Key takeaways:
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E-commerce marketing dollars are following changing shopping habits, with brands increasingly investing in AI commerce and savings platforms as consumers use these tools to discover products, compare options, and make purchasing decisions.
David’s Bridal Taps AI to Reduce E-Commerce Fraud Friction
David’s Bridal is strengthening its digital shopping experience with AI-powered fraud prevention technology from Forter, implemented with Chief Digital Agency, as CSA reports. The retailer faces an unusual e-commerce challenge: behaviors that are perfectly normal when shopping for a wedding—such as infrequent purchases, several shipping destinations connected to one billing address, or the use of freight forwarders—can resemble fraud to traditional detection systems. By applying more sophisticated transaction decisioning, David’s Bridal aims to identify actual fraud while allowing more legitimate orders to proceed without unnecessary friction. The initiative is also part of the retailer’s broader push to modernize its business with AI and digital technology, spanning customer communications, wedding planning, commerce, and other parts of the wedding journey, according to CSA.
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AI and Savings Tools Are Reshaping E-Commerce Marketing Budgets
As consumers increasingly turn to AI, cashback apps, and savings platforms to compare prices and find better deals, e-commerce marketers are preparing to follow them with their budgets. New research from Northwestern University’s Retail Analytics Council and Minty, based on a survey of 150 senior commerce decision-makers, found marketers plan to direct 63 cents of every new marketing dollar toward AI commerce tools and cashback and savings apps instead of traditional digital advertising. The shift could accelerate as AI becomes a more influential shopping gateway: 79% of respondents expect their primary customer to be AI-assisted in 2027, while two-thirds believe AI will become their primary way of reaching shoppers. Brands are also embracing “proactive commerce,” which puts value-focused messaging in front of consumers—and potentially their AI agents—earlier in the purchase journey, signaling a broader move from marketing designed primarily for clicks and searches toward influencing AI-assisted product discovery and decision-making.
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Mastercard Prepares for a Future Where AI Agents Can Shop for You
AI shopping agents are moving closer to being able to complete purchases on a consumer’s behalf, with Mastercard introducing an agentic payment option through a partnership with AI startup Alchemy, as The Wall Street Journal reports. The approach allows consumers to give an AI agent access to a virtual payment credential while establishing controls around factors such as spending limits, product categories, and approved retailers. Depending on the permissions selected, an agent could search for products, monitor prices, and complete transactions automatically—or request approval before buying. Other major payment networks are also developing technology and standards for AI-driven commerce, suggesting the payments industry is preparing for shopping experiences in which software agents play a much larger role. However, adoption will depend heavily on consumer trust and on resolving questions around security, fraud, authorization, and responsibility when an AI agent makes an unwanted or incorrect purchase, according to The Wall Street Journal.
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