In 1969, the United States achieved the ultimate moonshot by landing the first human on the moon. This monumental success was fueled by prioritization and unprecedented investment—equivalent to $28 billion annually in today’s dollars. Fast forward to 2024, and the race to harness artificial intelligence (AI) has become the defining technological pursuit of our time, with companies (not countries) like Meta investing $40 billion in AI this year alone. In this high-stakes competition, eCommerce has emerged as one of the industries most transformed by AI’s rapid advancements.

The New Frontier: AI in eCommerce

FactFinder’s research, conducted in collaboration with Moweb Research, surveyed 300 decision-makers across Europe. The findings reveal that the adoption of AI in eCommerce continues to accelerate, but the approach has become increasingly strategic. Market leaders are moving beyond the initial hype, focusing instead on practical applications that deliver measurable outcomes.

Key Highlights

• Rising AI Budgets: 2025, 75.3% of eCommerce decision-makers plan to increase their AI spending compared to 2024. Median investments in 2024 ranged between €100,000 and €500,000.
• Impact on Revenue: AI applications like product recommendations, personalization, and search are driving sales increases of up to 22%. The top investment priority for decision makers in the next 12 months is AI personalization with 42,3%.
• Challenges in Data Privacy and Compliance: Data privacy, security concerns, and regulatory frameworks such as GDPR and the EU AI Act remain significant hurdles. Only 22% of upper management actively lead AI initiatives, resulting in fragmented adoption strategies.
• B2B eCommerce: Large B2B businesses interestingly spend more on AI initiatives than large B2C businesses. Overall B2B sees 13% higher revenue returns on their AI investments.
• Emerging Technologies: Tools like vector search are gaining traction, improving natural language search experiences and driving conversions. AI co-pilots are streamlining operations, saving time, and boosting revenue, though trust levels remain moderate at 6.3/10.
• AI Agents: With AI innovation accelerating, co-pilots and autonomous agents are set to take on more cognitive tasks, increasing automation and efficiency.

A Glimpse into the Future

The report anticipates a future where AI will evolve from co-pilots to autonomous agents capable of managing complex cognitive tasks. Innovations in Large Multimodal Models (LMMs) are expected to drive even greater advancements, transforming the eCommerce landscape further.

The ability to truly understand language and other data inputs, like images and voice, opens a new chapter for eCommerce. For the first time, eCommerce can create product discovery and shopping experiences that are as helpful as any local store interactions — delivered 1:1, 24/7 and at scale,” – Benedikt Mayer, VP of Marketing at FactFinder

Learn more: FactFinder Trend Report 2024/25