Today's episode is a new format: "The Back Channel" where I share anonymized insights from my recent conversations with industry leaders in retail media. I discuss how AI is transforming software development, the surprising order in which retailers adopt different types of retail media, and my observations on the industry's current state of AI implementation.

Custom Software Built with AI

• The software CEO who built their latest feature entirely with AI, without developer coding
• The potential future of custom software at company or even user level
• Contrast with a major US retailer that doesn't allow employees to access ChatGPT!

Retailers and AI Implementation

• Findings from Salesforce's Connected Shoppers Report
• The surprising statistic that 40% of retailers claim to have "fully implemented AI"
• The reality gap between retailers' perception and true AI implementation
• Why individuals should proactively learn about AI outside their organizations

Offsite Retail Media

• Offsite retail media represents about 10% of ad volume compared to onsite but is set to grow
• Contrary to (my) assumptions, offsite is often the first type of retail media that retailers execute
• How a retailer's initial approach (offsite vs onsite) can shape their retail media network's focus