From the Retail MediaX Podcast with Internet Retailing
AI and automation are transforming retail media—from campaign delivery to creative production to personalized experiences at scale. In this episode of Retail MediaX, Jack Johnson, Head of Retail Media at Ocado Retail, and Katie Streeter Hurle, CEO of SMG, join Colin Lewis to explore what’s real, what’s hype, and what brands and retailers should be doing right now.
Here are five takeaways from the discussion:
1. We’re Still in the Early Stages of AI Adoption
Despite the buzz, most businesses are still figuring out the basics.
“We’re at a place of early adoption and experimentation. There’s a huge amount of chat about AI… but in reality, I think we’re in this kind of early phase where we’re figuring out how to start using it across organizations.” — Katie Streeter Hurle
“Six out of ten people have still never tried ChatGPT… so in terms of adoption, we are still very much in those early stages.” — Katie Streeter Hurle
2. AI Success Depends More on Culture Than Code
Tech gets the headlines, but it’s people, process and mindset that will drive real change.
“Ten percent of AI adoption is all around the algorithms… 20% will come from the data… but actually 70% is going to come from people, change management, and processes.” — Jack Johnson
“You have to start with the culture, the people, and actually how you’re going to foster an amazing work culture to make this thing happen.” — Jack Johnson
Agility and culture—not size—will determine who leads.
“Some of the smaller, more agile players are probably likely to be the ones that are going to be able to kind of take a bit of a leap in this space.” — Katie Streeter Hurle
3. Retail Media Has a Creative Problem—and AI Might Solve It
As retail media has grown, creative has lagged behind. AI could help rebalance that.
“Fifty percent of a campaign’s performance is driven by creative… but we’re not investing the time to do a brilliant job creatively and actually bring great experience to the customer.” — Katie Streeter Hurle
“AI is absolutely perfect for [creative adaptation]… it can deliver really low production costs, it can deliver it at speed.” — Katie Streeter Hurle
4. AI Use Cases Are Emerging Fast—from Planning to Personalisation
Real-world automation is already underway across campaign operations, audience targeting, and customer experience.
“One massive opportunity with AI is around campaign planning… very consistent workflows where actually AI agents can be very predictable… that’s an area we’re really passionate about.” — Jack Johnson
“We’re talking about targeting, but how can we bring all of that contextual data, all of that first-party data, and really start to give much more personalized experience for customers?” — Jack Johnson
“If I was giving advice… first of all, you’ve got to figure out how to get your team and your employees using AI right… then identify a couple of use cases that are either solving an efficiency problem or an effectiveness problem.” — Katie Streeter Hurle
5. The Future of Commerce Will Be Conversational
Generative AI could completely reshape how customers discover, plan, and buy, meaning retail media must follow.
“What happens if AI completely shifted that? And we start to think about conversational commerce… That means retail media has to completely shift to where the customer is going.” — Jack Johnson
“If I was going on the Ocado website, maybe I just want a meal plan for the week. Maybe I don’t want to build my basket. Maybe I have dietary requirements… This is where generative AI is really, really helpful.” — Katie Streeter Hurle
“You won’t necessarily lose your job to AI, but you’ll lose your job to someone that uses AI.” — Jack Johnson
AI has arrived. Whether it’s enhancing efficiency, elevating creative, or reshaping customer journeys, brands and retailers must start experimenting, building proof of concepts, and preparing teams for change.
Want to hear the full conversation?
Listen to the episode on Retail MediaX from Internet Retailing.