Retailers are betting on AI to improve the customer experience, enhance decision-making and personalize shopping.
Best Buy, Gap and Dick’s Sporting Goods highlighted new ways in which the companies are incorporating the technology into their internal workflows and how customers interact with the brands, executives said during their earnings calls last week. C-suite leaders also spoke to how the technology is changing the landscape of their industries.
“Customer expectations are evolving, technology is reshaping how we shop, learn and live,” Jason Bonfig, chief merchandising officer at Best Buy, said in the company’s Q1 earnings call on May 28. “And our competitors are not standing still.”
Bonfig said that the company sees itself as not just a retailer, but as a retail media, advertising and technology company. AI insights and partnerships with providers such as OpenAI and Google will allow the company to grow in new categories. The company reported $8.9 billion in revenue and 2% growth in comparable sales during the quarter.
Best Buy is not alone in its pursuit of AI adoption. Investment into the technology by retailers is steadily increasing, with 39% anticipating AI will account for more than 10% of their tech spend by 2028, a December 2025 National Retail Federation report found.
The benefits reaped by AI use will be human-focused, Bonfig said, allowing their employees to deliver optimal customer experience.
“We are committed to ongoing investment in our people while embracing technology, including artificial intelligence,” he said.
Customer-facing AI
Retailers are closely watching how consumer patterns shift as AI tools like agents are added to the process.
Agentic commerce in the consumer retail market may reach $1 trillion in revenue by 2030, according to a report by ICSC and McKinsey & Company. More than two-thirds of consumers used at least one AI tool in the past three months as part of their shopping experience, the report also found.
Gap rolled out AI-powered shopping partnerships with Google’s Gemini, which aims to help customers find the right product, feel confident in its fit and discover new inventory. The company also collaborated with supply chain software provider Inspectorio, makers of an AI layer called Paramo, to advance product traceability and data collection efforts.
The company is investing in AI for how the company designs, buys and allocates its merchandise, CEO Richard Dickson said on its May 28 Q1 earnings call.
Gap is deploying AI across its corporate workflows to drive productivity, Dickson said. He’ll share more in upcoming quarters about their internal tech strategy, he said. The company saw a 2% increase of overall comparable sales, marking the ninth quarter of increases in a row.
“We are a fashion company that is brand-led and intelligence powered,” Dickson said. “The brands create the demand by executing on the reinvigoration playbook, and intelligence enabled by data and AI empowers our teams to make decisions that drive greater consistency and efficiency.”
Dick’s Sporting Goods also reported a rise in its net sales during its earnings call last week. The specialty retailer also unveiled its agentic AI-powered advisor, Coach by Dick’s, set to roll out in June.
The tool will answer queries, provide product recommendations and offer athletic training advice based on a customer's goals and preferences. The company’s tech team collaborated with Adobe Brand Concierge on the tool, a part of a larger plan to reshape its e-commerce business.
Dick’s Executive Chairman Ed Stack spoke during the National Retail Federation’s 2026 Big Show earlier this year about the retail industry’s push to embrace AI.
“I think it’s going to have an impact, for sure, but it’s also going to create some other opportunities on the other side, and we always try to take a look at the glass half full,” Stack said.
