“Artificial intelligence (AI) use in the retail and service sectors has created many opportunities as well as challenges,” says Jeewani Fernando, provincial consumer market analyst with the Alberta government. “Retail experts think AI is going to be a huge disruptor in the grocery business. Research indicates most grocery industry executives agree that AI will revolutionize information sharing and interacting with customers.”
Fernando says the grocery industry uses AI in a number of ways, including:
- Pricing and promotion – There are AI-driven applications that use historical data to simulate the future and find the optimal price and product mix to grow retails sales.
- Business and supply chain optimization – AI can help wholesalers and retailers examine demand and supply to arrange deliveries at the best times and keep the right products on shelves.
- Cashier-free payments – With AI in point-of-sale applications, cashierless grocery stores are becoming mainstream.
“AI is also quicky becoming integral to restaurant operations, from streamlining processes to enhancing the customer experience,” adds Fernando. “For example, AI is being used to automate a number of simple and routine tasks in restaurants, which helps cut costs. By embracing AI’s ability to perform these tasks, restaurants can free up employees to do what they do best, which is focusing on guests. And AI-based marketing applications can supercharge a restaurant’s efforts to identify new customers and send targeted promotions that translate into business transactions.”