How Latin American retailers will put AI into practice

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The stat: Nearly 80% of companies in Latin America are already working with AI, and 17.5% plan to start doing so in 2024, according to a September 2023 NTT Data and MIT Technology Review survey. This rapid adoption prompted many to double down on their training efforts to harness AI’s full potential for increased efficiency and greater competitiveness.

In an excerpt from our recent deep dive into Latin American trends to watch for 2024, we share how businesses will formalize their relationships with AI in the coming year to get an edge on their competitors and drive success.

Getting ahead: Adults in Latin America are markedly more comfortable with companies that use AI than those in Europe, according to a June 2023 Ipsos survey. Retailers have taken note of these shifting attitudes and are leveraging AI to improve consumers’ shopping experiences and everyday lives. A few examples include:

  • Magazine Luiza incorporated AI into its virtual influencer, Lu, to serve more relevant and personalized product recommendations to shoppers in Brazil.

  • Mercado Libre ramped up its AI efforts to boost logistics efficiency and reach its goal of delivering 80% of all orders within 48 hours in cities including Medellín—Colombia’s second-largest ecommerce market. The company also plans to use AI in countries like Mexico to adapt delivery times and locations to customers’ individual preferences.

  • Grupo Éxito is deploying the technology in its employee-free store in Uruguay to optimize business processes and improve the shopping experience, modeled on Amazon Go in the US. Grupo Éxito could pave the way for competitors to follow suit.

Our predictions: At a time when many enterprises and organizations are forced to do more with fewer resources, generative AI (genAI) has quickly become a powerful tool. Here’s what we expect to see:

  • Companies will upskill their employees to unleash AI’s full potential. Workers are feeling the pressure to use AI but are unsure how to get the most out of it. Businesses will take a more proactive approach to enable their workforces to capitalize on evolving AI technology.

  • GenAI will free marketers to focus on tasks that matter most. Whether it’s to summarize content, seek inspiration, or develop better processes, genAI is making marketers’ lives easier, while at the same time enhancing creativity.

  • Rapid AI adoption will prompt governments to act sooner rather than later. Several countries introduced AI measures in recent months, but no overarching regional regulation has made its way to the forefront. Expect Latin American governments to potentially take a page out of the EU’s playbook—attempting to strike a delicate balance between regulating the market and ensuring that innovation thrives—as AI makes further inroads into the regional economy. A wait-and-see approach is no longer an option.

Go further: For more trends to watch from the region in 2024, read our new report.