Singapore retailers embracing AI, foresee unlimited AI use cases for their brand, but fear it will lead to impersonal shopping experiences.

The retail industry is on the cusp of an AI-led customer engagement transformation, with an overwhelming 93% of Singapore retailers believing that AI will become a core function in retail in the next five years. 

This is according to a recent survey of 175 retail professionals by Twilio, conducted at the National Retail Federation’s 2024 Retail’s Big Show Asia Pacific in Singapore. 

The survey also revealed that 70% of Singapore retailers anticipate that there will be unlimited use cases for AI in retail within the next five years. From personalising customer experiences to inventory management and supply chain optimisation, there is a growing recognition of AI’s potential to revolutionise various aspects of retail, both online and offline.

Retailers today have already begun leveraging AI to drive significant business outcomes. For example, Trade Me, the largest online auction website in New Zealand, tapped on out-of-the-box predictive models powered by AI to effectively predict future buyer and seller behaviour. 

This allowed Trade Me’s marketing team to run targeted campaigns across channels without additional data science resources. As a result, Trade Me recorded a robust uplift in their email and ad campaigns while also improving return on ad spend (ROAS) and operational efficiency. 

Yet, despite the proliferation of AI use cases in retail, 71% of Singapore retailers think that AI-powered chatbots will in turn result in more impersonal shopping experiences. 

As AI integration deepens across the industry, retailers must learn to navigate the delicate balance between scalability and personalisation. Delivering tailored experiences to a broad audience is essential, given consumers’ rising expectations for brands to deliver personalised experiences, and in some instances, hyper-personalisation. 

To address this need, 45% of retailers are prioritising customer data to maintain personalised engagement.

“As more retailers employ AI throughout their business, they have to anchor their strategies and operations in transparency and demonstrate how they will use the data responsibly and ethically,” said Nicholas Kontopoulos, VP of Marketing, Asia Pacific & Japan, Twilio. 

“This includes communicating their data policies clearly, informing their customers about how their data is being collected, and providing them with mechanisms to exercise privacy rights. Brands will also need to demonstrate how data is used to create tangible value and integrate their data to unlock deeper insights and deliver truly personalised experiences,”