Welcome to the weekly edition of The AI Commerce Brief! Nine AI developments from across eCommerce and retail, from Wayfair's agentic AI push to Zalando's AI-fuelled Q1 growth. Let's get into it
✦ THIS WEEK’S AI INDUSTRY UPDATES
01. JD Sports has become the latest retailer to launch a conversational AI agent on its website, as the sportswear retailer looks for new ways to enhance the online customer experience. The move follows a wider trend of retailers deploying AI-powered chat to guide shoppers through product discovery and support. (source)
02. Lidl is introducing smartphone self-checkout across three stores in Luxembourg via the "Scan&Go" feature in the Lidl Plus app. The stores also feature AI-powered smart scales that can automatically recognise fruit and vegetables, removing the need for manual product look-up at checkout. (source)
03. Lectra, the French tech provider, has launched the latest version of its AI-powered market intelligence solution Retviews, designed to help fashion brands map out how competitors are pricing their products in real time. The tool promises a full view of a brand's competitive fashion landscape, giving retailers and brands faster access to pricing intelligence. (source)
04. Wayfair has signalled its ambition to be a leader in agentic AI, with CEO Niraj Shah confirming partnerships with Perplexity, OpenAI and Google on agentic commerce during the company's quarterly earnings call. On the advertising side, Wayfair is also working with Meta and Pinterest to develop new AI-driven ad units. (source)
05. ReFiBuy, an agentic commerce optimisation platform for brands and retailers, has raised $13.6m in a seed funding round led by NewRoad Capital Partners. The capital will be used to scale ReFiBuy's Commerce Intelligence Engine and accelerate its go-to-market plans. (source)
06. Zalando has reported double-digit growth in Q1 revenue and profits, with investments in AI and the integration of About You helping to boost performance across the business. The results underscore how AI is becoming a core driver of growth for Europe's largest online fashion platform. (source)
07. R&B Fashion has launched an AI-powered campaign in partnership with Dubai-based consultancy Takumi AI, featuring custom-built AI models across its men, women and teen collections. Takumi's proprietary AI content system enabled the brand to generate and scale high-quality visual content without the traditional constraints of production shoots. (source)
08. Amazon has expanded its AI shopping features with "Join the Chat," a tool that allows shoppers to ask real-time questions via text or voice while listening to AI-generated product summaries. The feature moves customers from passive listening to active participation, with AI hosts responding using product information, customer reviews and other data before resuming the audio summary. (source)
09. Alibaba.com has relaunched its CoCreate Pitch competition as an AI-powered product innovation contest with a total prize pool of over $1m. CoCreate 2026 invites founders, SMEs and students to build AI-integrated products, with 20 finalists competing live at events in Los Angeles and London. (source)
That's a wrap for this week! If you found this useful, hit reply and let me know, or share it with someone in the industry who'd enjoy the read.
Thanks - Sue
