Online marketplaces worldwide are actively leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance efficiency and improve the user experience.
While features like “smart” search and customer chatbots have become commonplace, global players have rolled out new and cutting-edge technologies that promise to change the way we do shopping in the future.
Amazon: logistics robots
The U.S. e-commerce giant employs over 750,000 AI-powered robots in its distribution centers. Most of these are wheeled platform robots that can lift and move heavy shelves stocked with goods. Equipped with sensors, cameras and advanced software, these robots select optimal warehouse routes and deliver items to human sorters, easing their workload.
Recently, Amazon has been advancing robotic arms that can sort items into containers and assemble orders. In certain U.S. locations, the company offers drone delivery services. Another more prominent example of Amazon’s AI tool is its Alexa assistant, which helps users search for products.
JD.com: virtual avatars
In China, livestream e-commerce is highly popular, where consumers watch product videos on social media before making a purchase. A recent trend is the use of AI avatars—virtual video characters that replicate the voices and facial expressions of real people, making them nearly indistinguishable from their human counterparts.
Many brands in China use virtual avatars to boost sales, particularly during events like the 11.11 shopping festival. For instance, last year, Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com created a fully virtual clone of its founder, Richard Liu Qiangdong, who hosted several livestreams, garnering tens of millions of views while discussing various products.
Mercado Libre: AI-based lending
Latin America’s largest e-commerce and fintech platform uses AI to tailor the user experience – and offers BNPL and credit services to boot. By analyzing transaction histories, the company offers instalment plans for specific products to buyers and business expansion loans to sellers.
Unlike traditional banks, which may require a lengthy approval process, Mercado Libre provides instant loans by conducting client scoring based on big data about their app activity.
Wildberries: image search and virtual models
Wildberries, a leading e-commerce platform in Russia and Central Asia, allows customers to search for products using images. Users can upload a photo or screenshot to the app and highlight the desired item. The system, trained on neural networks and vector databases, helps them find and purchase the same or similar items on the platform.
Wildberries has also introduced an option for clothing merchants to present their products on virtual models created with the company’s software. Clothing accounts for a significant portion of sales at Wildberries. The new feature allows sellers on the platform to cut their spending costs on photoshoots and boost profitability.
Zalando: virtual fitting rooms
The German online fashion retailer Zalando has launched a virtual fitting room service that allows customers to create 3D avatars based on their body measurements. This technology helps users to choose the right size of clothing, thereby reducing return rates.
The company’s AI assistant can recommend outfits based on general queries like, “What should I wear to my father’s birthday in March in Barcelona?” Zalando also identifies emerging fashion trends in major European cities and has experimented with developing AI-inspired fashion designs.
E-commerce platforms around the world have developed innovative, AI-based tools that take shopping to an entirely new level. From warehouse robots to AI avatars and marketplace big data for lending —the possibilities are exciting. These and many other AI-driven technologies are transforming the online experience for buyers and sellers and advancing the boundaries of the possible in the industry.