AI-Native Brands, Agentic Commerce, and the Future of Retail | Karl Haller, IBM

In this episode of the Retailgentic podcast, we sit down with Karl Haller, Partner at IBM Consulting and leader of their Consumer Industry Center of Competency. Karl brings deep insight into the retail, CPG, and fashion sectors, sharing how AI is reshaping enterprise operations, from store-level automation to the rise of agentic shopping and AI-native brands.We explore:How IBM uses AI internally to save billionsThe future of AI-native startups with 5x leaner orgsWhat retailers need to know about agent-based shoppingHow personalization and dynamic pricing could transform the consumer experience📍 Timestamps:00:00 – Intro & Karl’s background01:10 – IBM's early AI work and internal cost savings05:00 – AI’s shift from hype to workflow transformation07:15 – Retail use cases: contact centers, operations, and automation10:55 – The agentic shopping shift: consumers vs. retailers16:00 – Why gift-giving may tip agentic shopping into the mainstream18:30 – ChatGPT’s hosted checkout and new marketplace dynamics22:00 – The rise of AI-native brands and single-person unicorns30:00 – Store-level orchestration and event-triggered workflows36:00 – Personalization in stores—like having Anna Wintour’s whisperer39:00 – Dynamic pricing and loyalty-based personalization44:00 – Final thoughts: the slow shift until the tipping point hits🧠 Want to stay ahead in AI commerce? Subscribe and follow along: 📰 Subscribe to the free Substack: retailgentic.ai📺 Watch episodes on YouTube: youtube.com/@retailgentic🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts: Spotify, Apple, etc.