Survey reveals how retailers view AI, future deployment plans

Retailers have big plans for deploying artificial intelligence (AI) technologies — and sooner rather than later. 

Nearly six in 10 respondents plan to adopt AI, machine learning (ML) and computer vision (CV) technologies over the next year to enhance the shopping experience offered in stores and online, according to the Honeywell AI in Retail survey of global retail directors.

Almost half (48%) of respondents identified AI, ML and CV as the top technologies expected to have a significant impact on the retail industry during the next three to five years. The top three reasons respondents gave for deploying AI technologies included improving customer experience (59%), driving greater productivity (49%), and achieving cost efficiencies / return on investment (ROI) (44%).

Only 3% of respondents said they are not using AI technologies at all. Almost four in 10 (38%) are using these technologies for select use cases or regions, 35% are using them on a larger scale, and 24% are a pilot phase or in discussions.

AI seen as complementary to workforce

Only 7% of those surveyed said their primary purpose for implementing AI solutions would be to reduce human labor. Survey respondents predict that AI, ML and CV will bring the greatest value to four key functions in retail: automating and supporting day-to-day tasks, such as picking and scheduling; supporting customer service, including live chat, for digital channels; creating targeted customer marketing campaigns and improving inventory management. 

The survey data also indicates three primary barriers to widespread adoption:

• Budget restrictions (39%).
• Difficulty in demonstrating business value (29%).
• Lack of internal expertise to maintain the technology (21%).

"In today's retail environment, there is greater attention on the customer experience along with increased need to innovate in a hyper-competitive environment," said George Koutsaftes, president and CEO of Honeywell Safety and Productivity Solutions. "New technologies like AI, ML and CV have the potential to enable retailers to deliver personalized experiences, optimize operations, improve inventory management and prevent fraud – all of which enhance customer satisfaction and can lead to increased sales and profitability."

[Read more: Digital marketers have mixed views on AI]

Honeywell's AI in Retail survey involved 1,000 retail directors across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East and Africa in leadership roles – including IT, operations, and customer experience.: