Attentive vs Infobip

Attentive Releases New AI Pro and AI Reporting Functionality

Attentive has released new AI Pro and AI Reporting functionality, helping brands turn customer signals into higher-value engagement. This is a product launch announcement.

Attentive Launches AI Pro Lifecycle Intelligence and Reporting Tools

Attentive, the omnichannel marketing platform for retailers and e-commerce brands, announced the next generation of its agentic AI marketing solutions with Lifecycle Intelligence within Attentive AI Pro. This includes Product Affinity (GA), RFM and Customer LTV (beta) to help marketers understand customer behavior and value. Additionally, Attentive introduced Reporting Agent and Model Context Protocol (MCP) capabilities in beta, enabling conversational reporting and secure connections to external AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude. Early results include Frye reporting a 13% revenue lift and Flag & Anthem achieving a 28% lift in identified shoppers, 7% more incremental sign-ups, and a 20% increase in abandonment journey revenue.

• Attentive released Lifecycle Intelligence with Product Affinity (GA), RFM (beta), and Customer LTV (beta) within AI Pro.
• Reporting Agent and Model Context Protocol (MCP) are available in beta, connecting to 70+ external AI tools.
• Frye reported a 13% overall revenue lift using Attentive AI Pro.

Attentive VP Jema Birkmeyer Discusses AI's Role in Lifecycle Marketing

In a MarTech Series interview, Jema Birkmeyer, VP of Strategic Accounts at Attentive, discusses the evolving landscape of lifecycle marketing as AI and agentic AI take on more campaign decisions. She highlights a shift from rule-based marketing to direction-setting, where AI handles millions of real-time decisions about audience, messaging, timing, and channel, allowing marketers to focus on strategy and creativity. Birkmeyer emphasizes the need to balance short-term conversions with long-term customer value, noting that 65% of shoppers are open to more relevant messages, while 80% ignore irrelevant ones. She discusses the changing role of segmentation, the importance of deliberate testing for creative and strategy, and the risk of brands losing relevance through over-automation. The interview underscores that AI enhances but does not replace the need for human insight and creativity in building lasting customer relationships.

• Jema Birkmeyer is VP of Strategic Accounts at Attentive.
• Attentive is an omnichannel marketing platform for SMS, email, RCS, and push.
• 65% of shoppers are open to more messages if relevant; 80% ignore irrelevant messages.

Central European VCs Debate Bootstrapping, AI, and Exit Strategies

At the Infobip Shift conference in Zadar, Croatia, Central European venture capitalists discussed key startup topics including bootstrapping versus VC funding, the trend of founders seeking larger rounds for prestige, and the pitfalls of 'building for a flip'. Jure Mikuž of South Central Ventures cautioned against raising rounds too small for strategy, while David Clark of Tera Ventures noted that bootsrapping is now easier with AI tools. Réka Hidas of Portfolion emphasized choosing VCs that offer more than capital. On AI, Florian Binswanger of Vercel advised founders to integrate AI deeply into their product rather than adding superficial chatbots, and to use model routers to avoid vendor lock-in. Nina Trejos of Stripe highlighted the importance of adopting usage-based AI pricing early. Infobip's CTO Izabel Jelenić shared lessons on co-founder dynamics. The event highlighted a closing gap between Western and Central European startup ecosystems.

• Infobip Shift conference held in Zadar, Croatia, attended by developers, founders, and VCs from Central Europe.
• Jure Mikuž of South Central Ventures warned against raising rounds too small for strategy and seeking spotlight.
• David Clark of Tera Ventures said there was never a better time for Central European founders to bootstrap, citing AI tools.

Infobip Reports 169.3% Global RCS Growth; US +1298.8%

Infobip, a global AI-first cloud communications platform, reported 169.3% growth in Rich Communication Services (RCS) for Business traffic between H1 2025 and H1 2026. The United States led growth with a 1,298.8% year-on-year increase; Infobip customers sent more than 1.5 billion RCS messages in the US during the period. Infobip processed RCS registration requests for over 7.3k unique brands and delivered 14k successful RCS agent launches. Other notable country growth rates included Spain (+290%), the United Kingdom (+282%), India (+108%) and France (+48%). The company also announced Interactive Session billing is now live in the US, enabling two-way conversational pricing across live RCS markets. Dave Boddington, RCS Business Unit Head at Infobip, commented on the channel’s move from experimentation to mainstream deployment.

• Infobip recorded 169.3% growth in RCS for Business traffic between H1 2025 and H1 2026.
• RCS interactions in the United States increased 1298.8% year-on-year; Infobip customers delivered more than 1.5 billion RCS messages in the US during the period.
• Infobip processed RCS registration requests for more than 7.3k unique brands and delivered 14k successful RCS agent launches.

Conversational AI Emerges as Retail Imperative

A Business Wire piece published on MarTech Series (July 20, 2026) reports that insights from Infobip and Retail Economics indicate retail engagement is shifting from one-way “broadcast” messaging to a conversational, AI-driven relationship model. The article cites high WhatsApp open rates (85–95%) versus email (32.7% in e-commerce), notes 24% of Gen Z prefer WhatsApp and SMS for deliveries/returns, and highlights a readiness gap: 88% of retailers are exploring conversational AI while 0% report full integration. Retail Economics CEO Richard Lim and Infobip retail specialist Kim Johal comment on personalization, channel preferences, and AI-driven automation that can handle routine queries and demonstrate ROI in as little as 60 days.

• Infobip and Retail Economics report the retail engagement model is shifting from one-way “broadcast” notifications to a conversational, AI-driven relationship layer.
• WhatsApp engagement open rates are cited at 85–95%, compared with 32.7% for email in e-commerce.
• 24% of Gen Z now prefer WhatsApp and SMS for deliveries and returns, per Retail Economics commentary.