AI-ssisted Shopping For The Next Crypto Adopters

Technology is changing the way consumers shop online, a trend that COVID rapidly accelerated.

In recent years just about every major retail brand introduced AR- and AI-assisted convenience to its online shopping experience. There are virtual makeovers (Sephora, MAC, Ulta, L’Oréal, Stitch Fix, etc.), virtual fitting rooms (GAP, Levi’s, Warby Parker, H&M, etc.), and ways to visualize what furniture will look like in your home (IKEA). Earlier Burberry announced its AR offering.

Virtual try-ons

Virtual try-ons aren’t new. In fact, Converse introduced the concept nearly a decade ago with its Sample It app. But they’re far better today because of advancements in areas including vision, machine learning, language processing.

The huge spike in returns retailers saw during COVID, as quarantined consumers caught on to how difficult it is to get the right fit only, created a significant opportunity for innovation.

Israel-based Zeekit works with major retailers like Macy's, Adidas, Levi’s to develop virtual fitting rooms. Also in Israel, startup MySize announced a “gamified try-on experience” that blends accurate sizing and visual comprehension. Snap recently acquired Berlin-based FitAnalytics to add similar capabilities to its shopping platform.

San Francisco-based DecorMatters (they’re hiring) takes IKEA’s concept a step farther, allowing users to pick furniture from different retailers and visualize it in their home space.

Chatbots to avatars

Online shopping assistants, or “chatbots,” are also getting smarter thanks to startup innovation.

Boston-based Help Scout (they’re hiring) developed a browser-based chatbot used by 10k+ retailers across the world. BotXO, based in Denmark in Spain, offers retailers a bot that comes pre-loaded with “30,000+ pre-made e-commerce sentences.”

New York-based Nate, (they’re hiring) offers a web-based digital assistant for everyday purchases that works across different online stores.

The next evolution from chat shopping is voice-enabled shopping paired with a realistic-looking avatar interface. To that end, Denver-based Valyant is advancing “conversational AI” to create voice-based assistants for e-tailers.

San Francisco-based Replicant (they’re hiring) combines text-based chatbots and AI assistants for customer service reps. The company—named after Blade Runner’s genetically engineering humans—raised $27M to develop its autonomous call center, an “always-on, elastic call center capacity for customer service with voice AI.”

Pasadena, Calif.-based ObEN (they’re hiring) uses AI technology to create 3D “intelligent avatars” that simulate a person’s voice, face, and personality.

Vision

Companies are also advancing computer vision. ViSenze, based in Singapore and San Francisco, raised $14M to develop its visual web platform that recommends visually similar items to online shoppers. Sentient, also from San Francisco, raised $100M+ for its “visual intelligence” platform.

For in-store shoppers, Palo Alto, Calif.-based Mashgin (they’re hiring) offers a kiosk that uses computer vision to quickly verify a customer’s items when they’re done shopping, skipping the barcode scan.

What about the robots?

Outside of mask mandates and faster check-outs, though, the in-person shopping experience for people in just about any country not named China feels little changed since the introduction of the Segway-powered mall cop (though Amazon is making strides with cashier-less stores).

While robot baristas and shopping assistants are fast becoming the norm in China, they haven’t caught on in the rest of the world.

It’s been five years since the Lowe’s hardware chain—of all companies—introduced its in-store LoweBot through a partnership with Mountain View, Calif.,-based FellowAI. The bot got lots of press back then, but lately, it’s been crickets.

In 2014 China introduced the world to Pepper, touted as the first emotionally intelligent robot, and it can be found in hundreds of stores across the country. HSBC bank brought Pepper to the U.S. in 2018—but little has been heard from the bot since.

Now, scientists in Palermo are working to give Pepper an inner voice.

When robots do make their way to U.S. retail stores, it seems, they will be extremely well mannered.