NRF 2026: AI is everywhere, but success comes from customer focus

AI dominated NRF 2026. It was everywhere you looked – across keynotes, breakout sessions and the expo floor.

We’ve moved from talking about what AI may one day do to seeing it do many of those things today. Artificial intelligence is being deployed across personalisation, fulfilment, frontline operations, fraud prevention and payments. Retailers are using AI to better serve customers.

The National Retail Federation’s 2026 expo was held Jan. 11 through Jan. 13 at the Javits Convention Center in New York. An estimated 40,000 people from more than 90 countries attended “retail’s big show.” The more than 350 speakers included Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, incoming Walmart CEO John Furner, and actor, producer and entrepreneur Ryan Reynolds.

From experimentation to execution

AI took prominent place as one of the expo’s five focus areas. Sessions highlighted how AI is reshaping discovery and search relevance in real time, adapting the path to purchase based on intent and context. Others focused on operational gains, like smarter inventory management, optimised fulfilment and tools to help frontline teams act faster and with better insight.

The dedicated AI Stage reflected how central these capabilities have become, with in-depth addresses and presentations on agentic and emerging AI models.

Payments featured quietly but consistently in these conversations. AI-driven personalisation is reducing friction at checkout and accelerating conversion. Advanced models are also improving fraud detection and authorisation performance, helping retailers say yes more often without increased risk.

Experience still defines differentiation

For all the focus on automation and intelligence, NRF 2026 reinforced that technology does not replace experience; it enables it. Sessions on customer experience centered on elevating journeys from discovery to checkout.

Retailers are investing in immersive in-store environments, more creative loyalty strategies and tighter connections between digital and physical channels. The emphasis was on emotion and trust. Speakers repeatedly highlighted the human element – how technology should amplify brand connection rather than supersede it.

Experience-led commerce is pushing retailers toward more contextual, embedded and sometimes invisible payment moments. The best payment experiences are those customers barely notice because they feel natural and intuitive at the moment of decision.

Payments innovation, woven into the journey

Payments were rarely the headline act at NRF, but they were woven through almost every major theme.

Sessions explored how retailers are making better use of today’s expanding mix of payment models, from digital wallets and alternative payment methods to QR-based experiences and evolving pricing strategies. On the expo floor, next-generation checkout tools were showcased as part of omnichannel solutions.

Retailers are aligning payment choice with customer preference and context. Expect continued focus on unified carts, more digital wallet innovation, increased prominence of QR codes and deeper integration between loyalty and payments. Fragmentation becomes a thing of the past as the customer journeys become one holistic experience centred around the customer, wherever they are.

Unified commerce becomes non-negotiable

Omnichannel integration is now table stakes.

Retailers discussed the need to unify POS, e-commerce, mobile, loyalty and inventory systems into a single, coherent view. Customers are becoming less forgiving when their experience is broken.

That expectation extends to payments. Wherever a transaction begins or ends, unified commerce demands a consistent payment experience: same items in the cart, same discounts applied and, of course, same fraud controls.

Unseen foundations matter more than ever

Operational excellence was another core theme.

AI-powered inventory management, autonomous operations and reverse logistics were all in focus, alongside the growing importance of sustainability and efficiency. Frontline workforce technology – from gamified training to smarter employee tools – also featured.

These back-end capabilities shape the customer experience in ways shoppers may never see directly but can still feel. They influence settlement timing, reconciliation, risk management and the overall cost of accepting payments across channels. When operations work better, experiences improve, helping to keep customers satisfied and coming back.

The enduring truth

NRF 2026 showed an industry speeding into an AI-powered future. Intelligence is becoming embedded across retail operations and commerce journeys.

The retailers pulling ahead are not chasing AI for its own sake, but using it to reduce friction, build trust and deepen connection with the customer. They are designing systems that respond to individuals’ tastes, needs and values.

AI may now be everywhere in retail, but the customer remains its beating heart.

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