What a note to end the year on — our last episode of the Retail Remix podcast in 2025 features a fast, fun conversation with Andrew Bialecki, the founder and CEO of Klaviyo. We cover everything from the potential of extraterrestrial life in the universe to what AI will do for retail (and what it won’t do) here on Earth.
In a year dominated by conversations about AI, this episode serves as a great level-set and a look ahead to 2026, when Andrew foresees the potential for voice, avatars and in-store AI agents to redefine the next era of commerce.
Perhaps his most interesting prediction is that AI will precipitate a shift in the retail model toward services: “What I’m really excited about is this idea that every retail company is going to become more than just the products and the goods that they offer; I think most of them are also going to become service companies,” he said. “Intelligence and knowledge are going to become plentiful, and so all of a sudden, what we think of normally as retail businesses, they’re going to start to become these hybrid retail-and-service businesses. Then the question becomes, as a retailer, what services can I offer my customer?”
We’re already seeing this happen with some of the biggest players in commerce — Amazon, Walmart, Instacart and DoorDash, to name just a few — so could AI be the thing that levels the playing field and makes this possible for merchants of all sizes?
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Find out what Andrew thinks in this episode, as well as:
- Why multimodal AI — including chat, voice and in-store agents — could propel the next wave of omnichannel experiences;
- The role humans will continue to play in the AI future through creative direction, brand judgment and defining customer experience goals;
- What consumers actually want from AI: speed, summarization, better recommendations, and easier product discovery;
- Why the ability to do “napkin math” is critical for businesspeople of all stripes; and
- The hardest thing about going from being a private to a public company.
Listen to the episode here or anywhere you get your podcasts:
