What happens when retail stops waiting for shoppers to arrive and starts responding to every signal in real time? We dive into a candid, practical look at how AI is reshaping the entire customer journey—from discovery sparked in chat interfaces to fulfillment choices optimized for margin and sustainability. With SAP Customer Experience leader Balaji Balasubramanian, we unpack the systems, data, and decisions required to turn conversations into commerce and curiosity into profitable growth.

We explore why unified data is the real unlock for AI in retail and how a business data cloud gives models the context they need: customer profiles, orders, invoices, inventory, pricing, and unstructured signals. Balaji explains Joule, SAP’s conversational co-pilot, and how it sits on top of business AI and knowledge graphs to answer questions, trigger actions, and summarize insights for teams in the flow of work. We also talk about WalkMe’s role in accelerating adoption and giving users context-aware guidance and shortcuts. The result is a stack that reduces friction, shortens cycles, and makes bold ideas operational—without replacing the people who bring judgment and brand sense to the table.

The conversation tackles big shifts many leaders feel but haven’t fully mapped: destination shopping becoming instant demand; personalization evolving into proactive orchestration; and loyalty moving from points to trust. We consider how to tie recommendations back to inventory location, margin, and sustainable delivery so that offers are both relevant and responsible. We also address tough realities like a five-point slide in true loyalty and the widening expectation gap, and why AI-driven pilots—margin-aware personalization, proactive service, dynamic bundling—are the fastest path to learning what works at scale. If you’re serious about real-time retail and want a playbook that blends strategy with execution, this conversation delivers clear steps and fresh energy.

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A grocery cart that acts like a high-performing media channel sounds bold, until you hear how it actually works. We sit down with Yaniv Zukerman, CMO at Cust2Mate, to unpack how a retrofit smart cart platform turns the physical aisle into an addressable, measurable environment where shoppers get guidance, retailers unlock new revenue, and brands finally see real attribution at the shelf.

We start with the origin story: a clip-on panel that transforms any existing cart into a smart cart, complete with scanning, guided lists, service counter booking, and on-cart checkout. Then we zoom out to the platform: charging and docking systems, fleet management, and deep integrations with POS and loyalty for identity, context, and closed-loop outcomes. Yanev shares why the system is designed as an open marketplace, making room for retail media networks, CPG campaigns, and third-party apps like recipes, wellness content, reviews, and even local offers that fit the trip.

The core breakthrough is precision. Instead of spray-and-pray store screens, a dedicated cart display travels with each shopper for about 45 minutes, informed by lists, scans, dwell time, and exact location. That enables real-time triggers, personalized promotions, and full attribution from impression to conversion. Retailers see faster checkout, labor relief, and a new profit engine from in-store retail media and data monetization. Brands gain verified reach at the point of decision. And shoppers get less friction, more relevance, and a smoother path to pay-and-go.

We also dig into the playbook for adoption: pilots with clear KPIs, structured integrations, cross-functional teams, and onsite support to train staff and customers. Beyond grocery, we explore use cases in pharmacy and DIY, plus cross-retail partnerships and digital assortment sold from the cart for home delivery. Looking two years ahead, Yanev outlines a future where stores become the most data-rich, accountable channels in retail—real-time, attributable, and truly shopper-centric.

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The most valuable loyalty program isn’t a points card—it’s a living system that knows each shopper, adapts in real time, and proves it can drive incremental spend. We sit down with Jeff Baskin, Chief Revenue Officer at Eagle Eye, to unpack how unified commerce and true one-to-one personalization are reshaping grocery, convenience, and hospitality. Instead of stitching tools together, Jeff explains how a single platform that connects payments, promotions, loyalty, and engagement unlocks a complete customer view and makes every interaction feel relevant across channels.

Jeff pulls back the curtain on two standout case studies. Giant Eagle combined loyalty with digital promotions to generate hundreds of millions in incremental sales by influencing the next purchase, not just rewarding the last. Tesco’s AI challenges push personalization further: models weigh 190+ decisions per shopper to assign tailored goals and rewards, scaling from 3 million to 10 million customers quickly while guaranteeing measurable uplift. These programs win CPG support because they tie spend to clear ROI, not vague impressions, and they help retailers grow margin by moving shoppers into higher-value behaviors.

We also get practical about the messy middle: data silos, legacy POS programs, and organizational friction. Jeff shares why a consultative approach matters—start with customer outcomes, treat data as a strategic asset, and build a feedback loop that improves with every transaction. We compare Walmart’s tech-driven experience gains with the edge regional grocers can reclaim by pairing human connection with AI-powered relevance. The takeaway is simple: personalization works because it mirrors how people already consume content on Netflix and Instagram. When retailers deliver that level of relevance across store and digital, loyalty stops being a cost and becomes a growth engine.

Subscribe, share with a colleague who cares about loyalty, and tell us: where are your silos, and what would you test first?