Why Retailers Are Investing in Edge Computing and AI

AI is a retailer's automated helper, acting as a smart assistant to suggest the perfect position for products in stores, accurately predict consumer demand, automate order fulfillment in warehouses, and much more. The technology can help retailers grow their top line, potentially improving net profit margins from 2 percent to 6 percent -- and adding $1 trillion in profits to the industry globally -- according to McKinsey Global Institute analysis. It can also help them hold on to more of what they already have by reducing shrinkage -- the loss of inventory due to theft, shoplifting, ticket switching at self-checkout lanes, etc. -- which costs retailers $62 billion annually, according to the National Retail Federation. For retailers, the ability to deploy, manage and scale AI across their entire distributed edge infrastructure using a single, unified platform is critical. Managing these many devices is no small feat for IT teams as the process can be time-consuming, expensive and complex.