NORA Retail and Consumer Goods Gen AI Summit

This week I immersed myself in all things Generative AI at the NORA ~ National Online Retailers Association at the Retail and Consumer Goods Gen AI Summit. The content was a bit nerdy yet relatable, and at times exciting, but also little frightening knowing what the technology is capable off.

Huge thanks to the team at NORA for hosting another fantastic event and inviting me to their leaders’ lunch partnered with Klaviyo and hosted by my friend and clothing designer/ retailer Liliana Rubiano at Tolu Australia.

I met some inspiring business owners pushing the boundaries with AI and really enjoyed the chats on the future with Rosanna Iacono, ethics, sustainability, operational efficiencies, and Behavioural Science with Brooke Eichhorn and Sonia Friedrich at behamics

Christelle Young, Managing Director, T2 Tea has me thinking about pros and cons of AI including:

• Pro: Demonstrated how her management  team uses Agents to auto-report inventory (low or overflow stock) and manage stock without daily manual work.
• Con: As a BCorp, AI brings sustainability challenges. Data centres are resource-heavy (power, water, etc.), so tracking usage and optimising efficiency is crucial to stay accountable and reduce environmental impact.

Shaeden Watson, your presentation was the perfect close, highlighting how emotion, empathy, and human connection matter and that we (humans) should change the way we think about AI and partner with it rather than presume (and be scared) that we are going to replace everyone with the technology.

A well-rounded agenda, a beautiful venue, and delicious food… although I may have overindulged on the cakes ( 🫠 that’s what happens at The Grounds of Alexandria). Looking forward to the next one!

What will I do with these learnings ?
 
1. Set up my own AI policy and an AI Agent as a single “brain” 🧠, remotely and privately, to help me use tools more effectively across different parts of my business and life. (Thanks Nicola Clement, for the reminder that humans and animals – only have one brain, so our AI should too.)
2. Challenge AI and ask why I should use it!
3. Remind myself of "why my clients choose to work with me and not AI?" ..... they value how I think: empathically, deeply, critically, creatively and with care.

How are you feeling about AI?

 Angelique Schierz-Crusius, Ampletides and Chana Imsirovic

Brooke Eichhorn and Sonia Friedrich at Behamics

Liliana Rubiano at Tolu Australia  and Chana Imsirovic