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Agentic AI is rewriting how retailers approach customer services but while they offer greater brand exposure, they also require retailers to meet their promises because AI deals only in facts, a panel stressed at a panel at World Retail Congress today.

“We are seeing massive investment being made by a small number of companies, asking you to have a north start but asking you to make some bets. So my first advice is to get a strategy and then adjust it, but take small bets and quick wins,” Kingfisher Group Digital and eCommerce Director Romain Roulleau.

“On the one side we have the customer and how we want to maximise our investments. Then we also need to make sure we are delivering via the processes, that we are delivering on our promises., because agentic AI only deals in facts,” he added.

Former Best Buy EVP, Chief Digital, Analytics and Technology Officer Brian Tilzer said that retailers need to look at how they maximise all their data, allowing AI to ensure that one plus one equals three.

“If you have support and service applications, then use AI to capture the interactions and create relevancy that you never had available before,” he said. “The world is moving really fast and th ability to get faster, better, cheaper is a competitive advantage. The ability to get to market, test and iterate is a competitive advantage. You have to have purpose and pace. Prioritisation and alignment matter.”

He summarised this as fewer and better priorities, as he stressed that cyclicality is important.

However, AI also requires adjustments to how retailers approach their online presence and that has led to some businesses becoming concerned that they may lose presence.

“The first elements that brought fear was lower traffic. I think the reason is because those who were searching but perhaps not looking to buy went via large language models,” reflected Mirakl Chief Data and AI Officer – Agentic Commerce Anne Claire Baschet, as she reflected on the change AI searches have made.

“The recipe and the foundation still matters, as does product data. The question is how you bridge the gap between key words and deeper information,” she added.

The session was moderated by Chris Walton, CEO of Omni Talk.