5 Ways Gemini AI Models Are Transforming Retail

How Gemini AI Models Are Revolutionizing Retail

In today’s fast-paced retail world, digital transformation isn’t just a necessity—it’s a race to stay ahead. Retailers are increasingly turning to cutting-edge technologies like generative AI to reimagine their operations and empower employees to deliver exceptional results. Enter Gemini, Google’s most advanced family of AI models to date. Capable of generating text, images, audio, video, and even code, Gemini is unlocking new opportunities for retailers to differentiate themselves in a competitive market.

Here are the top five ways retailers are leveraging Gemini to transform their businesses and accelerate growth.

1. Personalizing Experiences for Shoppers

Personalization is the cornerstone of modern retail, and Gemini’s advanced reasoning and multimodal capabilities are taking it to the next level. Retailers can now build AI agents that analyze customer data while interacting with images and videos. This enables innovations like virtual stylists, which allow customers to use a mix of chat and images to find exactly what they’re looking for. The result? Increased customer satisfaction and fewer shoppers leaving the site to find products elsewhere.

Victoria’s Secret is already testing AI-powered agents to assist in-store associates. These agents provide information on product availability, inventory, and fitting and sizing tips, enabling associates to offer tailored recommendations to customers. This blend of human expertise and AI-driven insights is redefining the shopping experience.

2. Automating Customer Service

Generative AI is revolutionizing customer service by automating processes across self-service channels, call centers, and social media platforms. For example, Best Buy has significantly improved efficiency, resolving customer issues up to 90 seconds faster with automated call summarization powered by Gemini.

Gemini also simplifies returns and exchanges by combining multiple types of information into a single conversation. Customers can share images or videos of faulty products alongside voice or chat interactions, enabling both human and AI agents to better understand and resolve issues. Imagine how much easier it is to diagnose a smartphone glitch when agents can view a live video of the problem in action.

3. Enhancing Marketing and Customer Outreach

Marketing is another area where Gemini’s capabilities shine. Its native multimodal features allow retailers to create highly personalized content for emails, ads, and other marketing materials in seconds. Whether it’s text, images, or videos, Gemini enables retailers to deliver tailored messages that resonate with individual shoppers.

One standout example is Estée Lauder Companies, Inc., which launched the Estée Lauder Language Assistant (ELLA) powered by Gemini. ELLA supports various generative AI use cases, including language translation, ad copy generation, and meeting summarization. Marketing teams can also use Gemini to analyze data and identify actionable insights, such as discovering new shopper audiences. For instance, they can simply ask, “Find first-time visitors to our store who have previously shopped online,” and Gemini will generate a new audience to target.

4. Making Operations More Efficient

Operational efficiency is critical in retail, and Gemini is helping businesses streamline complex tasks like supply chain optimization and inventory management. Australian supermarket giant Woolworths is a prime example. The company uses Google Workspace’s “Help me write” AI feature, powered by Gemini, to help over 10,000 administrative employees communicate more effectively. Woolworths also leverages Gemini to create next-generation promotions and summarize customer interactions in real time.

Other retailers are using Gemini’s long-context capabilities to analyze video inspection footage of delivered merchandise, flagging damaged items or packaging for return. Store associates can also use Gemini to monitor and optimize digital shelves. For example, an associate could “talk to” their data to gain real-time insights about stock levels, customer behavior, and potential issues like low inventory or misplaced items.

5. Helping Teams Find Trends—and Build Faster

Gemini is proving invaluable in identifying new product opportunities and emerging trends. By analyzing unstructured data such as social media videos or customer support call recordings, retailers can quickly summarize key points and gain insights into what customers want and need.

Gemini is also transforming the way developers work. Online retailer Wayfair recently piloted Gemini Code Assist, which enabled developers to set up environments 55% faster and improve code performance by 48%. Additionally, 60% of Wayfair’s developers reported that using an AI coding assistant allowed them to focus on more satisfying tasks. This not only accelerates the development of new capabilities but also boosts employee morale.

Conclusion

From personalizing shopping experiences to streamlining operations and enhancing marketing efforts, Gemini is reshaping the retail landscape. Its ability to analyze, generate, and summarize information across multiple modalities is empowering retailers to innovate faster and deliver better experiences for both customers and employees. As more businesses adopt this groundbreaking technology, the race to redefine retail is only just beginning.