Artificial Intelligence

Warby Parker is taking self-service to a new level.   The eyewear retailer built its brand on enabling online shoppers to create their ideal pair of specs. Now the company is further extending its self-service options with an app that lets shoppers take a vision test at home.  

A social media giant is getting in on the chatbot wave.    Twitter launched a new, customizable Direct Message Card that brands can use to promote and share bots and other customer experiences built in its Direct Messages tool. Direct Messages helps companies create personalized ads and interactions — ranging from customer acquisition programs to engaging bots.  

Amazon is beefing up the team responsible for its grocery store concept.    According to a job description on LinkedIn, the company is looking for an "innovative" store designer to join its Amazon Go ACE (Architecture, Construction & Engineering) team. The ideal candidate, according to the posting, is a "self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment and has a deep passion for innovative retail design."  

CBRE’s Melina Cordero, an expert in consumer behavior, has produced a series of videos to instruct brick-and-mortar retailers in how to get more results at the point-of-sale.   The first three of these can be viewed on CBRE’s new retail innovation website.   

Self-checkout technology tops the list of items that IT professionals would like to see in use over the next year, according to a poll by CompCom.   “It’s perhaps not surprising to see self-checkout rise to the top in the poll, since paying for purchases is probably the least pleasurable part of the shopping experience, and making the process as quick and easy as possible is increasingly important to retailers," said Tom Alvey, senior VP, retail solutions group at CompuCom.  

Online retailing is changing the game for pet parents.   Specifically, 40% of pet owners are opting to buy pet products online, up from 37% the previous year, and notably higher than results from 2014, according to U.S. Pet Market Outlook, 2017-2018. The report, from research firm Packaged Facts, highlights mergers and acquisitions, retail channel trends, and pet owner demographics and spending habits.  

A home improvement chain is helping shoppers better envision how to design and build their homes.   Though a partnership with Google, Lowe’s launched the Lowe's Vision app. Powered by Tango, a 3D technology developed by Google, the app leverages augmented and virtual reality to enable shoppers to begin planning their renovation needs before they even set foot inside a store.  

There’s more to drone-based deliveries than just dropping parcels — at least it is for Amazon.   The online giant is developing an air-traffic control system to manage its fleet of drones as they fly from warehouses to customers’ doors — a move that will ensure the devices don’t collide with “non-collaborative flying objects” during delivery, Bloomberg reported. These include buildings, trees, other drones and — the most unpredictable — birds.