All Microsoft articles
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NewsPets at Home head of AI transformation departs
Pets at Home head of AI transformation and enterprise architecture Simon Ellis has left the business, Retail Week understands.
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Chart of the WeekThe PS5 Pro is the most expensive major console since the 1990s. Why does that matter to retailers?
The cost of games consoles has historically declined after launch. All three major manufacturers have instead announced recent price hikes. With Sony also announcing it was moving away from video game discs, major shifts are happening in the games retail sector
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Newsletter
Intelligence Briefing: Console price rises, heatwaves, and England fight on
I am an on-and-off video gamer, but having the latest console has been less important as Iâve got older. While I quickly bought the PS2, I held off for a couple of years before buying the Xbox 360, and later still, the PS4. This is partly a result of having ...
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NewsAmazon aims to raise $25bn through bond sale for AI push
Amazon is looking to raise $25bn through a US bond sale as the retail giant looks to fund further investments in AI, according to reports.
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InterviewQ&A: Estée Lauder Companies SVP on the innovations driving the business
Global beauty behemoth Estée Lauder Companies has been focusing on tech and innovation in recent years, including tech partnerships, leveraging data and generative AI, and introducing experiential tools for customers.
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NewsApple hikes MacBook and iPad prices by 20%
Apple has said chip shortages mean it needs to increase the prices of MacBooks and iPads by around 20%, with Microsoft-owned Xbox also recently announcing prices of its console would increase.
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InterviewGovernance: how retailers can handle soaring disclosure requests and messy data
Subject Access Requests are flowing into retailers faster than ever because of advice from AI chatbots, and managing them can become a serious chore without organised data, says Aiimi chief customer officer Mark Drayton.
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Newsletter
Intelligence Briefing: UK retail vs Amazon capex; Starmer out; supermarket spending
This morning, I am speaking at the Retail Week Digital Transformation Summit about AI and the retail sector. I have been covering AI since I started at Retail Week in late 2024, and one thing that has always been clear is that so much of what UK retailers are reacting ...
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Chart of the WeekChart of the Week: How Amazonâs capex compares to all retailers in the FTSE 350
Amazonâs capex totalled $132bn in its last financial year. Put all of the spending of major UK retail businesses together, and you donât come close to that.
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NewsJD Sports delivers âresilientâ performance as profits slide
JD Sports reported a drop in pre-tax profits but posted modest organic sales growth in a âresilientâ performance amid tough conditions.
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NewsJD Sports trials conversational AI agent online
JD Sports has become the latest retailer to launch a conversational agent on its website as it looks for more ways to enhance the customer experience, Retail Week has learnt.
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Chart of the WeekCharts of the Week: Tracking AI investment by retailers
We have just launched the Retail Week AI Investment tracker, a recap of all the stories Retail Week has published on retailersâ AI initiatives over the past few years
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AnalysisAI agents and assistants: Which retailers are using them for customers and colleagues?
AI is being utilised across all functions in retail, including for marketing, forecasting, commerce, and supply chain.
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Newsletter
Tech & Digital Briefing: Changes at the top; Asos aims to impress with new app features
I canât start this weekâs briefing without addressing the leadership changes occurring in retail of late. There have been changes at the top for N Brown and Holland & Barrett, but perhaps most shockingly, the two updates to the City were that Co-op boss Shirine Khoury-Haq is leaving the business ...
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NewsletterIntelligence Briefing: Countdown to âAwful Aprilâ, inflation and Next results
We are just a few days away from the new financial year, which means bill rises aplenty (and a wage bump if you are lucky). My commiserations, in particular, to those in Aberdeenshire who are facing a 10% rise in council tax for the second year in a row. Last ...
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NewsMarks & Spencer switches on AI tools for all store managers
Marks & Spencer is enabling thousands of frontline staff to use generative and Agentic AI tools to support everyday tasks.
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AnalysisAgentic commerce: Which retailers are embracing this new way of shopping?
More retailers are embracing a new way of shopping by letting AI agents browse, search, recommend, and purchase on behalf of the shopper â known as agentic commerce.
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NewsAsda calls on government to reconsider plans to defund leadership apprenticeships
Supermarket Asda has called on the government to reconsider cutting leadership and management apprenticeships funding, saying a failure to do so could stop young people from going from the shop floor to the boardroom.
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AnalysisPartnership update: JD Sportsâ agentic AI collaboration, Morrisons branches into travel, and more
Welcome to the Solutions Spotlight partnership update: Retail Weekâs round-up of the latest innovative technology and supply chain tie-ups in retail.
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AnalysisHow UK consumers shopped with AI over Christmas
AI is not only being harnessed by retailers looking to simplify operations, cut costs and save time, but by consumers who want an easier and improved shopping experience.