Future of retail AI

Patrick Dixon is a global keynote speaker on future retail and AI, author of 19 books

NEW AI BOOK IN BESTSELLER LIST FOR 12 MONTHs IN AIRPORTS GLOBALLY - WH SMITHS

MANY OF MY CLIENTS are huge retailers or have retail products that sell globally and this is a sector that is changing at great speed but not always as people expect.

AI will be vital to the future of retail. Take online sales, which have reached 22% of retail globally.

This figure leapt during COVID but will not leap forward as much again because there is a natural limit here – physical retail will always play an important role in every society.

The UK is one of the world’s most advanced online economies: online sales shot up during the pandemic from 20% to 37%, then (as I predicted) dropped back again, to 32%, which is probably close to where it will be for the longer term – significantly less than 50%.

By 2030, 90% of all customer interactions with larger companies will be AI-driven, referring on to humans only as needed. But it will be easy to alienate customers with poorly designed AI, especially with long delays to speak to a real person when AI can’t help.

But at the same time a REALITY CHECK - in 2026, 90% of company CEOs and corporate executives in two large global surveys said they had yet to see ANY benefit from their AI investment over the last 2-3 years - that is despite a global spend of over $4 trillion. They should have read my book first - big lesson: focus on small, practical areas to fix with short payback period, using easily adaptable AI tools.

In the US, 70% of consumers are worried about wrong information from AI-linked chat tools, and half prefer a member of staff.

Of all retail sales across the EU, 70% are captured by just eight companies and all depend on AI to predict local demand for every item. As a result, product ranges vary a lot from one area to another, in the same retail chain.

For many years, larger retailers have also used predictive tools to work out better ways to place products inaisles, to encourage impulse shopping, or add-ons.

AI will take this to a new level, while also helping stores save costs in restocking.

Daily Telegraph review (14 September 2024 UK): 

"If you need to acquire instant AI mastery in time for your next board meeting, Dixon’s your man. 

Dixon gives us plenty to think about: AI’s role in surveillance; AI’s role in intellectual freedom and copyright; AI’s role in warfare; AI’s role in human obsolescence – his exhaustive list runs to over two dozen chapters.

Business types will enjoy Dixon's meticulous lists and his willingness to argue both sides against the middle."

Read on - buy BESTSELLER LIST book NOW. How AI Will Change Your Life

Looking for world-class keynote speaker on Future Retail AI? Call +44 7768511390

* Dr Patrick Dixon is one of the world's best known keynote speakers on global trends, often described as Europe’s leading Futurist. Author of 19 books, he has advised over 400 of the world’s largest corporations, often sharing platforms with their CEOs at their most important global events. His clients include Google, Microsoft, IBM, Intel, LinkedIn and many of the world’s largest manufacturers as well as governments. Patrick is a cancer physician by first training and his first start-up company some decades years ago was an AI-simulator, using computers to talk to and diagnose patients. His website globalchange.com has had 15 million unique visitors with 9 million video views.

How AI will change your life - Contents of Book

Chapter Headings:

Part One: How AI Is Evolving

1 The Truth About Artificial Intelligence 

2 Super-Smart AI and a Reality Check 

Part Two: How AI Will Shape Our Future World

3 Workplace AI

4 Office Workers - impact of AI

5 Healthcare - how AI will drive better health

6 Pharma, Disease Prevention and Wellness - how AI will transform pharma

7 Education – in School and at College - AI challenges to education

8 Adult Education and ‘Truth’ - why AI will redefine "Truth"

9 Software Development - AI will help but less than many think

10 Film-making and Music - get ready for AI revolution

11 Search Engines, Social Media, Publishing and Art - massive AI impact

12 Marketing - most campaigns will be driven entirely by AI

13 Retail - AI will have huge impact on retail eg fashion

14 Travel and Leisure - multiple impacts of AI on airlines, auto industry etc

15 Relationships - relationships with AI bots, and impact of AI on human to human relationships

16 Food Industry - AI will drive greater efficiency

17 Satellites and Space Colonies - impossible without AI

18 Manufacturing, Logistics and Supply Chains - major benefits from AI

19 Construction and Cities - AI will transform construction and the built environment

20 Environment - AI will consume huge amounts of power but also enable sustainability initiatives

21 Pensions and Wealth Management - AI already controls most investment decisions

22 Corporate and Retail Banking, and Insurance - AI poses major threats but will deliver cost savings

23 Cybersecurity - greatest risk from AI right now

24 Surveillance - AI is every dictator's dream tech

25 Military and War - get ready for AI driven wars

26 Government - AI will enhance government and threaten democracy 

Part Three: How Should We Respond?

27 Ten Steps for Governments 

28 Twelve Steps for Individuals 

29 Ten Steps for Companies 

30 Postscript – A Story 

Read on - buy BESTSELLER LIST book NOW.  "How AI Will Change Your Life".