how to use new AI models to personalise the customer experience (goodbye generic chatbots), and even offer 'hyper-personalisation'. Consumers are already well versed with these uses of AI in major streaming services like Spotify and Netflix, but we will start seeing it elsewhere very shortly. Brands like Nike are already using generative AI to design new product prototypes, while beauty brands like L'Oreal and Sephora are using AI to guide consumers with personalised recommendations and virtual product testing.
"At the same time, tools are emerging for consumers to use AI as personalised shopping assistants, offering personalised suggestions, and even hunting down better deals. Google's new AI-powered shopping tool helps users search for products to suit their individual needs, and even find the best prices. These announcements come after providers like Klarna have been offering AI-assisted shopping to consumers as early as last year. Amazon, famous for its leading recommendation engine, has also launched AI-powered guides for consumers across a range of 100 categories (with more coming).
"Like any emerging technology, the exciting possibilities are balanced by important considerations about the limits of the technology itself, and the ethical and legal ramifications it raises. It can already be challenging for smaller brands to gain exposure through channels like Google or social media sites; how will they now navigate new AI-driven shopping channels? Will brands be able to, or even have to, pay to be recommended by AI tools or be included in 'AI Guides'? If so, how can we protect ourselves from further biases towards major conglomerates?"
Dr Jason Pallant is frequently published on the impact of emerging technologies on consumer behaviour, particularly in retail. He is the only Australian academic named to Re:Think Retail's list of Global Top Retail Experts in 2023 and 2024, and is a judge for multiple national retail awards, alongside his academic and consulting work.
***
