John Lewis strikes £100m Google deal to implement AI

John lewis waitroseJohn Lewis Partnership is hatching plans to implement a raft of artificial intelligence solutions on the back of a reported £100m deal with Google designed to bring the latest technology to the embattled retail group.

According to a report in The Times, the retailer is set to launch an AI customer service bot this year, while an augmented reality system, that will allow customers to see how furniture and household items look in their homes before buying, is also in development.

Last month the department store retailer launched a service allowing shoppers to virtually ‘try on’ their potential rental purchases, in partnership with fit software firm Zyler but its quests to recruit tech and data professionals dates back to May last year when it launched a major drive to bring on board more than 150 new staff.

The retailer sees AI as providing “more software per pound”, reducing the cost of hiring third-party software developers.

Speeding up analysis of the data the retailer collects would also allow offers to be “more timely, relevant and personalised”, chief technology officer Zak Mian has claimed, adding that no job cuts or store closures were planned as part of the move.

He continued: “There’s nothing like laying on a mattress or sitting on a sofa in the shop — it’s about weaving technology and expert partners together. [As for] the idea of AI driving thousands of thousands jobs out, for me it’s more a question of … making people more productive.”

Mian insists that the “bargain” Google deal “makes sense on a purely commercial basis, but the real value is the innovation that unlocks part of that broader transformation”.

John Lewis Partnership chief executive Nish Kankiwala added: “Core to our strategy is building our technology infrastructure for the long term, drawing on the latest innovations to benefit our customers.”

Last week, the John Lewis chain beefed up its online shopping expertise by drafting in a senior marketer from N Brown to spearhead a new team as head of customer planning and channels.

Andreas Nicolaides joined from his role as general manager of N Brown brand Simply Be, having held a number of group-wide roles since joining in 2019. Prior to that held senior digital roles at iProspect, MBNA, MEC and Moneysupermarket.

Related stories
John Lewis hires N Brown online chief to lead new unit
John Lewis hands advertising and loyalty brief to Saatchi
John Lewis recruits first group loyalty chief from Tesco
Waitrose hires chief to boost lifetime customer loyalty
John Lewis Partnership hunts 150 tech and data experts