Joko brings its AI shopping assistant to the US, SPINS launches Agentic Discovery, and more - Retail & Ecommerce AI Weekly #1

September 24, 2026 - Retail & Ecommerce AI Weekly
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Worldline launches a payment handler for Google's Universal Commerce Protocol, while SPINS, MikMak, Joko and Perform.AI introduce tools for AI product discovery, retail intelligence and ecommerce operations. Amazon has blocked Meta's Muse agent from Amazon.com, citing unauthorized access and customer data concerns.

Elsewhere, Tulip adds AI assisted retail integrations, nobilia brings AI kitchen planning to dealer websites, and Robot.com and Grubhub expand autonomous delivery to 10 US campuses. A study from Acosta Group finds that 34% of US shoppers use AI while shopping, although trust, accuracy, advertising bias and privacy concerns remain barriers to purchases.
Kroger outlines AI strategy at GroceryShop 2026
Kroger outlines an AI strategy spanning demand forecasting, personalized savings, product discovery and operational planning. The retailer is also developing tools for frontline staff and training more than 400,000 associates in AI. Read more
Worldline launches payment handler for Google's UCP
Worldline launches a payment handler for Google's Universal Commerce Protocol through its Global Collect platform. The service lets merchants configure payment methods for purchases initiated by AI agents across connected platforms. Read more
Tulip launches AI assisted Integration Builder for retailers
Tulip launches an AI assisted Integration Builder that connects retail data across APIs, flat files and cloud platforms including Snowflake, Databricks and BigQuery. It also expands its Shopify Connector for multi region stores and Shopify Markets. Read more
MikMak adds SPINS retail data to its AI commerce platform
MikMak integrates point of sale and inventory data from SPINS into its commerce platform, adding store level sales insights and product availability tracking. The update also connects with OpenAI, Claude and Microsoft Copilot, alongside conversational tools for media, retail and brand websites. Read more
MSITEK previews Smart Retail AI at New York Fashion Week
MSITEK previewed its Smart Retail AI application at the Retail Innovation Lab, hosted by NYFW Collections and SAP in New York. The tool uses store data to help retailers identify losses, forecast demand and manage inventory and operations. Read more
SPINS launches Agentic Discovery for AI product recommendations
SPINS launches Agentic Discovery, a platform for consumer packaged goods brands to monitor how AI systems interpret and recommend their products. It combines AI visibility data with product, category and retail sales data to identify gaps and prioritize improvements. Read more
Ron Johnson says AI will not replace physical shopping
Apple retail store creator Ron Johnson says AI agents may improve online shopping, but physical stores will remain important. His comments contrast with efforts by Google and OpenAI to develop agents that research and buy products. Read more
nobilia partners with Coohom on AI kitchen planning
nobilia is integrating Coohom's AI Planner into its dealers' online channels, allowing consumers to create kitchen plans with manufacturable nobilia products before visiting a showroom. The companies also plan to extend the tool to wardrobes and bathroom cabinetry. Read more
Limitless Labs partners with SACHEU on AI customer research
Limitless Labs and cosmetics brand SACHEU use Social Mirror Audiences to analyse customer reviews and social videos. The research informs product decisions using customer and creator feedback, while SACHEU retains final decision making. Read more
Speediance expands AI fitness with AEVIS beta
Speediance launches AEVIS, an iOS fitness app in public beta across 105 markets. The app uses health, activity, recovery, sleep, nutrition and schedule data to generate recommendations and customized workouts, but does not yet automatically control Gym Monster resistance. Read more
Robot.com and Grubhub expand autonomous delivery to 10 US campuses
Robot.com and Grubhub will introduce autonomous food delivery at 10 additional US campuses during the 2026 to 2027 school year. Their three year agreement also expands robot advertising through Robot.com's R ads platform. Read more
Hanshow, shopreme and Lucky cart launch AI smart cart
Hanshow, shopreme and Lucky cart launch a jointly developed AI smart cart for retailers. The system combines shopping assistance, indoor navigation, self checkout, loss prevention, payments, personalised promotions and retail media, and will be showcased at NRF 2026 in Paris from September 15 to 17. Read more
Acosta Group study finds 34% of US shoppers use AI while shopping
A Acosta Group study finds that 34% of US shoppers use AI tools to compare and research products, with higher use among Gen Z and Millennials. Concerns about trust, inaccurate information, advertising bias and data privacy continue to limit AI led purchase decisions. Read more
Joko launches AI shopping assistant in the US
Joko launches its AI powered shopping app in the United States on the App Store and Google Play. Its Juno AI feature helps users find and compare products, track prices and spending, apply coupons, and earn cash back across a catalog of more than 50 million products. Read more
Raspberry AI launches agentic fashion development platform
Raspberry AI launches a platform that connects fashion research, design, technical development, merchandising, marketing and ecommerce workflows. Pantone is partnering with the company to develop materials and moodboards for New York Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2027. Read more
Perform.AI launches AI Commerce Operating System
Perform.AI, formerly Parcel Perform, launches an AI Commerce Operating System for e-commerce tasks from merchant discovery to delivery. The platform provides tools for visibility, checkout, returns, logistics and decision intelligence, processing more than 100 billion parcel updates each year across over 160 countries. Read more
Amazon blocks Meta's Muse AI agent from Amazon.com
Amazon blocked Meta's Muse AI agent from shopping on Amazon.com, citing unauthorized access, lack of AI agent identification, and apparent storage of customer account data. Amazon says third party shopping agents must disclose their role and respect retailers' access decisions. Read more
Simbe Robotics surpasses 3,000 contracted autonomous units
Simbe Robotics reports that more than 3,000 of its autonomous retail units are under contract across over 75 retail banners in nearly a dozen countries. The company uses robots, computer vision, RFID and sensors to monitor inventory and store conditions, and plans to expand into retail automation. Read more
Scandit launches AI for self checkout loss prevention
Scandit launches Self Checkout Loss Prevention, a vision AI system that identifies missed scans, skipped items and abandoned transactions in real time. The system uses existing checkout cameras and prompts or escalations, without facial recognition, biometric identification or dedicated AI hardware. Read more

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