Holiday Shopping: AI makes it easier

With the holiday season around the corner, retailers are geared to offer their customers a hassle-free and personalized shopping experience. One key technology that is anticipated to play a great role in this effort is artificial intelligence. According to Romain Lerallut, VP and head of Criteo's AI Lab, "AI is predicted to make a huge difference during Cyber Week and the holidays.".

Lerallut notes that AI has been around for decades, but its capabilities have improved dramatically in recent years. "We used to call it machine learning," he says. "One thing I've been amazed by over the last couple of years is the speed, it's like a hockey stick,  so everything I say today might be obsolete by tomorrow."

So, what can AI bring to the holiday shopping season? Lerallut identifies two key trends. The first is the use of AI for performance and personalization. This involves using machine learning algorithms to analyze customer data and provide personalized product recommendations. The second trend is the use of generative AI to create content, such as product descriptions and images.

A major advantage of AI is that it can capture context and learn to understand the world. Especially during the holiday season, many customers want a product for one person or find a special deal for a good thing; with AI, retailers can provide personalized recommendations based on customer preferences and behaviour.

But can mid-size retailers take advantage of AI? According to Lerallut, some aspects of AI are already commoditizing and within smaller retailers' reach. However, higher advanced capabilities, such as personalized AI generation, will possibly be harder to access and may require high investments in data and infrastructure.

At some point, it will be noticed when AI becomes so entrenched in the retail industry. According to Lerallut, though, that's not what this is all about. It's meant to be seamless and helpful for the customer. "If the AI does its job, it should be transparent and natural," he says. "It should feel like something useful and helpful."

Ultimately, though, there will be success in AI in retail if value is added to the customer and retailer alike. As Lerallut infers, "It's not just hype. That's the bottom line."

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