For eBay, AI is ride or die

"If you're not doing AI today, don't expect to be around in a few years," says Japjit Tulsi, VP of engineering at eBay, "It really is that important for companies to invest in -- especially commerce companies." Tulsi will speak next week at MB 2017, July 11 and 12 in SF, MobileBeat's flagship event where this year we've gathered more than 30 brands to talk about how AI is being applied in businesses today. It has focused on the potential of AI for the past ten years. The company's approach to AI has been built on a platform of research and development, Tulsi says, plus decades of insights and data about consumer behavior, making even the simplest applications incredibly valuable. As an example, Tulsi points to the merchandizing strip at the bottom of every item page, which shows similar items that a shopper might be intrigued by, and often leads them down a positive rabbit hole of shopping and buying.