Fujitsu, a technology company, has introduced a groundbreaking AI module for retailers, designed to create AI avatars and personalized promotional content on digital signage, based on consumers’ in-store behavior data.
In collaboration with the Retail AI Institute, Fujitsu will commence testing the technology in actual stores at the Aruk Mitajiri Store, a supermarket operated by Marukyu Co., Ltd., located in Hofu City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, starting August 3.
The new AI solution aims to address challenges like labor shortages through automation while catering to customers’ unique needs with innovative yet practical AI solutions. By leveraging both generative AI and Fujitsu’s advanced human sensing technology, the module enhances the shopping experience, enabling retailers to improve sales targeting through dynamic and engaging promotions that react to customer gestures indicating interest.
The technology generates customized avatars and product information, maintaining customer privacy by processing data in a secure format. Following field trials with customers, Fujitsu plans to launch the new solution during fiscal 2023 as a module for its AI platform, “Fujitsu Kozuchi,” allowing businesses to rapidly test and deploy advanced AI technologies.
The AI module empowers retailers to achieve various goals, including multiple promotional measures selection, automation of effect measurement, and sales improvement. Combining generative AI for content creation and Fujitsu’s Actlyzer technology, which analyzes customer gestures and movements through camera data, the module ensures a customer-centric shopping experience.
During the module’s development, Fujitsu sought the expertise of a research group led by Naoto Onzo, Director of the Institute of Marketing and Communication at Waseda University in Japan. The research emphasized marketing principles suggesting that warmth, competence, and product design influence consumer buying decisions.
The AI module’s model was trained to estimate behavior transition probabilities based on individual customer behavior and attribute data analyzed by the human sensing technology. This allows the AI module to deliver personalized and engaging information tailored to each customer’s interests, such as providing content that aligns with customer behavior, like bending down toward a shop display or picking up a product.
Fujitsu’s new AI avatar module promises to revolutionize the retail industry by offering dynamic and customer-centric promotions, ultimately enhancing the shopping experience and meeting individual customer needs with precision and efficiency.
