Artificial intelligence is reshaping the retail sector as autonomous agents increasingly assist customers with purchase decisions, but industry experts emphasize that keeping humans in the loop will be essential for businesses to realize the full value of their technology investments.

Lorenzo Capinpin, senior solutions engineer at Salesforce, described the rise of agentic commerce as more than a technological upgrade, calling it a $3-trillion opportunity for the global retail industry by 2030.

Speaking during a panel at the National Retail Convention and Expo, Mr. Capinpin said that as consumers shift away from traditional search and browsing tools toward AI-driven interactions, the retail industry must prepare for a future in which humans and AI agents collaborate to engage customers.

With 21% of shoppers already initiating product searches through AI, the conventional retail model is undergoing a structural shift. Unlike traditional chatbots that respond to individual queries, AI agents can autonomously perform multi-step tasks such as comparing products across retailers, applying discount codes, and completing purchases on a user's behalf. While some processes will inevitably be automated, Mr. Capinpin stressed that human involvement will remain indispensable.

"Humans will not be replaced but will need to find their value in this new reality. It's about making AI agents and humans enable customer success together," he said.

Drawing a parallel to the banking industry, Mr. Capinpin recalled the fears that accompanied the introduction of automated teller machines decades ago.

"At the time that it came out, there were a lot of… stories about how the machines are taking over the banks. The machines are coming for our jobs," he said.

Ultimately, ATMs helped banks reduce operational costs and led to new roles and job openings for employees. In the AI era, Mr. Capinpin said, companies must move beyond simple chatbots toward autonomous agents capable of handling more complex tasks, built on a trusted foundation that enables businesses to access and leverage reliable data.

"If we want to make AI agents relevant for us as organizations, as well as for consumers, we need to be able to trace what exactly happened, what were the results that it produced, and correct it," he added.

However, challenges persist. Isolated technology adoption and poor data quality continue to hinder broader AI deployment among retailers. Salesforce said retailers can address these issues by activating trusted data to deliver hyper-personalized experiences.

Separately, consumer intelligence company Meltwater reported that Filipino consumers are increasingly turning to generative AI as a primary information channel, posing a challenge to traditional search engines.

Sunita Howe, head of marketing for Southeast Asia and India at Meltwater, said the traditional information pathway has been disrupted by the rise of large language models such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity. AI adoption is climbing across all generations in the Philippines, she noted.

"In the first time in a decade, Google's search share has fallen below 90% and that is because they are shaken by ChatGPT," Ms. Howe said during the same event.

Meltwater data shows that 80% of search users now rely on AI-generated summaries for at least 40% of their inquiries, leading to "zero-click" behavior where users obtain answers without visiting a brand's website. For retailers, this trend means fewer opportunities to capture direct website traffic and shape the customer journey on their own digital platforms.

Filipinos are also changing how they use social media. The Philippines now ranks among the top four countries globally for Reddit usage, with the platform's potential advertising reach in the country growing by 10.8 million users between late 2024 and late 2025 to reach 15.1 million individuals, according to Meltwater.

"Your Reddit usage is massively high versus other Asian countries. That means conversations on Reddit matter. It is a high-trust base that brands cannot ignore," Ms. Howe said.

Reddit has also become a critical source for AI citations, a role reinforced by data licensing agreements the platform has signed with major AI companies including Google and OpenAI, which use Reddit content to train their models. This makes it essential for brands to manage their presence within these niche communities, she added. Marketers should proactively monitor how their brands appear in AI-generated responses.

"You have to adapt or you're going to be left behind," Ms. Howe said, noting that brand trust must be safeguarded by identifying and correcting misinformation across AI platforms in real time.

— Juliana Chloe A. Gonzales