Shopify launches five AI-powered shopping apps built on its new Catalog API and Universal Commerce Protocol, giving developers access to billions of standardized products to embed commerce into any digital experience — with monetization opportunities coming soon.
ChatGPT's global market share falls below 50% for the first time, dropping to 46.4% as Google's Gemini surges to 27.7% and Anthropic's Claude hits 10.3%, while the booming AI app economy races toward $4.2 billion in consumer spending in the first half of 2026 alone.
McDonald's is testing a Google-powered AI drive-thru system called 'Archy' at five U.S. locations, completing 90% of orders without human help while taking orders in English and Spanish — signaling a potentially major shift in fast food despite customer pushback.
Amazon launches an AI-powered custom merchandise tool through Alexa, letting shoppers instantly design and order personalized T-shirts, hoodies, and more via text prompts, posing a serious threat to print-on-demand competitors like Redbubble and Printful.
Meta launches Meta Business Agent, an AI-powered tool providing businesses 24/7 personalized customer support across WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram, while also offering operational insights and a new enterprise platform for large-scale deployment integrating with systems like Shopify and Zendesk.
Microsoft unveils Project Solara at Build, an Android-based AI-agent platform powering next-gen enterprise devices, with major retailers like Best Buy, CVS Health, and Target already lining up to pilot the technology alongside chip partners Qualcomm and MediaTek.
AWS is now licensing Amazon's AI shopping technology to retailers, enabling them to launch custom AI shopping tools in as little as 60 days, with luxury brand Kate Spade already live using the service to power a gifting assistant.
Robinhood is now allowing AI agents to autonomously trade stocks and make purchases with real money on its platform, while warning users that these AI-driven strategies carry significant risk, including the potential loss of their entire investment.
Figure deploys humanoid robots into Catalyst Brands' retail supply chain, automating physically demanding logistics tasks across JCPenney, Aéropostale, and Brooks Brothers distribution networks, starting in Reno, Nevada.
Ten major enterprises including Home Depot, Citadel Securities, and Tata Steel are deploying AI agents through Google Cloud, achieving dramatic results such as 4x faster workloads at 30% lower cost and over 300 specialized AI agents launched in just nine months, signaling a fundamental shift toward real-world AI production across …