Artificial intelligence is entering the advertising space of large retailers, from consumer search analysis to campaign planning to digital shopping assistants. Ahold Delhaize USA is piloting these applications through AD Retail Media, with an approach aimed at improving accuracy and efficiency while preserving the brands' identity and customer relationships.
Bobby Watts, Senior Vice President and Executive Lead of the division, explained the strategy in an interview with Grocery Dive at the Groceryshop conference in Las Vegas. The starting point is a trial on limited businesses to assess the benefits the technology can offer before expanding its use.
Over the course of the year, AD Retail Media introduced three artificial intelligence agents to its team. The goal is to speed up certain operations and refine the construction of advertising campaigns through a testing and learning process that directly involves employees.
One of the tools developed, called Agent Klik, analyzes how consumers search for products and returns recommendations to the ad management team. The recommendations focus on keywords and phrases used in searches, including emerging trends, helping marketers tailor their campaigns to their audience's interests.
The trial also includes everyday tasks, from reviewing emails to preparing presentations. For Watts, easing repetitive work represents one of the most immediate applications of AI, while on the customer side, the group has already launched a meal planning assistant and is working on a broader tool to assist with grocery shopping.
Consumer responses will be crucial in guiding its development. Watts cites the example of another large retailer that reported an increase in cart size associated with the use of the digital assistant: a possible effect of freeing up time, allowing customers to discover new items. However, this is an external experience, not a result attributed to Ahold Delhaize USA.
Greater caution is required when producing creative content. AI could enable the creation of thousands of variations and personalization of advertising messages, but entrusting this task entirely to AI would risk compromising a core element of brand identity. The five local brands the division works with therefore retain a key role in evaluating content for their respective markets.
Among the year's key milestones was the launch of the Edge platform on January 5th. A team is developing AI-based capabilities for media planning, cross-channel coordination, and campaign optimization.
At the same time, AD Retail Media has launched an in-store advertising network that complements its analog partnership with Inmar with digital screens. Strategy, investments, and screen installation are managed internally to precisely select the most effective locations. Extension to other areas of the stores will depend on advertiser demand and customer response.
