{"id":5815,"date":"2026-01-16T14:01:23","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T14:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newtonimpact.com\/?post_type=content_library&p=5815"},"modified":"2026-01-16T14:01:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T14:01:26","slug":"how-ai-is-bringing-human-connection-back-to-retail-key-highlights-from-nrf-2026","status":"publish","type":"content_library","link":"https:\/\/newtonimpact.com\/en-us\/content-library\/blog\/how-ai-is-bringing-human-connection-back-to-retail-key-highlights-from-nrf-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"How AI is bringing human connection back to retail: Key highlights from NRF 2026\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Take Me Back<\/a>\n\n

How AI is bringing human connection back to retail: Key highlights from NRF 2026\u00a0<\/h1>\n

By Newton<\/p>\n\n

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Blog<\/p>\n <\/span>\n \n

5 min<\/p>\n <\/span>\n \n

16th January 2026<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n \n\n\n

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This week, New York has been buzzing with excitement about the future of retail technology as the annual industry-shaping NRF Expo took over \u2013 attracting thousands of leaders and innovators despite the distractions of weather, playoff\u00a0football\u00a0and economic headwinds.\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With this conference always setting the stage for retail decisions for the year ahead, what inspired the Newton team \u2013 and how can these\u00a0new ideas\u00a0support our transformative work with the world\u2019s leading retailers?<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n \n\n\n

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From Ryan Reynolds\u2019 talk on his fast-growth gin brand to learning how Walmart has teamed up with Google\u2019s Gemini for AI-assisted shopping, there was one very clear theme throughout almost all of this year\u2019s talks: success in retail today depends on using technology to understand each one of your unique consumers \u2013 and acting accordingly. Agata Ramallo Garcia from Target\u00a0advised retailers to\u00a0know what customers\u00a0<\/span>most care<\/span>\u00a0about before introducing any and every solution.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Above all, if\u00a0there was one word that dominated conversations (beside \u201cDeadpool\u201d), it was \u201cAI\u201d.\u00a0From frictionless check-out to immersive in-store experiences,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0being used impressively at every stage of the commerce journey.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Agentic AI is transforming\u00a0<\/span>everything<\/span><\/i>. Of course, planning and forecasting benefit greatly from it. We see the impact it can have every day in our work analyzing logistics, product and customer data points far faster than would be physically possible. But it\u2019s also being used at the other end of the journey, supporting frontline staff to offer meaningful, elevated customer moments. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At LVMH and Louis Vuitton\u2019s keynote session, we heard how luxury brands use AI to amplify creativity (e.g\u00a0cutting the amount of time it takes to test and choose materials), as well as providing the human touch. LVMH builds intimate, personalized experiences by using AI to\u00a0anticipate\u00a0individual preferences and create a continuous, coherent story for each client.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For the retailers we work with, the potential lies in using agentic AI to achieve this level of personalization at scale.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n \n\n\n

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“From content or history retention and ability to adapt over time, I can see personalization and modern product discovery being game-changing for so many businesses in 2026.”<\/p>\n \n Tony Ward, Senior Partner for Retail and Consumer Goods in North America <\/span>\n Newton <\/cite>\n <\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n \n\n\n

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Other key themes which emerged at NRF 2026 include: <\/h2>\n <\/hgroup>\n \n
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