Last week, tens of thousands of retail professionals packed the Jacob K. Javits Center in Manhattan for NRF 2026, the Big Show, to network and connect, but also to figure out whether AI shopping can deliver real results.

Agentic AI was the focal point of this year’s discussions with retailers and technologists coming together to deliver solutions. As agentic capabilities start to take real shape with big announcements from Google and Walmart being the star of the show, execution of agentic AI became a major talking point this year for everyone in attendance, both on- and offstage.

Microsoft announced that you can buy products on its AI assistant Copilot. In a smaller vein, rival OpenAI made its presence felt in a panel discussion with Target with two company executives talking about its ChatGPT integration.

The reality of an AI agent independently shopping for people is expected to take hold faster than anyone expected, all while still keeping humans in the loop. The future, experts said, will be much more autonomous as people move from keyword searches to natural conversations when shopping online. However, it remains to be seen if this is merely a show of bragging rights for retailers or a genuine shift in shopping behavior.

Keep reading here.—VC

Tennis may not be everyone’s favorite sport, but it’s arguably one of the hottest cultural properties right now. And if Zendaya’s 2024 hit movie Challengers didn’t make the case for it already, the influencer frenzy and TikTok content surrounding events like the US Open certainly has.

According to Tennis Australia’s director of partnerships and international business, Roddy Campbell, however, the Australian Open probably gets a little less love than the other Grand Slams.

“We don’t have Manhattan or Paris on our doorstep,” Campbell told Retail Brew. “We are quite isolated from the world, so we have to really work hard to draw people down to Melbourne and to keep people from Australia coming year on year.”

That’s also partly why event producers have aggressively leaned into brand activations and sponsorships. The 2025 Australian Open counted more than 50 sponsors, up 35% from 2024, including retailers and brands such as Ralph Lauren, Louis Vuitton, Shake Shack, New Balance, Marriott, Mastercard, Chubb, Mars, and Roblox—and this year’s event is expected to add even more names to that list.

Keep reading here.—JS

A faction of Home Depot investors led by Zevin Asset Management, which owns over $7 million in company stock, is requesting the home improvement retailer “review its partnership with surveillance firm Flock Safety and state how its data is used and shared with law enforcement,” according to a recent Reuters report. The shareholder proposal has 17 co-filers.

The call for an inquiry follows independent media reports about Home Depot’s data-sharing practices, as well as increased scrutiny of the retailer amid Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests.

The home improvement chain has become a flash point amid the Trump administration’s increasingly violent deployment of ICE, given the retailer’s reputation as a gathering place for day laborers.

Keep reading here on CFO Brew.—NP

Tired of one-size-fits-all job boards? CollabWORK highlights roles that reflect your interests and goals—delivered through communities like Retail Brew. Click here to explore the full job board.

• Sr Operations Specialist at REI
• Manager, State and Local Government Relations at Home Depot
• Retail Sales Lead - Omaha NE Territory at WK Kellogg Co
• Regional Purchasing / Trade Manager at Warren Equipment Company
• Midmarket Business Development Manager - ShopperTrak Analytics at Johnson Control