Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the global retail sector, creating new opportunities to improve efficiency, enhance customer engagement and support employees. The current business-sector and societal frenzy around AI can make it difficult to understand the ground truth of what is happening today in retail. Where are companies making new investments in AI? What are business leaders’ priorities with respect to AI, and what are their greatest concerns?
To answer these questions, the National Retail Federation’s Center for Digital Risk & Innovation conducted a survey of 56 AI leaders at U.S.-based retailers in the summer of 2025. This report provides an overview of retailers' AI strategies, investments, challenges and where they see the greatest potential in the years ahead. These findings offer insight into an industry working to balance innovation with responsible deployment.
