6 Emerging AI Innovations for Retail in 2025: Predictions by Jiwon Hong

Our previous post explored key insights on adopting AI in retail from a fashion retailer's perspective. We featured observations from Adam Sloane, a digital product leader who’s seen the tech shift from the inside. 

This time, let’s switch perspectives. We’re getting inside the mind of someone bridging the worlds of AI and fashion. Ever wondered what an AI innovator sees that others might miss? How do they envision the future of AI for retail while building the very technologies that will shape it? 

To answer those questions, meet our CEO, Jiwon Hong. She is one of the pioneering fashion AI innovators and the founder of YesPlz AI. Her perspective offers a compelling glimpse into how AI is changing the retail industry. 

Here are six takeaways from the conversation with this fashion AI visionary.

#1 AI Shopping Agents Will Revolutionize How We Buy Online

"Shopping agents solve a distribution problem: Products today are scattered across countless online stores. This AI-powered assistant crawls thousands of websites to find the perfect match for each shopper. It isn’t limited to just a few websites like humans."

Most shoppers only visit two or three websites when buying online. We simply don't have the time and patience to search through dozens. A shopping agent is poised to change this dynamic completely. It handles the entire shopping process by doing all the heavy lifting. Specifically, a shopping agent searches for products, compares their features, ensures the right size, reads reviews, and negotiates prices.

Best of all? It does this across thousands of sites instantly. That’s beyond what any human shopper can do. It gathers the best options and lays out the top choices for shoppers. This is a glimpse into the future of AI in retail, where intelligent agents handle the legwork. Shoppers simply enjoy the fun part: picking their favorite. 

#2 Retail’s Future: AI Agents on Both Sides of the Shopping Experience

Tomorrow's retail landscape won't be powered by retailer-side shopping agents alone. According to Jiwon, we'll see a much more complex ecosystem. It will feature AI agents on both sides of the shopping journey. 

"Retailers will have their own set of agents: one for merchandising, one for inventory management, one for sales, and more. Shoppers, meanwhile, will rely on personal shopping agents that work on their behalf. These two kinds of agents, retailer-side and shopper-side, will communicate directly. They help shoppers effortlessly find what they're looking for."

Retailers might still employ salespeople. Yet, as humans, their scalability is limited. Specialized AI agents will supplement human roles by doing what people can’t. For example, scaling up personalized service to thousands of shoppers at once.

#3 Retail’s AI Race: Those Who Leverage Multiple Models Will Stay Ahead

When asked about her most striking experience with AI, Jiwon pointed to the sheer speed of progress. 

"The speed of AI technology development is mind-blowing. There have been more AI breakthroughs in the past four months than in the previous four years. AI models are getting better, faster, and cheaper day by day."

Technologies that once seemed years away are now arriving in months or weeks. This exponential pace is accelerating the adoption of AI in the retail industry more than ever before.

Jiwon’s advice to retailers: Don’t rely on a single AI model. Test different ones, as each has its own strengths and weaknesses. Gemini is great with a large context. Cerebras and Groq excel at fast inference. Claude offers smart capabilities at a medium price point. And ChatGPT is strong in image generation. 

Combine or separate these models to find the best fit for your needs. Keep in mind, this rule may change tomorrow as these technologies are fiercely competing and evolving. However, this experimental approach will allow retailers to adapt quickly as new, more powerful AI technologies emerge.

#4 Specialized AI Models Will Outperform General Purpose AI Tools

Not all AI solutions are created equal, especially AI in retail. So what sets specialized AI models apart from general-purpose tools?

Specifically trained models have three distinct advantages:

• Retailer-Specific Customization

• Domain-Specific Knowledge Integration

• Optimized Cost and Response Time

Retailer-Specific Customization

Specialized AI is trained exclusively on a retailer’s product catalog. This ensures that all recommendations come directly from what that retailer actually sells. What happens if a retailer builds AI models leveraging general-purpose tools like ChatGPT? 

These tools often suggest products from across the internet. It doesn’t consider whether those items are available in the retailer's inventory. For this reason, it’s difficult for the retailer to fine-tune them for their eCommerce store.

Domain-Specific Knowledge Integration

A general AI system maintains broad knowledge across countless topics. Meanwhile, a specialized AI model devotes all its resources to mastering a single industry. Hence, it harnesses solutions with richer context and industry-specific intelligence.

Optimized Cost and Response Time 

By focusing exclusively on a single industry, specialized AI models eliminate unnecessary computational overhead. They don’t waste resources processing irrelevant information from other domains? This results in faster response times and lower operational costs. 

Specialized retail AI solutions are built with real-world shopping workflows in mind. For example, YesPlz AI leverages computer vision to extract detailed fashion attributes from product images and match them to shoppers’ queries. This targeted approach delivers precise results in milliseconds. 

This level of domain-specific customization and performance optimization gives specialized AI a clear edge. This is something ChatGPT and other general models simply aren’t built to offer.

With these advantages in mind, how can retailers begin adopting AI solutions for their eCommerce?

#5 AI Takes the Lead: Replacing Repetitive Operations First

Perhaps the most compelling business case for AI comes from the dramatic operational efficiencies it can create.

YesPlz AI helped one of clients cut operational costs by 70% by automating a 21-step product data process. Previously, this fashion retailer relied on part-timers to extract product details from images. They then translated and edited the content to fit their fashion website. 

With YesPlz AI, this entire workflow is now automated. The AI model handles OCR, translation, and size conversion. And it even generates editor’s notes across multiple languages. By automating repetitive tasks, retailers can redirect human resources toward creative work that AI cannot replicate.

#6 Those Who Experiment—Through POCs and Innovative Programs—Will Define What’s Next

Unsure where to begin with AI? Jiwon recommends starting small with a proof of concept (POC) program. 

"Leverage POC programs. They’re the best opportunity for retailers and AI startups to learn from each other. It’s a cost-effective way to explore AI without building everything from scratch."

YesPlz's experience with their POC partners shows how these collaborations create real value. Even retailers with in-house resources benefit from testing specialized solutions first. A POC program helps retailers:

• Gain hands-on experience

• Reduce the risks of large-scale implementation

• See how well an AI solution fits into existing workflows

The Future of AI in Retail? AI-Powered but Human-Centered

As our conversation with Jiwon made clear, the future of retail will be profoundly shaped by AI. Yet, its ultimate goal isn't to replace human creativity or decision-making but to enhance it.

The retailers who start exploring these solutions today will be the ones defining the shopping experiences of tomorrow.

Ready to explore how AI is changing the retail industry? Contact YesPlz AI today to discuss a tailored POC program for your fashion eCommerce. Or, request a demo of our fashion discovery lab to see first-hand how AI solutions can transform your shopper experience.