Target is keeping watch on consumer sentiment even as the retailer’s sales improve. The company released first quarter earnings Wednesday (May 20) showing a 6.7% uptick in net sales, reversing several quarters of decline. “But to be clear, a single good quarter has never been...
Walmart is widening its lead over competitors as tariffs, inflation pressures and tighter household budgets reshape U.S. retail. The company has strengthened its position by leaning on its size, expanding digital operations and building higher-margin businesses that help offset cost pressures, according to a Reuters...
For years, retail’s artificial intelligence (AI) ambitions revolved around making search smarter. Now, Amazon and Walmart—two of the world’s biggest retailers—are placing very different bets on what comes next. The split says a lot about where commerce may actually be headed. On Wednesday (May 13),...
A number of states have moved to ban so-called “surveillance pricing” amid pushback from consumers and advocacy groups. That’s according to a report Thursday (May 14) by Money, which notes this pricing practice comes as algorithmic technology grows in sophistication, letting retailers more easily leverage personal data...
Amazon has announced a personalized AI assistant called Alexa for Shopping and will roll it out to all U.S. customers over the next week. Alexa for Shopping will be available to U.S. customers on the Amazon Shopping app and website as well as Echo Show...
Walmart reportedly plans to either cut or relocate roughly 1,000 corporate jobs. The move is driven by the company’s effort to bring together its global technology and product teams, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Tuesday (May 12), citing sources familiar with the situation. The...
Instacart has introduced what it calls two major updates to its fulfillment platform. “As grocery retailers scale their ecommerce and fulfillment operations, many are still managing picking, delivery, and labor across disconnected systems, creating unnecessary complexity for store teams and inconsistent customer experiences,” the company said...
Amazon’s quick-commerce efforts are getting faster in some parts of the United States, according to a Tuesday (May 12) announcement. The eCommerce giant is expanding its Amazon Now service to several new cities following a pilot effort launched late last year. “Amazon Now is for...
It’s certainly nice to imagine a digital assistant that can take over the weekly grocery trip, but not if that assistant is going to steal the shopper’s identity and drain their bank account. New research from the latest edition of PYMNTS Intelligence’s exclusive Agentic AI...