"Friend envisions a bigger opportunity for AI in retail as an
enhancement to customer service associates in-store. “Imagine you’re walking
into a Home Depot,” Friend says, “what if you could simply use your voice to
ask the Home Depot app where the product you want is located and have it show
you exactly where it is on a store map? You could avoid sales associates altogether.”
Despite AI’s clear limitations today, as the technology improves and its
applications feel progressively more human, its role in retail will only become
more robust."
