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DATA, AI & SEAFOOD RETAIL

Data, AI & seafood retail

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By: The Fishmonger

The Fishmonger was invited to a seminar recently by CI&T, an information technology and software development company with expertise in the automotive, hi-tech, financial, insurance, manufacturing, media, retail, life sciences and healthcare industries. It was a learning experience that is important to share with you all and just like all industries, there is a “language” to understand!

The Fishmonger was invited to a seminar recently by CI&T, an information technology and software development company which started in Brazil in 1995 and has now spread its wings to the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Portugal, China, Colombia, Japan, and Australia.

The company has expertise within the automotive, hi-tech, financial, insurance, manufacturing, media, retail, life sciences and healthcare industries. It was a learning experience that is important to share with you all and just like all industries, there is a “language” to understand!

DATA, AI & SEAFOOD RETAIL

Most small operators are in survival mode and will find reasons why they have taken their eyes off looking too far into the future but the larger organizations/supermarkets chains, etc. have the staff and time to not only investigate the future but also in vesting to increase their market share.

“In the six months since ChatGPT (AI model that uses deep learning to generate human-like text based on prompts) launched, the world has woken up to the vast potential of AI.”

The unparalleled pace of AI discoveries, model improvements and new products on the market puts data and AI strategy at the top of conversations across every organization around the world. There is a strong belief that AI will usher in the next generation of product and software innovation, and you are already seeing this play out in many industries.

The strong word is that the next generation of winning companies and executives will be those who under stand and leverage AI. In a report that was tabled at the seminar, they examined patterns and trends in data and AI adoption across more than 9,000 global actors.

By unifying business intelligence (BI) and AI applications across companies’ entire data estates, organizations like CI&T can provide a unique vantage point into the state of data and AI, including which products and technologies are the fastest growing, the types of data science and machine learning (DS/ML) applications being developed and more.

Across all industries, companies leverage data science and machine learning (DS/ML) to accelerate growth, improve predictability and enhance customer experiences.

“Recent advancements in large language models (LLMs) are propelling companies to rethink AI within their own data strategies. What crossed the Fishmongers minds was ‘how will small fish retailers compete?’”

For those that think business will remain the same for ever and ever perhaps this article is not for you – look away now! As Brad Ryan, the Analytics and Machine Learning Partner Development Lead at Amazon Web Services, highlighted during his presentation “Your Data is Your Differentiator”.

The sad point is that smaller companies are unlikely to be saving and storing their data, not appreciating its value, so let us hope this will be a “light bulb” moment.

According to Brad “Innovation can transform industries and generative AI is the key” highlighting that McKinsey has forecast that AI can add 2.6-4.4 trillion to the global economy. The key is data, and label ling data is essential.

“Machine learning has been around 70/80 years with simple inputs and simple outputs and we then moved into the Deep Learning stage (complex inputs – simple outputs) and this has now turned into Foundation Models (complex inputs – complex outputs). Whether it is enhancing Customer experiences; boosting employee productivity & creativity or optimizing business processes the opportunities abound. The industries which are currently engaging are healthcare & life sciences; industrial & manufacturing; financial services and retail,” said Brad Ryan.

“We also learned that there is not going to be one model and that there is always going to be new better models coming onto the market, so newcomers should choose smaller/ cheaper models, understanding that they will be superseded as the market expands.”

Anyone that watches Fox sports will get an understanding of how the data is used in real-time statistics for commentators and, the advantage is that as you join the program, it gives you a short catch up. This is not the commentators having an enormous depth of knowledge, but the AI working with the data.

DATA, AI & SEAFOOD RETAIL

When it comes to retail, we heard from Rosanna Iacono, CEO and Founder of The Growth Activists and The Future Laboratory who gave some fascinating insights into actions already taking place.

“People worldwide, especially since COVID-19 lockdowns, are adapting to rising prices, reassess ing their consumption habits, and seeking more cost-effective options. In this context, the Inflation Cook book, a Canadian initiative, emerges as a valuable resource, empowering consumers to save money through data-driven, budget-friendly meal planning.”

The Yellow Sticker Cookbook, a British app that helps shoppers find recipes for foods they have found marked down in their local super market. Now, a food delivery service has launched Canada’s first Inflation Cookbook which takes that to a different level as it uses AI to track grocery prices and serve up cost-conscious recipes.

“SkipTheDishes is an online food delivery and pickup app, part of Just Eat Takeaway.com, a leading global online food delivery marketplace. The app connects millions of customers with over 30,000 restaurant partners in Canada.”

They saw a challenge in that food insecurity is reaching record high rates across Canada. Many people have slowed down their visits to restaurants and home delivery of fast food and fuelled by rising food prices, food bank use rose to its highest level in 2022 according to Food Banks Canada.

Typically, when times get tough, Canadians tend to reach for lower priced packaged foods, ones that are likely to be more processed and less healthy. Because of this, a major challenge facing Canadians (or anyone) today is how to afford healthy food when it feels increasingly out of reach.

SkipTheDishes worked with Dentsu Creative Canada with the aim to help people source affordable, nutritious food and maximize their grocery budgets. They came up with this solution, an inflation fighting tool, you might say, and it is called the Inflation Cookbook which is a grocery shopping tool that predicts the biggest price drops of the week and generates chef-inspired, and nutritionist vetted recipes based on those ingredients – turning real-time price volatility into healthy and delicious real-time savings.

“Tracking prices of 400+ ingredients across major retailers in 80 locations, Inflation Cookbook’s adaptable platform is designed for seamless expansion. Its data-driven nature means it can easily accommodate inputs from different regions and markets beyond Canada, making it a versatile solution for budget-conscious con sumers globally.”

On the platform, users first select their province, household size and weekly grocery budget. Then, based on real-time price data, the cookbook app highlights ten items with significant price reductions, say a 20% drop for cheddar cheese or 13% for russet potatoes, as an example.

Next, the Inflation Cookbook displays seven recipes that incorporate those ingredients to make meal planning accessible and convenient. The recipes are generated with the help of AI and curated by human chefs and nutritionists.

Powered by real-time pricing data, to help Canadians eat healthy for less, the Inflation Cookbook reflects the values of food delivery app SkipExpressLane by championing healthy, well-priced fresh groceries while also promoting their partner ship with Food Banks Canada. You can see more at www.inflationcookbook.com.

The strong word is that the next generation of winning companies and executives will be those who understand and leverage AI.

The results have been quite staggering:

✓ 28,600 weekly users.

✓ US$ 21.8 M in total savings for Canadian families projected by December 2023.

✓ 400 million media impressions.

✓ 355+ pieces of press coverage.

You can see how this will drive more business for large supermarket chains but, equally, you can see how this will impact smaller retailers who are not engaged in the platform.

Rosanna said “As we move through 2023 and beyond, customer expectations around value will continue to evolve, with long-lasting implications for businesses. To stay relevant and foster loyalty, brands should consider integrating ‘savings by de sign’ into their overall strategies.”

The Fishmonger has decided, subject to good health, that this might be a good time to get back on the continual lifelong learning journey and, as such, has enrolled to do an MBA.

The world is constantly changing and if you are not considering how to keep up then it might just pass you by and it’s better to be ‘dying to live’ than ‘living to die’!

References and sources consulted by the author on the elaboration of this article are available under previous request to our editorial staff.

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