Three Key Takeaways for the "Practical" Retailer

Walking the floor at NRF 2026, it was impossible to miss the sea of robots and repeated AI agent demos. But beneath the futuristic sheen, a common frustration emerged: when every demo looks identical, how do you differentiate your brand?

Here are our three primary takeaways for retailers looking to build next week, not next decade.

Nearly every vendor on the expo floor at NRF was pitching AI agents or agentic capabilities. These technologies certainly paint a picture of increased efficiency while driving a better customer experience. But the reality is that the retail shopper can’t distinguish an agentic experience from a simple AI conversation, and frankly, customers don’t care.They just want to get service when they need it and fast. Retailers should listen to that gut feeling that questions whether they want to introduce an AI agent to their customers and have that be the intermediary in the relationship. Especially not when it’s possible to build seamless, outcome-driven AI experiences that are grounded in determinism. 

It’s easy to get distracted by futuristic solutions but let’s be honest: most of what was shown on the expo floor isn't practical for a retailer needing results today. Much ado was made last year about the extraordinary gap between the AI projects that make it to production and those that never leave the pilot phase. This has retailers staying grounded and looking for practical solutions that drive business outcomes. Whether you want to cut costs or drive more revenue, your AI technology should provide a clear path toward achieving those goals.

Volume is not a strategy. Just throwing AI at every part of your business won’t solve problems; in fact, it often breaks the trust and loyalty you’ve spent years building. Customers are beginning to show backlash against AI-only support that feels impersonal or inaccurate. The key is intentionality — identifying exactly where AI will create the most impactful, personalized experience without losing the "human touch" that defines luxury and brand loyalty.

At NLX, we’ve built our platform to address these exact concerns. We aren't here to show you what 2050 could look like; we want to show you what your next week can look like.

• Bespoke orchestration: We don’t believe in slapping generic AI on a problem. Our platform lets you map out complex conversation flows and define strict logic gates so your AI application behaves exactly like your brand.
• Patented innovation: Our Voice+™ technology shines by synchronizing voice and digital channels in real-time—allowing your AI to "show and tell" simultaneously rather than leaving your customer hanging in IVR hell.
• Empowering business teams: We make AI easy. Our no-code builder allows your business teams—the people who know your customers best—to build and update experiences instantly with zero-downtime deployments.
• Enterprise accountability: We handle the "hallucination" and security concerns with strict guardrails and granular forensics, so you can focus on building trust, not just tech

Retail AI shouldn't be a mystery, and it shouldn't take a decade to deploy.

Speak to an our team today.