Voice assistants evolve into AI-first interfaces—blending conversation, context, and control across ecosystems.

AI shopping assistants are boosting discovery and personalization, but trust issues and fulfillment challenges could limit their impact on channel migration.

The news: Amazon will pay The New York Times between $20 million and $25 million annually in a multiyear content licensing agreement that was announced in May. This amount, close to 1% of the Times’ total annual revenue, is one of the largest disclosed payments for news content licensing for generative AI (genAI) training. Our take: The Amazon–Times deal underscores the growing value of premium journalism in the AI era, setting a precedent for how tech companies can ethically license high-quality content. For advertisers, this signals a shift toward AI-powered platforms integrating trusted media brands, which could enhance user engagement and credibility.

Our analysts took a look at the first half of this eventful year and provided their own very specific—albeit unlikely—predictions at what could happen in the second half of the year and beyond.

The news: In-car voice commerce has the potential to unlock a $35 billion annual opportunity for automakers, according to new research by in-car voice technology provider SoundHound AI. The hands-free tech integrates voice ordering, payments, and navigation directly into vehicles—transforming them into mobile commerce hubs that users are already familiar with. Key takeaway: Marketers and advertisers should prepare for a shift in automotive user interface by integrating voice-first campaigns into connected car ecosystems. Opportunities include forging partnerships with automakers and service providers for branded voice experiences, sponsored suggestions, and frictionless ordering while prioritizing transparency to satisfy safety regulators.

As more consumers use voice assistants for shopping, brands should make sure their products are shoppable via voice, either on websites like Amazon or on their own sites.

Voice assistant adoption continues to grow, but the pace has slowed. Gen Z and seniors are key growth drivers, while smartphones and smart speakers remain central to the ecosystem as innovation and fresh competition shake up the sector.

While social commerce is on the rise in the US, livestream commerce has yet to take off. In addition, advances in technology (like ChatGPT) may help jumpstart voice commerce adoption. Here’s what marketers need to know to take advantage of the increase in physical and digital shopping channels.

Consumer device and behavior trends are affecting payment providers’ strategies across retail, P2P, B2B, disbursement, and cross-border channels. Here’s what that means for the payments ecosystem.

ChatGPT has fast become one of the biggest buzzwords in retail. But retailers remain cautious over its potential pitfalls, especially concerning direct interactions with customers. We delve into the future of generative AI and provide actionable steps for retailers and brands to prepare for its rise.

The pandemic accelerated payments industry digitization across the entire landscape, as merchants turned to ecommerce to keep doors open, consumers eschewed cash in favor of electronic and contactless payments, and payments technology providers rapidly developed and launched new solutions to keep up.

This report explores our latest forecasts for US voice assistant, smartphone voice assistant, and smart speaker users, and provides additional analysis about trends shaping the market.

Amazon Prime Day promises to be different in 2020 amid the backdrop of a pandemic, major shifts in consumer spending patterns, and a later-than-usual event timing.

This report features our latest forecasts for US voice assistant users, including those who use voice assistants on smartphones and smart speakers. It also provides an analysis of the trends shaping the market.

Amazon retired its Dash button in early March, but the branded device’s end wasn't a failure. We see it as a move to shift more replenishment buying into voice commerce.

Greater disposable income, easier automation, and a desire to research products and prices drive men’s paths to purchase via smart speaker more than women's.

Voice commerce holds promise. But, not everyone is comfortable—or even interested—in using their Amazon Echo or Google Home device to make a purchase (yet). Here’s what marketers need to know.

This report includes our forecast for smart speaker users in Canada, China, France, Germany, the UK and the US, along with a focus on adoption trends for Amazon and Google.

Voice commerce might one day change how people shop online. But for now, only a minority of consumers regularly use a voice-activated smart speaker to make purchases.

Retail is in the midst of a transformation, at both physical stores and online. This report examines 10 trends that will most shape retail in the year ahead.