Consumer-facing companies are turning to artificial intelligence to solve a core problem facing CFOs: shoppers remain highly price conscious after inflation, and their preferences have become harder to predict. Sonja Evans, vice president of business intelligence and strategy at marketing firm Blue Chip, noted that consumers have "recalibrated what they're willing to pay and where," making legacy forecasting approaches less effective.
The trend is reshaping how retailers approach pricing and product innovation. Sudip Mazumder, senior vice president and retail industry lead at Publicis Sapient, said AI is enabling companies to move beyond blanket discounting by aligning markdown decisions to the performance of individual stock keeping units. Apparel companies such as H&M and Zara have begun deploying precise markdowns informed by AI analysis.
General Mills has used AI to build "synthetic audiences" to understand consumer needs before products reach market, while Albertsons has deployed AI to infer shopping intent and recommend products in real time based on cart contents. Giftcards.com is moving toward conversational, intent-based interfaces that let consumers describe what they are trying to accomplish rather than search by brand or product name.
But panelists cautioned against viewing AI as a standalone fix. Evans stressed that technology "amplifies whatever foundation you already have, whatever data stack," while Mazumder warned that poor data quality can lead to "hallucinations and bad decisions." For meaningful results, companies must focus on foundational elements such as data infrastructure and talent before scaling AI solutions. The shift represents a broader move toward what panelists described as "speed of information and insights" as the decisive factor in anticipating consumer demand shifts.