Artificial intelligence the next 'big bet' for online retailers, say bosses

Artificial intelligence is the key to the future of online retail, business bosses have said, providing a crucial way to help shoppers find what they want. Alex Baldock, chief executive of Shop Direct, which runs very.co.uk and Littlewoods, told the Telegraph Festival of Business in London that artificial intelligence was the company's "big bet". "You have three seconds to seize the shopper's attention - it's called thumb stopping, the three-second audition," Mr Baldock said. "That's where personalisation comes in." Shop Direct is owned by Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay, proprietors of Telegraph Media Group, the publisher of the Daily Telegraph.