Report: data, AI and the IoT will dominate the future of Ecommerce

From all recent indications, the future of e-commerce will undergo vast changes in the coming years. Brands and retailers who want to succeed in this new landscape will need to turn to technology -- specifically AI and the IoT -- to learn about their customers and, in turn, build deep and lasting consumer relationships, according to a recent report. The report, carried out by Internet Retailing and PA Consulting, found that modern retail's intense reliance on data will only deepen as more and more brands grow their own e-commerce presence and sell directly to consumers. And because of this, online retailers will no longer have the monopoly on data that they once enjoyed over brands. The report, named "The direct-to-consumer challenge", also found that the rise of AI and the IoT will drive this ever-increasing dependence on data to understand consumers as more everyday products and household items will progressively start gathering huge swaths of information and be able to perform menial functions like purchases to refill supplies.