What Next: TBD | Tech, power, and the future The Future of Retail is A.I.
Feb 22, 2026
Mia Sato, a Verge reporter who covers tech, platforms, and users, walks through AI's retail takeover. She explains types of AI you actually see in stores. She highlights AI at retail conferences, real-world use cases from grocery to pizza, surveillance and privacy tradeoffs, and why companies rush to adopt AI despite messy results.
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ChatGPT Hologram Mike Used As Store Attraction
- Mia Sato describes Mike, a ChatGPT-powered hologram dressed in a hot pink suit used to lure customers into booths and stores.
- The exhibit invited passersby to speak into a mic and interact with a glitchy human-like chatbot to generate curiosity for a brand.
Retail Conference Turned Into An AI Showcase
- The National Retail Federation conference was essentially an AI show with solutions pitched for HR, customer experience, loss prevention, and even store temperature control.
- Vendors offered everything from AI SEO services to holograms, showing retailers view AI as a universal fix for operational and customer problems.
Papa John's Chatbot Demo For Group Ordering
- Mia Sato spotted Papa John's demoing a chatbot that helps reorder pizza and answers practical questions like how many pizzas to buy for 12 people.
- The example highlighted how trivial use cases are being repackaged as AI conveniences for customers.