Observed Signal · Nov 9, 2026 · Product Launch · Source: Retail Dive · Impact: 3/5 · Sentiment: Positive
How Brands Can Inspire Purchases Beyond AI Shortlists
This sponsored article by Glance explores how brands can influence consumer purchases in the age of AI shopping agents. It emphasizes that while earning a place on AI-generated shortlists is important, brands also need to inspire demand before search begins. Key strategies include providing distinct, machine-readable product data that AI agents can evaluate, maintaining consistency across digital touchpoints, and using visualization tools to help shoppers imagine products in their lives. The article cites data showing Millennials lead daily AI shopping research usage at 39%, and 61% of shoppers consider product images/videos most important. Glance's AI-powered personal shopping experience, available on over 60 million devices, integrates True Fit's fit intelligence to enhance confidence and reduce returns.
The article highlights the growing importance of AI agents in commerce and provides actionable insights for brands to adapt their product data and marketing strategies to remain visible and competitive in AI-driven shopping experiences. This is highly relevant for the AdTech and MarTech industries as it underscores the shift towards agentic commerce and the need for machine-readable product data.
Track InMobi Signals & Market Shifts in Real-Time
Polaris7 autonomous intelligence agents track regulatory filings, primary sources, executive changes, and deal flow 24/7. Create your Polaris7 workspace to monitor these entities.
Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Millennials lead daily AI shopping research usage at 39%, nearly double Gen Z's 21%.
- Over half of U.S. consumers use AI to find and compare products, per Pacvue.
- 61% of shoppers say product images and videos are the most important product page element, per Salsify.
- Only 46% of consumers fully trust AI recommendations, and 89% double-check AI information, per IAB.
- Glance is available on over 60 million devices and expanding to PCs via Lenovo and Motorola Qira.
Connected Companies & Entities
“Abhay Singhal, co-founder of InMobi and CEO of InMobi Advertising, provides quotes in the article.”
“Glance announced expansion into PCs through Lenovo and Motorola Qira.”
“Glance announced expansion into PCs through Lenovo and Motorola Qira.”
“Pacvue reported that more than half of U.S. consumers now use AI to find and compare products.”
“Sucharita Kodali, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester, is quoted.”
“IAB study shows only 46% of consumers fully trust AI recommendations.”
“Salsify reports that 61% of shoppers say product images and videos are the most important product page element.”
Ontology Mapping & Concepts
Related Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
How Brands Become Visible to AI Shopping Agents
Sponsored by Adobe Commerce, the article explains how AI shopping assistants (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini) are reshaping product discovery and creating a new discoverability requirement for retailers. Adobe reports AI-referred traffic to U.S. retail sites rose 393% year-over-year in Q1 2026 and converts 42% better than other traffic. Adobe’s research finds the average AI readiness score for U.S. retail product pages is 66% (best 82.5%, lowest 54.2%), indicating many product pages are not machine‑readable. The piece advises prioritizing high-value SKUs, adding structured, explicit product attributes (titles, specs, use cases, availability), and running audits with tools like Adobe’s AI Content Visibility Checker. Quotes come from Adobe’s Shaun McCran and Alex Jose, and the article cites BCG warnings about risks in the agentic commerce era.
Retail brands risk optimizing the wrong thing
Sponsored by Rezolve Ai, the article argues that retail brands focused on optimizing experiences only on their own websites risk being excluded from purchase decisions now increasingly shaped by AI platforms. It cites the Salesforce Connected Shoppers Report showing brand-site journey starts fell from 82% in 2014 to 38% in 2024, Bain research on widespread reliance on zero-click results, and a January 2025 Rezolve Ai–commissioned survey by Method Research. The piece says brands must audit and restructure product and content data (beyond traditional SEO) to be legible to AI answer engines, and advertises Rezolve Ai’s AEO Discovery Review service to assess AI visibility gaps.
AI Agents Reshape Shopper Relationships
New research from McKinsey and Optimove shows a significant shift toward AI-driven shopping and purchasing. According to McKinsey, 72% of U.S. shoppers use AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini for shopping ideas, and more than half of consumers worldwide now use AI to shop. The share of AI users who completed a purchase directly through an AI tool rose from 10% to 17% in a year. AI agents like Muse and Alexa for Shopping are expected to place orders for millions during the holiday season. Optimove data reveals a 593% jump in new customers on Black Friday 2025, highlighting the post-purchase experience as the new critical moment for building brand relationships. McKinsey advises brands to protect customer data and become the default choice for AI users. The article stresses that while agentic commerce is still early, marketers must adapt to a world where AI agents, not humans, are the buyers.
Receive all future signals for InMobi & competitors in your briefing
Never miss material M&A deals, leadership changes, account wins, or product rollouts. Polaris7 monitors 20,000+ primary sources 24/7, delivering verified telemetry directly into your executive briefing.