The 25 innovators giving retailers a glimpse of the Next Now
The invitation-only showcase brought together 25 companies selected by NRF’s Innovation Advisory Committee, which includes industry leaders, venture capitalists, major retailers and technology accelerators.
The committee applies four qualifications to determine potential participants: problem relevance, significance of the challenge, product-market fit and scalability.
That sets the showcase apart from a traditional start-up area. The aim is not simply to identify interesting technologies, but to highlight companies whose products could address challenges retailers are already facing, from fragmented data and in-store productivity to product discovery, supply-chain risk and customer retention, explains Seth Webb, EVP at Tusk Strategies.
Generative AI gives way to agents capable of taking action
The largest group of companies represented this year illustrates the rapid shift from generative AI used as a productivity tool towards AI agents capable of taking action.
Alhena AI presents itself as a growth platform for agentic commerce, while Alpic is seeking to bring a retailer’s store directly into ChatGPT. Dema offers an agentic operating system for brands and retailers, while Duvo develops AI agents designed to run retail operations.
This trend also extends to specific areas of commerce. Coframe applies AI to website conversion optimisation, while Good Growth focuses on real-time decision-making in commerce. NeuCurrent targets customer retention, while Profitmind focuses on decision intelligence.
On the consumer side, Shoptimus AI is developing an AI-powered shopping agent for grocery, while YesPlz AI applies AI to fashion search and product discovery. Topsort, meanwhile, is building AI infrastructure for commerce and advertising media, while The Shelf focuses on influencer-led growth.
What these companies have in common is the shift from AI that simply recommends or generates content towards systems capable of making decisions, personalising interactions or carrying out specific steps in the commercial process.
This evolution matters because broader NRF research suggests that the next stage of AI adoption will depend on the ability to harmonise fragmented data, automate personalised digital experiences and enable agents to negotiate or act across different retail processes.
“What we have in this space is a genuinely curated group of technology providers. After launching this initiative ten years ago in New York, we have seen many of the companies that originally took part go on to be acquired by major technology companies or raise significant amounts of capital,” Webb explains.
Giving physical stores the same level of intelligence as digital
The second area focuses on one of retail’s major technology challenges: how to give physical stores the same level of intelligence that retailers have developed online.
Cartesian Systems addresses this challenge in a very practical way, using technology to locate products inside stores. MetraLabs brings robotics into the physical retail environment with robots designed to scan shelves, guide customers and display advertising.
Cyreen is developing an anonymous “cookie” for physical stores, exploring how retailers can better understand offline behaviour without simply replicating the tracking models used online.
Gennoctua is working on AI-powered contactless virtual try-on technology, while Complir applies AI to physical product compliance.
Less visible technologies that are essential to commercial performance
The third area focuses on a less visible, but often more commercially important, part of the retail sector.
Becausal is developing a purchasing intelligence layer for consumer goods, while CartConnect uses recipes to improve the grocery shopping experience.
Maeve AI focuses on product optimisation, with the explicit aim of reducing waste. Mondra Global uses AI to simulate supply-chain risks, while UnAbandon AI seeks to match supply and demand in order to improve profitability.
The physical world is also strongly represented. Starship Technologies brings autonomous last-mile delivery for grocery retailers to the showcase, while Nairos presents its solution as a professional operating system combining humans and AI.
Artiso AI targets fashion brands, while Dema addresses the wider ecosystem of brands and retailers.
A concentrated selection of emerging technologies
For retailers, the value of visiting the showcase lies in this concentration of solutions. NRF brings together hundreds of exhibitors across AI, data, e-commerce, payments, supply chain and in-store technology.
The Innovators Showcase highlights 25 companies that have already gone through a selection process led by industry professionals.
The companies were located on the Innovation Stage in Hall 4, where they demonstrated how their solutions address some of the sector’s key challenges. NRF also offered guided Emerging Tech Tours allowing visitors to explore the showcase.
As NRF Europe is built around the theme “The Next Now”, the showcase offers something more tangible than simply predicting the future of retail.
“The Innovation Showcase is where retailers can discover what is coming next in commerce through a curated selection brought together in one place,” Webb explains.
Alhena AI · Alpic · Artiso AI · Becausal · CartConnect · Cartesian Systems · Coframe · Complir · Cyreen · Dema · Duvo · Gennoctua · Good Growth · Maeve AI · MetraLabs · Mondra Global · Nairos · NeuCurrent · Profitmind · Shoptimus AI · Starship Technologies · The Shelf · Topsort · UnAbandon AI · YesPlz AI