Artificial Intelligence

A 3,500-sq.-ft. rotunda “smart” skylight has been installed in the new grand entrance and event space at the nation’s largest shopping mall. The new space is part of Mall of America’s 750,000-sq.-ft. expansion.

The skylight is comprised of more than 300 panes of electronically tintable SageGlass, which controls sunlight to optimize daylight and enhance comfort by preventing glare and solar heat.

The Amazon Echo smart home device represents a potential threat to Amazon’s competitors, but sales are sales.

Amazon Echo will be available in more than 3,000 stores around the country in time for the holiday shopping season. Select locations of ABT, BJ’s Wholesale Club, The Home Depot, Staples, Sears, Brookstone, RadioShack, Fred Meyer, Fry’s, Hhgregg, P.C. Richard & Son, and R.C. Wiley will offer Echo.

At one point or another, anyone discussing the future of personalization in offline retail has quoted the film Minority Report, where virtual billboards scan Tom Cruise, and immediately customize their message. The virtual assistant in Gap refers to the last time he entered the store, and inquires about his recent purchase.

Now, 13 years later, some of these technologies are becoming mainstream. For example, large retailers like Target and venues like the new Levi’s Stadium are equipped with beacons to customize your experience.

Everyone knows shrink is a major issue, and retailers are continually rolling out more sophisticated means of preventing shrink. However, according to Fortune, Walmart’s shrink prevention efforts have included the use of “sci-fi” facial recognition technology to identify suspected shoplifters, and there may be privacy concerns. [Fortune]

A start-up retail logistics company and award-winning retail designer are behind an unusual — and very tech-savvy — new “smart” store model that has just opened its doors.

Excess energy consumption in retail can exceed 30%, which means there is a huge opportunity for savings that many retailers s have not yet fully explored.

Retailers spend nearly $20 billion annually on energy expenses, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. By saving just 15% from optimizing operations and eliminating waste, we can save $3 billion as an industry.

Visual search, or the ability to click on an image of a product and obtain information, or even make a purchase, without typing in any words, is growing in popularity.

Retailers including Urban Outfitters are offering variations of visual search functionality, and the failed Amazon Fire smartphone essentially made the world into an Amazon showroom with an advanced virtual search tool. Considering that Pinterest has become one of the leading visually-oriented consumer sites, it’s not surprising the social platform has joined the fray.

Merriam Webster defines democratize as “to make (something) available to all people.” We are
witnessing the democratization of technology as technology providers are able to put
increasingly powerful solutions in the cloud, making industry-leading capabilities available to
even the smallest retailers.